2016 Tryouts and Training Camp Spoilers and Spoiled Speculations

[EricaShadows]

While I think it's good that they're taking a good, long look at the girls, I think they might be dragging it on a LITTLE too long for some of the girls.  They've probably already cut the obvious strugglers, whether it's in terms of dance or looks or something else that lets them know that this girl is not ready for the team this year for whatever reason.  Now, they're probably taking a good long look at the middle group, the ones that aren't so obvious.  The ones that are at the bottom of this group are the ones likely to get cut.  This group, at least to me, include Emily, Amy Simone, and possibly Kelsey.  If those three get cut (which I hope Emily and Kelsey DON'T), that means at least three others are on the chopping block as well.

Still, didn't Emily get cut much earlier in camp that last time she came through?  I wonder how Amy Simone made it this long (as I don't think she's a good match for the squad in terms of looks or technical skills) and if she'll be encouraged to come back another year.

[MyFavShows]

I remember Emily got cut right after makeovers (or at least that's how they portrayed it on the show) the last time. 

[MrsEVH]

1 hour ago, MyFavShows said:

I remember Emily got cut right after makeovers (or at least that's how they portrayed it on the show) the last time. 

I think it was funny that KD got cut before Emily. Wasn't she the 1st or 2nd cut?

Edited July 11, 2016 by MrsEVH

[Pinknblue]

15 hours ago, JC123 said:

I hope not, that would be such a shitty thing to do 

Yeah that would be super cruel & mean.

If I recall right, Txstar confirmed earlier that the squad could be no bigger than 36 due to wages. So the cuts are going to happen.

If I knew I was on the bubble, I'd be seeking to meet with Kelli and Judy to give me a realistic appraisal of my chances whilst I still had audition options elsewhere; I don't know if that would be seen as appropriate or acceptable, or viewed as not being "committed enough" to DCC - but really, to waste a year of life to simply be cannon fodder for late cuts in K&J's office is ridiculous.

Edited July 11, 2016 by Pinknblue

[PrincessLeia]

If 36 is the max, then shouldn't they just take the girls ranked 1-36 during Finals? I mean, if there's no chance they can have more than 36, don't the girls who are ranked 37 plus have about a zero percent chance of making the squad????

Before the 36 rule, when Kelli could take as many as she wanted, then it made sense to take 40 or 43 into camp, because there was no set number. 

 

Obviously if someone has to leave due to injury, or if someone has a Visa issue, there's room for more, but taking as many as they did into TC this year just seems mean considering Jones and Charlotte set her budget at 36.

Edited July 11, 2016 by PrincessLeia

[omgtv]

It would be interesting to see the top 36 on day 1 of training camp and how that compares to the final squad.

[PrincessLeia]

I get they need to take more than 36 to TC because there are injuries and issues. But it just seems like they took way more girls than necessary this year.

[RazzleberryPie]

Or maybe even take the top 40, so there's slightly some wiggle room for the last four or so who might be having an unusually good or bad day.

[MyFavShows]

25 minutes ago, PrincessLeia said:

If 36 is the max, then shouldn't they just take the girls ranked 1-36 during Finals? I mean, if there's no chance they can have more than 36, don't the girls who are ranked 37 plus have about a zero percent chance of making the squad????

Before the 36 rule, when Kelli could take as many as she wanted, then it made sense to take 40 or 43 into camp, because there was no set number. 

 

Obviously if someone has to leave due to injury, or if someone has a Visa issue, there's room for more, but taking as many as they did into TC this year just seems mean considering Jones and Charlotte set her budget at 36.

Or at least tell the top 36 they are the TCC and call everyone beyond 36 "alternates".  So the alternates know they are alternates.   Then when they end up cutting a top 36 girl they tell whatever alternate moved into that top 36 spot that they are now a TCC, etc.. It would be more humane.  Then an alternate girl at this point ould still know they are unlikely to make the team and could maybe bow out to audition elsewhere.

However, do we know for sure that teams like the Mavs wouldn't let a late DCC cut walk on to the team further into the audition process - for instance, a vet member like Emily?

