S13.E01: The Road to World Class Begins

[Stagecoach]

1 hour ago, MrsEVH said:

It was either current DC C Molly or Madeline Molloy who said last year she made her college dance team but didn't make it back the second year and that was her wake up call to work harder.

That was Molly. Maddie never danced for a college team.

[Taralightner]

17 minutes ago, scorpio1031 said:

Thank you for answering our dance questions:)  On that note, what is a fouette (sp?) cause that has been mentioned a few times.

It is an advanced form of a pirouette. The turn starts with the dancer sweeping her leg in front of her to 90 degrees. Then the leg moves to their side (what we call second position). This motion starts the dancer turning. The move is complete when the dancer “closes” her leg to passé (toe to the other knee- they use passé a lot in the kick line). The cool thing about these turns is that they can be done one after another without stopping by sweeping the leg out to their front again, and just repeating. Most advanced dancers to several pirouettes to completely finish the sequence. Since they have been spinning for several revolutions, the momentum allows for more pirouettes than some dancers can do from a standing position. I forgot to add that the “working leg,” the one that the dancer is “standing on,” moves up to releve (on their ball of their foot) to plié (knee bent) while the turn is happening.  This is why the dancer looks like they are going up and down during the turn. (Changing levels in dancer speak)  

 

I hope this makes sense. You can try one put your right leg out in front of you, swing it to the right side... you will notice that your body automatically starts turning in that direction. Now bring your right toe to your left knee and swing it out front again. You can do this while holding a chair (or a countertop). Congrats. You’ve just done an intermediate barre excercise! 

Edited August 5, 2018 by Taralightner
Added the working leg thing.

[scorpio1031]

7 minutes ago, Taralightner said:

It is an advanced form of a pirouette. The turn starts with the dancer sweeping her leg in front of her to 90 degrees. Then the leg moves to their side (what we call second position). This motion starts the dancer turning. The move is complete when the dancer “closes” her leg to passé (toe to the other knee- they use passé a lot in the kick line). The cool thing about these turns is that they can be done one after another without stopping by sweeping the leg out to their front again, and just repeating. Most advanced dancers to several pirouettes to completely finish the sequence. Since they have been spinning for several revolutions, the momentum allows for more pirouettes than some dancers can do from a standing position. 

 

I hope this makes sense. You can try one put your right leg out in front of you, swing it to the right side... you will notice that your body automatically starts turning in that direction. Now bring your right toe to your left knee and swing it out front again. You can do this while holding a chair (or a countertop). Congrats. You’ve just done an intermediate barre excercise! 

Is that what Alyssa is doing or am I totally off base here?

[Jess14]

23 minutes ago, scorpio1031 said:

Thank you for answering our dance questions:)  On that note, what is a fouette (sp?) cause that has been mentioned a few times.

Here's a video. 

[Jess14]

7 minutes ago, scorpio1031 said:

Is that what Alyssa is doing or am I totally off base here?

Yes.

[scorpio1031]

Just now, Jess14 said:

Yes.

Well, the way that @Taralightner told me to do it, I was thinking I know I've seen it somewhere :)  Thank you ladies!

[Taralightner]

10 minutes ago, scorpio1031 said:

Is that what Alyssa is doing or am I totally off base here?

Yes. With some small leaps and jumps in between. Lots of strength to do all of that at once! 

[DCC.Style.fan]

They are so much harder than they look. (for me anyway) I learned with my hand placed on the wall to keep my balance and just let go to turn then back to hand on the wall.  I   did it eventually without the wall but its been a while.  Its funny because you can be very skilled at these techniques and still not be able to do power pom style dance.  

[ElectricBoogaloo]

4 hours ago, scorpio1031 said:

what is a fouette (sp?) cause that has been mentioned a few times.

Fouettés are turns where the leg whips out and then comes back to passé (meaning the foot is near the knee creating a triangle shape). It's originally from ballet but it's also done in jazz, contemporary, etc. It's a popular move for competition dances so a lot of people learn to do them but not with great technique.

