Jazzhands

I don’t think it’s that because the touchdown decks are at least 130 yards apart (field plus end zones), so it’d be hard for one group to see what the other is doing. My guess is that it’s also not an issue of facing toward or away from the fans, it’s an issue of facing toward the TV cameras. I think the fans are irrelevant to the equation because if they mattered at all, they wouldn’t be seated in rows where their view is blocked by the cheerleaders. There’s zero need to do that in a stadium that’s at, what, twenty percent capacity?

I don’t blame the new rookies at all. I blame TPTB for getting rid of vets and bringing in new rookies to replace them for the drama of a reality TV show on a minor cable network in the middle of this absolute shitshow of a year. A vets-only squad would’ve made the most sense if they would be able to perform in only a limited capacity, as has happened due to the NFL’s rules keeping cheerleaders off the field. Taking a few rookies to replace retiring vets — okay, fine. But cutting vets who know what they’re doing to bring in newbies who don’t? That makes zero sense to me. Hannah was a rockstar. Brennan and Lily were good, reliable performers. Meredith was the weakest in DCC style (although a fantastic dancer in her own style), but at least she knew the dances and what to do during a game. This was a mess. The girls next to Victoria were cringeworthy at times. But it’s not their fault. I blame Charlotte and Kelli for the team member changes and for putting the girls back on the touchdown decks, and I blame Judy for the blocking that put rookies next to each other. Yikes.

It’s also the 100th anniversary of the US extending the right to vote to women. I like seeing the NFL cheerleaders encouraging people to vote.

Yep, they’re NFL cheerleaders ... a feature, not a bug. 😉

I don’t disagree with you at all. I think they’d all look a lot younger and fresher if they went back to a more natural look, especially for cameos (I tend to think of field makeup as akin to stage makeup — it’s got to be overdone so you can see it from the cheap seats, so I’ll give that some leeway). The DCC management seems to love the overdone Barbie look — big hair, big smile, lots of makeup, hair extensions, fake eyelashes, fake tans, fake boobs, fillers, etc. It seems to be getting worse over the past several years. For some reason, having them all look like cast members on the Real Housewives franchise seems to be a feature, not a bug. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I agree and think they also look at entertainment value for the opening and closing solos. I may be forgetting some, but if I’m recalling correctly, they usually chose high-energy, upbeat and fun dances (Maddie’s JT routine and Cersten’s come immediately to mind). Holly’s solos were always really impressive to me but not particularly memorable, if that makes sense. I think Holly had the best technique I’ve seen on the team in years, but I wouldn’t have chosen her for point (triangle, absolutely). I like to see a natural entertainer/crowd pleaser at point — someone who’s really eye catching and looks like she’s having the absolute time of her life, and by that standard, Nicole H and Kashara have been two of my favorites even though neither was a highly trained technical dancer. I mean, they’re cheerleaders, not the Bolshoi, so they should look like they’re having fun. I would’ve chosen Megan C from Holly’s rookie group as point if she’d stayed around. She had a great balance of excellent technique coupled with being really fun to watch, kind of like Melissa W to me.

I’m fully prepared to get a lot of hate for this, but I think this is a great photo and I could see it on the cover of the sideline calendar selling tons of copies.

The Texas Whistleblower Act protects public employees who suffer an adverse employment action for reporting illegal activity by a public (i.e., governmental) employer or public official to an appropriate law enforcement agency. What happened to Hannah and Brennan sucks on a number of levels, but it doesn’t trigger legal protections for whistleblowers because the state law doesn’t apply in private employment situations and there are no federal laws directly on point. It might have become a PR problem for the DCC/Cowboys organization if Hannah or Brennan had gone to the press and alleged that they were cut either due to having had COVID-19 or voicing concerns about the organization’s compliance (or alleged lack thereof) with protocols, but they’re probably covered by NDAs and/or don’t want to see their names dragged through the mud as a couple of poor sports who are unhappy about being cut. Signed, a huge fan of Hannah’s who also happens to be a lawyer and is still spitting mad about her cut. I mean seriously, scroll back up a few posts, look at that screenshot, and then tell me with a straight face that she wasn’t in the top 36 girls who auditioned. Watch the “Fat Bottomed Girls” performance with Queen and tell me with a straight face that her pom technique isn’t strong enough to be on the team. If I rolled my eyes any harder, they’d fall out.

Keyra’s jump splits were stellar.

Total speculation on my part, but I think TPTB sent Maddie to the salon to tell Marshall that story (innocent mistake; girls are being benched for safety, not punishment) under the cover of the “weekend blowout” or however Marshall described it in the picture he posted with her, knowing that he’d post it. Cassie’s recent defense of the team/TPTB went over like a lead balloon, so they had to find another mouthpiece ... Or perhaps I’m just an evil genius and that’s what I’d do ... 😈

That part is cringeworthy.