[KellyAnn3]

32 minutes ago, MyFavShows said:

Or at least tell the top 36 they are the TCC and call everyone beyond 36 "alternates".  So the alternates know they are alternates.   Then when they end up cutting a top 36 girl they tell whatever alternate moved into that top 36 spot that they are now a TCC, etc.. It would be more humane.  Then an alternate girl at this point ould still know they are unlikely to make the team and could maybe bow out to audition elsewhere.

However, do we know for sure that teams like the Mavs wouldn't let a late DCC cut walk on to the team further into the audition process - for instance, a vet member like Emily?

IIRC, it's technically a violation of their contract to audition for another team while still technically on the Mavs, and since their season went past the DCC auditions, they're not eligible to go back. If Emily is cut, she can go to Stars, Legends, Americans, etc., or any other team, but not Mavs...even if she had been cut early enough to attend their auditions.

I also remember someone saying that Stephanie D. is much more lenient about letting girls back on as Ice Angels once they've been cut from other training camps, even though a similar contract stipulation exists. One need only look at what Vivian did her second year as a TCC--got cut, then went to Mavs TC and got cut, then went back to AAIA.

Edited July 11, 2016 by KellyAnn3

[ccr5678]

Steph is only that way because she's a DCC choreographer and former Mavs dancer. But she's also just awesome and super supportive of girls who want to go onto bigger things. Granted, AAIA is probably a little more glamorous than say Mavs or stars. They get to go to Mexico for their calendar shoot, dance back up for snoop, SO many other modelling opportunities and just general experiences. She does a lot for them. Steph is just great I could go on forever lol.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, PrincessLeia said:

If 36 is the max, then shouldn't they just take the girls ranked 1-36 during Finals? I mean, if there's no chance they can have more than 36, don't the girls who are ranked 37 plus have about a zero percent chance of making the squad????

Before the 36 rule, when Kelli could take as many as she wanted, then it made sense to take 40 or 43 into camp, because there was no set number. 

 

Obviously if someone has to leave due to injury, or if someone has a Visa issue, there's room for more, but taking as many as they did into TC this year just seems mean considering Jones and Charlotte set her budget at 36.

If they just did that, there's no allowance for the girls who come on strong in auditions but crumble under the daily stress of training camp, or the girls who nail the limited choreography they audition with, but aren't strong enough to pick up 50 different routines or variations of routines in a summer.  They need to watch and see who thrives in the pressure cooker, and who crumbles.

[ccr5678]

1 minute ago, GingerJ said:

If they just did that, there's no allowance for the girls who come on strong in auditions but crumble under the daily stress of training camp, or the girls who nail the limited choreography they audition with, but aren't strong enough to pick up 50 different routines or variations of routines in a summer.  They need to watch and see who thrives in the pressure cooker, and who crumbles.

Exactly! But agreed that they took about 5 too many this year. False hope.

[Guest]

6 hours ago, missmansfield said:

Does anyone know if Amy from Rockford IL is still in training camp or had she been cut?  I am astounded that she made it into training camp this year!  She was SO obnoxious and unlikable last year not to mention a bad dancer.

Still don't get how some see this. I never saw it. I think she's made an amazing transformation over the years and I'd love to see her earn a spot!

[Guest]

1 minute ago, dalgal214 said:

Exactly! But agreed that they took about 5 too many this year. False hope.

I heard they took a lot bc at finals either Kelli or Judy had to leave early and couldn't debate the extended length of time they normally would, so they took a whole bunch and had to sort it out in training camp.  TxStar do you know if there's any truth to that?

[PrincessLeia]

11 minutes ago, GingerJ said:

If they just did that, there's no allowance for the girls who come on strong in auditions but crumble under the daily stress of training camp, or the girls who nail the limited choreography they audition with, but aren't strong enough to pick up 50 different routines or variations of routines in a summer.  They need to watch and see who thrives in the pressure cooker, and who crumbles.

Right... That's why I said in a later post that I understood that they needed to take slightly more than 36 to account for injuries and other issues. But the number of girls they took into TC this year is just way too high. They've gotten the hopes up of several of these girls who have no chance of making the team. They do that every year, I mean who thought KD would actually make the team, but this year is different bc they can't take more than 36. So there's extremely limited wiggle room. 

[JC123]

They seem to be getting more and more fussy with dance, kicks and look each year. Ie Mckenzie and Kali had bad kicks, but were good performers so they let it go. But Taylor was amazing and was cut for bad kicks even though they were arguably the same. There is literally 0 margin for flaws/error anymore.. I think they're taking more girls to compensate for the fact they're being so picky. 