Sometimes you'll see girls two or three fouettés during DCC auditions which is really not that impressive because you can fake your way through that many with pretty sloppy technique. To do a lot of fouettés, you need good spotting, solid balance, etc. When you're looking for good fouetté technique, one of the most tell tale signs is the leg that's going out and in. When the dancer is in passé (with the foot pointed next to the knee), the leg that's bent should have the thigh parallel to the floor with the knee nice and high. Another easy way to look for good technique is to watch the foot that's on the ground. It should stay in just about the same place (although sometimes the dancer purposely moves forward while doing a fouetté sequence). With longer sequences, you'll sometimes see that foot start to travel around because they're starting to get tired and their technique starts getting messy.

The easiest arms are when the arms are held parallel to the floor and they open and close as the dancer turns. This is because it's aerodynamic and also helps with momentum. There are more difficult arm positions though. When the arms are held so that the hands are at the waist, it's more difficult because your arms aren't helping to propel you which means all of your momentum comes from your head spotting and your leg whipping in and out. Also more difficult is when the arms go up over the head because it creates more wind resistance (less aerodynamic).

Most non-ballet people know fouettes from the famous black swan coda in Swan Lake. Since I know it's hard to picture fouettés if you aren't familiar with dance, here are a few examples:

Swan Lake:

ETA: Hee, a lot of people beat me to it because I got sucked down a youtube rabbit hole watchiing lots of Swan Lake/fouetté videos!

 

4 hours ago, scorpio1031 said:

Is that what Alyssa is doing or am I totally off base here?

Technically, she mostly did pirouettes à la seconde which means she was holding her leg straight out (not bringing it into passé position with her foot near her knee) but she did throw one or two fouettés in there.

Edited August 5, 2018 by ElectricBoogaloo

[bigskygirl]

I do not think Brennan should get a spot because she deserves it. She should get a spot because she earned it. The whole Kelli supposedly regrets cutting Brennan due to Alexandria and Kalyssa is nothing but a storyline made up by CMT. Brennan making the team should not be because they pity her.

Edited August 5, 2018 by bigskygirl

[Dccfanatic]

On 8/3/2018 at 2:33 PM, PBSLover said:

Brennan needs to:

- Dye her hair a darker color. The blonde isn’t working for her.

- Get a spray tan. A good one. And keep it up.

- Stop wearing red audition outfits and dark pink lipstick. It clashed.

- Better eye make-up might help as well. Whatever she is doing is too harsh. Or maybe her eyebrows are too dark?  I need to look again. 

 

**Side bar: I hate dark pink lipstick more than I can say. Only a handful of women/men really look good in it. For some reason I think it looks cheap even if it expensive lipstick. Stupid, I know.

This is not the first time she has auditioned. I recognized her from the past and she was shown in the bad dancer montage they do. She has lost weight and studied up. I’m rooting for her!

I can’t stop starring at Brennan’s crossed-eyes. Her eyes cross constantly. It is very, very distracting. However, after rewatching this episode, I have come to the conclusion that it may be a medical condition that she can’t control. I have noticed it since her first appearance. I wonder if glasses or some other treatment can help correct it. I don’t know anything about eyes, but I would think there must be some type of eye training that can be done. 

[Bent]

On 8/3/2018 at 8:27 PM, CheerGoddess said:

My guess would be that they assign the numbers whenever they receive the applications. So perhaps there were 400 applications, but then only 135 showed up. However, I find it hard to believe that only that many would show up out of 400 and that probably even fewer applied than that. 

Maybe they are intentionally assigning the numbers that way to make it seem like there are that many girls there. Too bad we have eyes!!!

 

[Bent]

Just now, Bent said:

 

Very obvious that they skip chunks of numbers. Outright lie that 400 girls audition. Maybe 150, which is the same number that tryout for college dance teams.... and most have to be accepted to the university. They have to skip chunks of numbers or it would be obvious on the show in their groups while they perform. 

[sleepyjean]

On 8/2/2018 at 7:45 PM, MelissaMinion said:

I want to shake them and say “maybe if you put Brennan on the team, she wouldn’t be terrified!”

If someone chokes during training camp - twice - that doesn't speak well of how she performs in high pressure situations. I sure wouldn't feel confident putting her on the team in the "hope" that she would pull it together when it really counts. 