I agree. Lisa’s dancing is very heavy and sharp; to me, she lacks fluidity and musicality. I don’t know her background, but I’d bet it’s cheer or gymnastics. I really liked Hannah and don’t buy any dance-related reason for her cut. She displayed a great balance between classical training and pom style. I thought Meredith was a beautiful dancer but she never got strong enough in DCC style, so I’m not surprised she was cut. I didn’t think either Brennan or Lily were the strongest dancers technically, but I thought they were solid and reliable blenders. And please understand that unlike Kelli, I don’t use the term “blender” as a pejorative when it comes to a dance team. You NEED them. I think Gina is probably the best dancer on the team right now and Holly Powell was the most talented in recent years, but I can’t imagine an entire team full of them. ETA: I didn’t mean to imply that I think Lisa’s a bad dancer or shouldn’t be on the team. I think she’d be more enjoyable to watch with some ballet or even contemporary instruction to learn to be a bit lighter and more fluid in her movements to balance out her power.

Focusing only on dance, the idea that Kat is still on the team and Hannah has been cut is MINDBLOWING. Especially if it’s true, as has been reported here, that Hannah’s cut is being spun as dance related. I’m a former dancer and I’m impressed not only by the flexibility shown in this screenshot of Hannah but moreso by her ingrained technique — look at her turnout even in that awkward position. My god.

I never understood why Lacey’s kicking herself in the face during tryouts was seen as a positive. Sure, she was flexible, but it was sloppy and out of control during tryouts on the giant screen when she should have been powerful, controlled. and concentrating. There is a gif online of Holly Powell executing a textbook jazz kick during tryouts. (I tried to upload it but got an error message saying that the file was too large.) Her back and neck are straight, her shoulders are down, her arm connecting to the next girl is straight, her leg is straight with her foot pointed throughout the kick, and the entire movement is sharp and precise. Even the smile on her face is perfectly controlled. I know Holly had her issues, but my god, her kicks were perfection.

It’s the Cell Block Tango from Chicago! I always thought her style would be a great fit for Bob Fosse’s choreography. I’d love to see her do Cabaret.

My high school drill team did jump splits back in the mid-eighties. Unlike what we see on the show with the DCC, we learned them over the course of a week in the dance studio on mats with individual instruction on technique. Not just, “Jump in the air, throw a split, and land in it.” I really hope that the girls who haven’t done them before are getting better instruction than what we see and the producers edit it out because it’s not exciting TV.

I forgot about the boob job! 😂

I was wondering that, too. Christina has never been one of my favorites, but in the clips I’ve seen from this year, she looks and dances better than she ever has.

Product placement, most likely.

That’s the best thing I’ve seen all day. You go, Jake!

I think Victoria looks gorgeous in these two photos. I used to dance, so I get the game-day makeup that can be seen all the way to the cheap seats, but I’ll never understand why they can’t have more fresh and natural-looking hair and makeup like this for their cameos and team photo. This is an “America’s Sweethearts” look in my opinion.

Given that their supposedly enormous pool of candidates appears to be shrinking every year, they need every auditioner they can get! 😉 Seriously, though, it’s not like the older women are being taken into training camp and “taking” a spot from anyone else.

It looks like her. I think I remember reading an article about her being a Rockette mentioning that she was also doing some modeling. I’m getting a kick out of these recent comments because Jacie and Brittany are two of my favorite DCCs ever. Which makes me think of another of my faves, Robyn, and what could’ve been a great answer for Julia during media training when asked about her future plans: “I love to dance and I was a broadcast journalism major, so I’d love to follow in the footsteps of someone like Robyn — be a DCC now and then become a news anchor in the future, and that way I can live all of my dreams!”

I think Meredith is beautiful and obviously a well-trained dancer, but her style is very fluid and not as sharp and powerful as needed for the DCC style. I would’ve cut her in the second or third week, told her to spend a year in power pom and hip hop classes, and then come back next year. I think she could ultimately be a rock star on this team, but she’s just not there yet. I do think she has improved a lot during training camp, but she’s not there yet. I feel similarly about Kat. She’s also gorgeous, has a big personality, and has more power on the field than Meredith, but her lack of dance training shows and she’s also still having lots of memory mistakes. She, too, has improved a lot but I still don’t think she’s field ready. With a year of dance classes under her belt, I think she could really be something special. I think both of them are really going to struggle this year. I would’ve cut them both weeks ago and hoped to see them back next year.

They do four counts per five yards, or an eight count over 10 yards when they’re traveling during the entrance. That’s quick. Typical marching band pace is eight counts to five yards.