If I was say, number 43 at auditions, I'd still want a chance at training camp. But this is just dragging it out too much.

Normally by this point in training camp there's only like 2/3 more cuts to be made, isn't there? 

[JustRosie]

It will be interesting to see if any RC have bowed out or will bow out sensing that they will be cut anyway. 

[EricaShadows]

Not if they know what's good for them (or if they intend to come back in the future).  We've seen how much Kelli and Judy dislike (ahem, hate) girls who don't give them the chance to say "Tonight is your last night" or whatever they say to the girls who are cut.  Anyone who bows out, even if it's gracefully, will likely never make it past preliminaries ever again, should they choose to try out again.   That is, unless they're are injured while in camp and the injury will take too long to heal for them to actually dance again while camp is in session.

[LaurenBrook]

1 hour ago, EricaShadows said:

Not if they know what's good for them (or if they intend to come back in the future).  We've seen how much Kelli and Judy dislike (ahem, hate) girls who don't give them the chance to say "Tonight is your last night" or whatever they say to the girls who are cut.  Anyone who bows out, even if it's gracefully, will likely never make it past preliminaries ever again, should they choose to try out again.   That is, unless they're are injured while in camp and the injury will take too long to heal for them to actually dance again while camp is in session.

+1 

[KristyMc19]

On 7/9/2016 at 3:04 PM, Luv2Dance566 said:

Whoever posted this rumor needs to get a life. I was a teammate of Amy's last year. I can tell you first hand that the majority of us are always dieting and drank very little during the season. Even if you have one drink at the Christmas party, you feel light headed. Also, DCC are approached by players regularly at events/parties/bars, etc. Players don't care about rules...the DCC do! I wish you knew Amy as a person. She was an awesome teammate. If you needed anything, she would be there for you. Also, if you did go out for a birthday dinner, she was one that you could ALWAYS count on for a ride or to make sure you get home safely.   

I wasn't trying to stir up anything from my comment about Amy T earlier.  Thought I'd bring it up here since I'm not 100% sure about it either.  Figured 'maybe' someone may have heard something as well.  I have nothing against her!  I was never attempting to state a fact - just curious as to what others heard/think.  

**Don't shoot the messenger! 

[tobeyoungagain]

19 hours ago, 2134.dancer said:

Completely out there thought:

do you think it's possible that K&J were saving cuts until after DMD auditions so that TCCs couldn't audition for another major team?

I would think not ... that's really immature and these are 50-some year old women!  Professionals! 

[tobeyoungagain]

16 hours ago, M1977G said:

So, Emily is still in camp??!  That seems so crazy to me.  I'm not usually a hater -- & I definitely don't hate a young lady I don't even know -- but I kind of feel like one about her, because I feel so strongly that she shouldn't make the team.  I hated her dancing when she was last in TC, and in the audition video this year.  I just don't perceive her as worthy of being a DCC in terms of performance abilities.  I also found her personality, as portrayed on MTT, to be too airy and clueless to be enjoyable, and I think she looks awkward in virtually every action dance photo I've seen of her, especially with her eyes and frozen face and unpointed toes.  I genuinely would be disappointed to see her on the team.  I rarely have felt so strongly about a candidate (I mean, really, who makes the team is no skin off my nose), but man, I don't even see why she made it to camp over other women who can, you know, dance. 

While I'm bummed that social media has given us so little to go on during training camp, it makes me more excited to see the show in LESS THAN A MONTH!  I have virtually no clue about first-time TCCs, and I'm eager to see them dance and be introduced on the show.  Also eager to see the 2nd episode and find out what the judges had to say about Caila and Kat getting cut.  I also love the interviews, and seeing who is composed and articulate and who is airheaded or plain clueless.  Not sure anything will top the moment Charlotte asked where in Europe should the NFL go, and the girl said "Africa."  That was even worse  (barely) than the girl who literally didn't know what a political party was.  I would like to get to see some girls take the written test, or see some being scored. I'm curious about the questions on it, and about who nails it and how many bomb it.  

I'm so with you about Emily ... seriously, if that girl makes the team I'm going to stop watching the season lol. 