On 8/2/2018 at 8:07 PM, pizzaandcatsrlife said:

Go away Melissa rycroft.  You suck. 

I enjoy Melissa very much.

On 8/3/2018 at 12:54 AM, Law Mom said:

I'm not thrilled about the taekwondo girl. I'm sorry, but to spend all your time on another sport, then just walk in and expect to beat out girls who are trained dancers is just arrogant.

I don't think she said or implied anything of the sort. There is nothing wrong with someone who is less experienced trying for the same goal as others who have trained longer. Or for wanting to beat them.

On 8/3/2018 at 5:20 AM, Lolfordays said:

the easiest more believable answer is Alexandria was a well trained experienced dancer with lots of NFL experience, including the pro bowl and Super Bowls. This was a dance job to her, she got it and realized the requirements were insane, so she quit.  Only a DCC cult meme we would start talking about that being a betrayal. 

A very plausible theory.

On 8/3/2018 at 11:19 AM, tanyak said:

I agree. I was also happy to see that when they cut to the "Bad audition" segment, they showed girls who just couldn't dance and not girls who were super pudgy, or too "old" or considered unattractive. That always seemed really unnecessary to me.

 

They showed the doctor lady who is in her 50s and has been auditioning every year for well over a decade.

21 hours ago, Gigi88 said:

If she is good enough to be a back up dancer to some of the hottest names in the music industry Why not? 

Being good at one sort of dance doesn't mean you are great at other forms of dance. Especially when the type of dance she excels at does not rely on years of technical training, and the type of dancing she's now pursuing does.

14 hours ago, pasdetrois said:

I feel bad for Paris. I don't think she has the skills and training to make the squad...

 

I agree with this. And the fact that Charlotte also agrees with this does not make her racist, which some people have implied upthread. Maybe Charlotte is racist. I don't know much about her, but I didn't see it in that one comment "I don't know from her" nor in the tone of her voice or her facial expression (which you couldn't really see anyway, because she was turned toward Kelli). I just saw a judge expressing doubt that a candidate is a good fit for the job.

 

11 hours ago, pineapplesalsa said:

And I liked former DSIG Madi, but  I thought it was odd they focused so much on the martial arts and not the fact that she started dance later than most. She has been on a pro team and I feel like they just brushed over that. I would have been more interested in hearing more about her short dance training and how she's preparing to compete against girls who have danced for years. 

I think showing her breaking blocks of wood and practicing with nunchucks was just an interesting visual they included to add variety and interest. It's something that makes her story a little different than most of the others. And after this many seasons of they show, they need to use everything they can to try to make this show fresh and to help distinguish these women from one another.

10 hours ago, scorpio1031 said:

Unpopular opinion here - I like Tina.  She's like any other mom who wants the best for her kids.  Her, Judy, Shelly, Kim Oden - they enjoyed their experience of being a DCC and they want for their daughters to experience that. 

I like Tina as well. She's over the top, but I think she's a hoot.

1 hour ago, bigskygirl said:

I do not think Brennan should get a spot because she deserves it. She should get a spot because she earned it. The whole Kelli supposedly regrets cutting Brennan due to Alexandria and Kalyssa is nothing but a storyline made up by CMT. Brennan making the team should not be because they pity her.

I feel like I've read so many posts on here complaining that it was "mean" to cut Brennan, and it would be "mean" to bring her into TC and cut her again. I don't buy into the theory of bringing her back just for ratings. Nobody made her keep coming back, but she did, and if they give her another chance, then that's what it is - a chance. She doesn't get to rest on the laurels of what she's done in prior years. If she comes back again, and still isn't good enough, as compared to the girls she's competing against this year, then she deserves to get cut again. If she comes back stronger and blows them away, then it's a well-earned victory for her to be proud of. Either way, it's on her.

 

On 8/2/2018 at 8:46 PM, scorpio1031 said:

Exactly, like Jalyn - why worry about the hair color?  As Melissa R and Marshall would say - that can be fixed

I thought the comment about Jalyn's hair was interesting, considering the many and various shades of red they did on Holly, Raylee, and Claire, some of which were eye-searingly bright.

Edited August 5, 2018 by sleepyjean

[Gigi88]

Not sure why all the VK hate I think she is stunning and will be a great addition to the team . 

[EvergreenLove]

15 minutes ago, Bent said:

Very obvious that they skip chunks of numbers. Outright lie that 400 girls audition. Maybe 150, which is the same number that tryout for college dance teams.... and most have to be accepted to the university. They have to skip chunks of numbers or it would be obvious on the show in their groups while they perform. 

 

20 minutes ago, Bent said:

 

It’s somewhat plausible that there would be stretches of 20-ish where no girls were chosen, but there’s no way they went through 75-ish girls twice and didn’t find at least one girl to take to semis.

C’mon CMT. Stop insulting our intelligence.

Edited August 5, 2018 by 123DCCWoooo
Correction

[EricaShadows]

14 minutes ago, 123DCCWoooo said:

It’s somewhat plausible that there would be stretches of 20-ish where no girls were chosen, but there’s no way they went through 75-ish girls twice and didn’t find at least one girl to take to semis.

C’mon CMT. Stop insulting our intelligence.

While it's not CMT insulting our intelligence (though they're certainly not helping increase the number of girls at auditions with their hi-jinks on the show), it's Kelly and Judy.  They're probably desperate to increase the number of girls auditioning, to once again become the premier audition destination for the NFL.  When other teams are raking in the numbers, the DCC are just barely scraping by.

[parrotfeathers]

WOW Boogala thanks for those clips!

[chabelisaywow]

Brianna from Tennessee Titans and Alejandra (?) red fan dance girl auditioned again - shown briefly, but not mentioned. 

[Cowboysfan16]

8 hours ago, Bent said:

Very obvious that they skip chunks of numbers. Outright lie that 400 girls audition. Maybe 150, which is the same number that tryout for college dance teams.... and most have to be accepted to the university. They have to skip chunks of numbers or it would be obvious on the show in their groups while they perform. 

On the first episode, Kelli says we received about 400 applications. I know the number 400 is thrown around a few times in that episode, but did she actually say “We have 400 girls auditioning here today?” I don’t remember. Because I can believe that that many girls submit an application but it doesn’t mean (and we can clearly see) that 400 girls actually come out. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

17 minutes ago, Cowboysfan16 said:

On the first episode, Kelli says we received about 400 applications. I know the number 400 is thrown around a few times in that episode, but did she actually say “We have 400 girls auditioning here today?” I don’t remember. Because I can believe that that many girls submit an application but it doesn’t mean (and we can clearly see) that 400 girls actually come out. 

Yes, she did. I listed multiple examples of it on the previous page.

[Taralightner]

9 hours ago, Bent said:

 

Thanks for the screenshot! Here’s another observation about how stupid they think the viewer is. WHY have any numbers ABOVE 400, if they want us to believe that there were 400 there? Above, see 401-404 and 406 made the cut. Poor 405; “she” just didn’t stand out. 

[Collette1104]

8 hours ago, sleepyjean said:

Being good at one sort of dance doesn't mean you are great at other forms of dance. Especially when the type of dance she excels at does not rely on years of technical training, and the type of dancing she's now pursuing does.

I agree with this. And the fact that Charlotte also agrees with this does not make her racist, which some people have implied upthread. Maybe Charlotte is racist. I don't know much about her, but I didn't see it in that one comment "I don't know from her" nor in the tone of her voice or her facial expression (which you couldn't really see anyway, because she was turned toward Kelli). I just saw a judge expressing doubt that a candidate is a good fit for the job.

I think you are willfully ignoring the dozens of other problematic actions and words of charlotte Jones and the DCC in general when you say you “just saw a judge expressing doubt”. But, it matters only in a social context, because I’m more bothered that they picked one non white person to feature and it’s one who clearly can’t make it and that Kelly would sit there and pretend for the cameras that maybe she has a chance. I mean, the bad wig (on anyone) is enough to get anyone cut well before finals. 

8 hours ago, sleepyjean said:

I feel like I've read so many posts on here complaining that it was "mean" to cut Brennan, and it would be "mean" to bring her into TC and cut her again. I don't buy into the theory of bringing her back just for ratings. Nobody made her keep coming back, but she did, and if they give her another chance, then that's what it is - a chance. She doesn't get to rest on the laurels of what she's done in prior years. If she comes back again, and still isn't good enough, as compared to the girls she's competing against this year, then she deserves to get cut again. If she comes back stronger and blows them away, then it's a well-earned victory for her to be proud of. Either way, it's on her..