[raindancer]

2 hours ago, EricaShadows said:

Not if they know what's good for them (or if they intend to come back in the future).  We've seen how much Kelli and Judy dislike (ahem, hate) girls who don't give them the chance to say "Tonight is your last night" or whatever they say to the girls who are cut.  Anyone who bows out, even if it's gracefully, will likely never make it past preliminaries ever again, should they choose to try out again.   That is, unless they're are injured while in camp and the injury will take too long to heal for them to actually dance again while camp is in session.

honestly I don't think it's about not letting them have the final say - I think it really is because they want to make sure that the girls they choose for TC really do have the absolute best opportunity, and that the time they invest will be given to girls who are really dedicated, and care about it, and will make something out of it.  I think there is just a very finite amount of space and time for dedicated teachers and veterans to come in and work with the girls.  Each person invited is an investment of sorts, and furthermore camp is a concentrated opportunity to learn at an intensive level that just isn't available to anyone outside of the organization, really.  They don't want to waste anyone's time - hence the cuts of girls they thought might have potential but clearly wouldn't be able to make it in the long run - but this is also an amazing and prestigious opportunity to develop as a performer and to make connections with others that will be wonderful for their personal and their professional lives, so they do try to keep people as long as there is a realistic chance.  As Kelli has often said, they are trying to develop talent.  Also, I think Kelli and Judi have a lot of compassion for these girls, and respect those who approach the process with dedication and sincerity.  I think they feel when people (like Megan from S10, or the Minchew girls) who enter in knowing that they might have other commitments and then just drop out down the line are being disrespectful and have essentially cheated someone else of an opportunity they would have given anything for.  I know I feel that way when I see things like that happen.  I have a lot of compassion for these girls and the things they go through to make it and aspire to something wonderful and I hate to see someone who doesn't value the opportunity enough take that chance away from them.

[ThreaLevelMidnight]

I'm going to disagree with some of y'allregarding Emily. I think she's the prettiest of all the TCC, and I love her new hair color. Also, I do not think she came off as vapid on the show like some of you have expressed, she just came off a little shy, if anything.  So to each their own!  It's great that we all have our own opinions and some of them are so different, that's what makes these boards fun. 

[JC123]

I like emily too ? maybe not as much as some of the others, like I'm really rooting for Madeline in particular. 

Based on Emily's fan vote, I remember her being weaker in comparison to most of the others  but maybe she's doing really well in training camp this time around. 

[bigskygirl]

11 hours ago, dalgal214 said:

Exactly! But agreed that they took about 5 too many this year. False hope.

Last year I believe they took 46 girls to TC, and the years before Season 10, they usually took 43-45 girls into TC. These girls should realize not every girl taken to TC every year will make the team. Is it fair to them? In some ways, I would say no. Imo, these girls should have thought of it before trying out. Of course, I have been asking myself why girls like Morgan, Kaitlyn from Season 8, Breelan, or Ashley Pro make the team, but that is a discussion for another time.

[tobeyoungagain]

9 hours ago, JC123 said:

They seem to be getting more and more fussy with dance, kicks and look each year. Ie Mckenzie and Kali had bad kicks, but were good performers so they let it go. But Taylor was amazing and was cut for bad kicks even though they were arguably the same. There is literally 0 margin for flaws/error anymore.. I think they're taking more girls to compensate for the fact they're being so picky. 

If I was say, number 43 at auditions, I'd still want a chance at training camp. But this is just dragging it out too much.

Normally by this point in training camp there's only like 2/3 more cuts to be made, isn't there? 

yeah I agree ... I also think they overlooked the kicks because McKenzie and Kali were beautiful / stunning.  Kelli seems to prefer looks over skills to be honest.  Taylor was an amazing performer but I think looks wise she was pretty but not the beautiful level or McKenzie and Kali

[JC123]

Just now, bigskygirl said:

Last year I believe they took 46 girls to TC, and the years before Season 10, they usually took 43-45 girls into TC. These girls should realize not every girl taken to TC every year will make the team. Is it fair to them? In some ways, I would say no. Imo, these girls should have thought of it before trying out. Of course, I have been asking myself why girls like Morgan, Kaitlyn from Season 8, Breelan, or Ashley Pro make the team, but that is a discussion for another time.