I keep wondering WTF they are thinking with Brennan. I have zero problems with her, but am not blind and she does have a squish face and there are so many capable girls that are good dancers, (like, hey, why not keep Keyra!?) and the only thing I can think of is that hey REALLY love when girls spend so long trying to get on the team. They have so many terrible rules and only-technically-legal labor practices, that I think they like having people like that on the team, that they know will stay.

 

other random thoughts: I loved Madi, she’s so cute and I like that she looks older (even though I think she’s really only like 22), but she comes across as a little intense. Like “possibly crazy” intense she was first in line. Somehow got herself featured. And from what I saw of her in the freestyle, (which is really enough) is not a good enough dancer! 

[ByTor]

9 hours ago, sleepyjean said:

On 8/2/2018 at 10:45 PM, MelissaMinion said:

I want to shake them and say “maybe if you put Brennan on the team, she wouldn’t be terrified!”

If someone chokes during training camp - twice - that doesn't speak well of how she performs in high pressure situations. I sure wouldn't feel confident putting her on the team in the "hope" that she would pull it together when it really counts. 

IMO the difference is that when she was in TC she was dancing to "prove herself" so to speak, whereas if she made the squad she'd be on the field performing, she wouldn't have to try to sell herself as being good enough.

[KnyghtRyder]

23 minutes ago, Taralightner said:

Thanks for the screenshot! Here’s another observation about how stupid they think the viewer is. WHY have any numbers ABOVE 400, if they want us to believe that there were 400 there? Above, see 401-404 and 406 made the cut. Poor 405; “she” just didn’t stand out. 

This doesn't address why CMT and/or DCC keep pushing the "there's about or over 400 applicants" line, since a quick rewatch of past seasons really highlights the recent decrease in DCC hopefuls in the preliminary round.

But it may address the numbers gap on the board. Several seasons ago there was a poster on here who auditioned and confirmed some questions/theories on the gap in numbers: 

DCC has a check in table set up inside the audition venue with maybe 4-5 DCC alum or employees. When Phil lets the girls in, they are led to this table and then line up in front of each of the alum/employee to check in and get their numbers. The first line has numbers 1-99, second line has 100-199, third line numbers 200-299, fourth line numbers 300-399, etc. I'm not sure who guides the girls to which line or how they decide the line cut off point, but it is to hasten the check in process so one person isn't checking in 150-400 girls. So if line 2 only has 50 girls in the line, the audition numbers will only run 200-250 with no one being assigned 251-299.  Perhaps in this case only 6 hopefuls were guided to the #400+ line.  

Again, this does not account for the discrepancy between what we are told and what we see as it pertains to the number of bodies in the seats. Additionally, it could've been just that that particular year was how the organization conducted the check in/audition number assignment but it was confirmed by a poster who attended the auditions. I think it was maybe season 10, but the post is lost to the forums history now. They may have revamped the process since then ??‍♀️

[sleepyjean]

41 minutes ago, Collette1104 said:

I think you are willfully ignoring the dozens of other problematic actions and words of charlotte Jones and the DCC in general when you say you “just saw a judge expressing doubt”. But, it matters only in a social context, because I’m more bothered that they picked one non white person to feature and it’s one who clearly can’t make it and that Kelly would sit there and pretend for the cameras that maybe she has a chance. I mean, the bad wig (on anyone) is enough to get anyone cut well before finals. 

I would never willfully ignore racism. That is quite a thing to imply, particularly as you don't know what race or ethnicity I am. As I said in my post, I don't know much about Charlotte. I'm merely speaking about what I observed in that scene. There are plenty of people Charlotte has not been a fan of on this show and her reaction to Paris didn't seem much different than things she's said about women who were not poc. If you can prove me wrong, please do. I am open minded.

Edited August 5, 2018 by sleepyjean

[5678Pixie]

1 hour ago, Taralightner said:

Thanks for the screenshot! Here’s another observation about how stupid they think the viewer is. WHY have any numbers ABOVE 400, if they want us to believe that there were 400 there? Above, see 401-404 and 406 made the cut. Poor 405; “she” just didn’t stand out. 