Did everyone see the Halloween half time? There's about 8 seconds in there where breelan just looks so afraid. Like Melissa rycroft or not, you could see she was so disappointed that breelan hadn't grown as a performer at finals. 

[LadyMsJay]

25 minutes ago, JC123 said:

Did everyone see the Halloween half time? There's about 8 seconds in there where breelan just looks so afraid. Like Melissa rycroft or not, you could see she was so disappointed that breelan hadn't grown as a performer at finals. 

We ALL saw that. It's crazy b/c of EVERYTHING else that was shown, she stood out.

[JC123]

i wonder who's the one year wonder in this training camp? 

[MyFavShows]

30 minutes ago, tobeyoungagain said:

yeah I agree ... I also think they overlooked the kicks because McKenzie and Kali were beautiful / stunning.  Kelli seems to prefer looks over skills to be honest.  Taylor was an amazing performer but I think looks wise she was pretty but not the beautiful level or McKenzie and Kali

True - Taylor definitely was pretty, but I agree not Kali or McKensie level pretty.  I think Taylor danced better at the DCC style than McKensie though.

[Runnergrl37]

Don't they take a lot of girls to training camp for the drama of the reality show?  I like to watch girls get cut.  Makes for a good show and it's what people want to see.  Of course it's not in the best interest of the girls but CMT is paying big bucks to DCC and you have to bet they take in more girls to make the show interesting. 

[JC123]

I think it's probably a mixture of everything we've discussed. Maybe slightly more for show drama, but the other stuff is probably a factor too. 

[PrincessLeia]

2 hours ago, bigskygirl said:

Last year I believe they took 46 girls to TC, and the years before Season 10, they usually took 43-45 girls into TC. These girls should realize not every girl taken to TC every year will make the team. Is it fair to them? In some ways, I would say no. Imo, these girls should have thought of it before trying out. Of course, I have been asking myself why girls like Morgan, Kaitlyn from Season 8, Breelan, or Ashley Pro make the team, but that is a discussion for another time.

the difference this year is they absolutely cannot take more than 36 because of the budget given Kelli by Jerry and Charlotte. So when you can only take 36, and you take 46 into TC, the girls they bring in who are in the bottom 46 really have no shot, unless something crazy happens and they just really become different performers.  Before, when Kelli could take as many as she wanted, at least the girls had a shot bc if she wanted 39, she could take that many.

[JustRosie]

Does everyone go into TC knowing they are in the top 36 or not?  Some of the very strong dancers are obviously in the top 36 but do any of them really know how they stack up at the beginning of TC?

[JC123]

8 minutes ago, MamaV said:

Does everyone go into TC knowing they are in the top 36 or not?  Some of the very strong dancers are obviously in the top 36 but do any of them really know how they stack up at the beginning of TC?

Sometimes they tell them in a dramatic way like when they line them up at the seats in first meeting, or one time they did that pin board of highest scoring to lowest scoring. I don't know if they consistently tell them though, it always seems to be in order to shock underperforming veterans 

[M1977G]

In years past, several TCCs have made the team who weren't in the top 36 (or whatever the set number was for those particular years), while other girls who ranked in the top tiers didn't make it.  Ashley F, Loren, and Kat, for instance, weren't in the top tiers originally and made the team.  And awkward Megan from last season was, according to Kelli, one of some judges' favorites (I'm guessing they weren't in the interview to see her "blanking" and cover by saying "I do love the Cowboys").  We all saw what happened with her.  I agree with others that, if there are only 4-5 girls to cut that doesn't make for much of a show called MTT, since there'd be little wondering about who would make the team.  I really love seeing the underdogs work hard to step it up and make it.  They all know the reality and odds going into training camp, and certainly they've seen the show and how things roll.  So while I feel badly for most of the girls who get cut, I I don't see the process of whittling down to the best team as unfair or cruel.  That said, I too, am surprised and curious about the number of cuts that remain this far into camp! 

As for comments up thread comparing Mackenzie's kicks to Kali's or Taylor's, I disagree that they were basically the same. Mackenzie improved her kicks and splits rather dramatically during TC, and continued to improve while she was on the team.  Kali couldn't even do full splits when she auditioned for her second year, and while I thought Taylor's kicks improved some, I didn't see nearly as much increased flexibility as with Mackenzi Lee.  I wonder who the kick line stragglers will be this year!  