That is such a good point.  That is so obvious now that you pointed it out. 

[beachy]

Did anyone else catch when UCLA’s Daphne and friends went to that restaurant, they all had cookies in their hands and raised them to their mouths to take a bite. All except for the girl on the right - she made a biting motion with her mouth but never made contact with the cookie and then like the others, lowered the cookie back down to her lap. I rewound and watched it several times to make sure I wasn’t crazy. Such a weird detail. If she didn’t want the cookie, could they have just featured her without one? 

[LaurelleJ]

16 hours ago, MrsEVH said:

It was either current DC C Molly or Madeline Molloy who said last year she made her college dance team but didn't make it back the second year and that was her wake up call to work harder.

14 hours ago, Stagecoach said:

That was Molly. Maddie never danced for a college team.

Not current DCC Maddie. Madeline Malloy danced for Notre Dame. 

[Taralightner]

1 hour ago, KnyghtRyder said:

This doesn't address why CMT and/or DCC keep pushing the "there's about or over 400 applicants" line, since a quick rewatch of past seasons really highlights the recent decrease in DCC hopefuls in the preliminary round.

But it may address the numbers gap on the board. Several seasons ago there was a poster on here who auditioned and confirmed some questions/theories on the gap in numbers: 

DCC has a check in table set up inside the audition venue with maybe 4-5 DCC alum or employees. When Phil lets the girls in, they are led to this table and then line up in front of each of the alum/employee to check in and get their numbers. The first line has numbers 1-99, second line has 100-199, third line numbers 200-299, fourth line numbers 300-399, etc. I'm not sure who guides the girls to which line or how they decide the line cut off point, but it is to hasten the check in process so one person isn't checking in 150-400 girls. So if line 2 only has 50 girls in the line, the audition numbers will only run 200-250 with no one being assigned 251-299.  Perhaps in this case only 6 hopefuls were guided to the #400+ line.  

Again, this does not account for the discrepancy between what we are told and what we see as it pertains to the number of bodies in the seats. Additionally, it could've been just that that particular year was how the organization conducted the check in/audition number assignment but it was confirmed by a poster who attended the auditions. I think it was maybe season 10, but the post is lost to the forums history now. They may have revamped the process since then ??‍♀️

I was poking fun at them, not trying to prove anything. She said 400 over and over but there were numbers printed above 400. I thought it was funny. That’s all. 

 

I think the explanation has already been offered and accepted. They lied about how many wanted to audition. 

[English Teacher]

I have no idea if I’m correct, but if I am, I wish Kelli would explain it a little more so it doesn’t seem so mind numbingly obvious.  Her system was even mocked on The Soup  

I have always assumed that the simplified yes/no/maybe system was a simplified rubric.   When we grade Regents exams for the state, we have a 3 number rubric score.  It actually gets frustrating when you view an essay in terms of numbers when you are struggling between a 1 or 2, or a 2 or 3.  Our curriculum director gave us a cheat: if the student met all requirements it was a 3; some was 2; confused was 1.  It sounds SO stupid,  but it it helped.  Then the numbers were applied and added up.  I have assumed that each YNM gets a number and that the young women who are grabbing the score sheets are doing the arithmetic after each group.  So when Kelli makes comments about where a girl’s numbers fall, it reflects more than how many yeses someone received.  

[Lexusprincess]

It’s a TV show.  Many of those scenes such as K or J talking were probably filmed later and to further the story.  As a lawyer, several of my cases were on different shows and the producers create their story which often is not what really happen or the angle they tell you they are going for. 

The producers could have filmed UCLA girl and Paris between  semi’s and finals or even a later time.  I’ve been binge watching old seasons and and the year Meredith Oden and the other vets got called out for weight the episodes leading up to it all had closeups of Meredith, Amy Reese, etc midsection

Kelly getting out of the car was clearly staged.  Personally, I could do without watching her walk and hearing how pretty Kelli is.  But the walking shots, TV shows love to stage.  