[Smplsimon]

It would be incredibly stupid to commit to a team of 36 based on one weekend of auditions.  I mean, seriously, based on the current process -- Kelli and Judi have seen the girls perform DCC choreography only 2-3 times.  Anyone can have an off day or a day when they perform way better than they normally do; thus, for untested talent (i.e., rookie candidates), you need a longer period of time to figure out who exactly is worthy of wearing the uniform.  Not to mention the fact that a top-36 person could get hurt or otherwise cut (i.e., Hannah, Kaitlin Le Grand, Chelsea) during training camp and need a replacement.  

[Moxiejan]

The audition process also doesn't test how skilled they are at learning and retaining tons of choreography. Or if they can dance in a group, manage to always show up on time and look good modeling a fugly Belk dress ...

[PrincessLeia]

47 minutes ago, Smplsimon said:

It would be incredibly stupid to commit to a team of 36 based on one weekend of auditions.  I mean, seriously, based on the current process -- Kelli and Judi have seen the girls perform DCC choreography only 2-3 times.  Anyone can have an off day or a day when they perform way better than they normally do; thus, for untested talent (i.e., rookie candidates), you need a longer period of time to figure out who exactly is worthy of wearing the uniform.  Not to mention the fact that a top-36 person could get hurt or otherwise cut (i.e., Hannah, Kaitlin Le Grand, Chelsea) during training camp and need a replacement.  

I never said they should commit to a team based on the top 36 at auditions. I said taking ten plus extra girls into camp when you can only take a team of 36 is excessive.

[Annette]

So my fellow lovers of MTT...are we getting some cuts tonight or soon or what???

1 week off, with basically "no/nada/zero/zip"  news,  drove me cray-zee!

[Beana8]

I'm definitely looking forward to an update!  I predict 2-3 cuts tonight! They've had a week of individualized intensive training and if they can't cut the mustard, they're outta there.

Edited July 11, 2016 by Beana8

[LadyMsJay]

I'd say we get two cuts tonight.

[omgtv]

4 hours ago, Moxiejan said:

The audition process also doesn't test how skilled they are at learning and retaining tons of choreography. Or if they can dance in a group, manage to always show up on time and look good modeling a fugly Belk dress

Hahahahahahahah!!!

[EricaShadows]

I agree that a few girls are going to go in without realizing the commitment level, but that's where you do the research about what goes on in Training Camp.  It's a job, albeit one with a longer interview process than any I've ever gone on and anyone who doesn't do research on every part of it, including Training Camp is missing some pretty important information.  I was trying to be flippant in my earlier post about "Not if they know what's good for them" and it's certainly true for those who drop out in the middle of camp for a variety of reasons.  Those are the ones that aren't going to be allowed back because they haven't proven that they have shown they have the talent, but maybe they don't have the maturity level or the sense to really be successful in the DCC world and, to be honest, the ones that I've seen who have dropped out of camp of their own free will, I know of one who has come back and made it to semis at best and I don't think there's been a TC drop-out who's made it back to TC again after that.

It's unfortunate that they drop out, but most likely they were going to get cut anyway.  I can see both sides though.  Some girls don't know they can't handle it until they try it and the girl who might have been called in her place could have been cut as well, but she could have also made the team, but we'll never know.

[MyFavShows]

1 hour ago, LadyMsJay said:

I'd say we get two cuts tonight.

I sure hope TXStar is on the scene and gives us an update tonight - don't feel like having to wait till tomorrow to find out what happened after all this time w/ no new news! ;)

[dccfan37]

Judy is coming back to work tomorrow after vacation so I'm better tomorrow is cut night, not tonight! Tonight is probably "okay everyone let's remember dances"

[omgtv]

12 minutes ago, dccfan37 said:

Judy is coming back to work tomorrow after vacation so I'm better tomorrow is cut night, not tonight! Tonight is probably "okay everyone let's remember dances"

Noooo !!! We need some news tonight! lol

[MrsEVH]

I was just on Twitter and  noticed Amy Simone and Kelsey's IA  accounts are gone but Kelli still has hers (she tweeted yesterday). Also if I click on a IG link from Amy's regular Twitter account it says page doesn't exist and before it was private

Edited July 12, 2016 by MrsEVH