[English Teacher]

CMT needs to change up their questions.  Trying to force these young ladies to come up with a struggle they had to overcome is like fitting a round peg in a square hole.  Not every intro package had to have identical info.   Some girls may have more to say about how they became interested in dance or what they want to do with their lives.  Comparing the background of Paris to the UCLA girl was mortifying and it isn’t Daphne’s fault. 

Same with having Kelli explain the obvious like the board system.  IT IS A WHITE BOARD WITH NUMBERS.  WE GET IT.   

I would have loved more insight on why some girls did and did not make it.  Or getting impressions of some of the girls from other judges like Marshal or anyoneexceptNeil.  

[sleepyjean]

38 minutes ago, English Teacher said:

CMT needs to change up their questions.  Trying to force these young ladies to come up with a struggle they had to overcome is like fitting a round peg in a square hole.  Not every intro package had to have identical info.   Some girls may have more to say about how they became interested in dance or what they want to do with their lives.  Comparing the background of Paris to the UCLA girl was mortifying and it isn’t Daphne’s fault.

After so many years of this show, they are desperate to make these girls interesting, to find anything that makes them different from the typical "I've been dancing since childhood, it's been a major focus of my life so far, and now I'm here because I want to continue." And when they find something to latch onto, they blow it up, and most likely ask the candidate to speak about it over and over during her talking heads throughout the season. Which, in many cases, makes the audience roll their eyes, and/or develop an instant dislike for that person. I can just imagine how the pre-interviews go:

Producer: So [dancers], tell me about yourselves. Any major injuries or or diseases in your family? Did you grow up poor? Or fat? Or ugly? Our audience loves those "overcoming adversity" angles.

Dancer A: No....none of that.

Producer: How about kids? Do you have any kids? Any hobbies? Won any awards? Working anywhere interesting?

Dancer B: No...dance is pretty much my life. And school, I guess. Where I'm studying dance.

Producer: Are you studying anything besides dance? It would be great if you're majoring in something math-y or science-y.  Or business? Are you studying business? Or starting a business? Or know anyone starting a business?

Dancer A: No....sorry.

Producer (looking stressed): Are you from another country or do you speak any other languages? Have you ever been to another country? Give me something to work with here.

Dancer A: Well...I didn't make my college dance team the first time I tried. That was disappointing.

Dancer B: I've been cut from DCC auditions like six times.

Dancer A: Oh yeah - me too! I've been cut four times. But this dream is in my heart for a reason, and I know this is my year!

Producer: (sigh), ok, well I guess we'll have to go with that. But let me know if you think of anything else ok? Like if you had a friend who died tragically or something.

Edited August 5, 2018 by sleepyjean

[Stagecoach]

1 hour ago, LaurelleJ said:

Not current DCC Maddie. Madeline Malloy danced for Notre Dame. 

Oh sorry, I don't know a lot of their last names. That was Molly though that got chosen as an alternate because she took it for granted.

[KnyghtRyder]

1 hour ago, Taralightner said:

I was poking fun at them, not trying to prove anything. She said 400 over and over but there were numbers printed above 400. I thought it was funny. That’s all. 

 

I think the explanation has already been offered and accepted. They lied about how many wanted to audition. 

Only quoted your post as it was last one regarding this topic. Only offering a possible reason on the number gap as this was discussed years ago and that reason was previously offered and accepted.  

[Stagecoach]

13 hours ago, Dccfanatic said:

I can’t stop starring at Brennan’s crossed-eyes. Her eyes cross constantly. It is very, very distracting. However, after rewatching this episode, I have come to the conclusion that it may be a medical condition that she can’t control. I have noticed it since her first appearance. I wonder if glasses or some other treatment can help correct it. I don’t know anything about eyes, but I would think there must be some type of eye training that can be done. 

I feel the same way. I would hate to set across from her and try to have a conversation. It would drive me crazy. I'm not sure I would hear a word she said because I'd be so distracted.

[sleepyjean]

3 hours ago, KnyghtRyder said:

DCC has a check in table set up inside the audition venue with maybe 4-5 DCC alum or employees. When Phil lets the girls in, they are led to this table and then line up in front of each of the alum/employee to check in and get their numbers. The first line has numbers 1-99, second line has 100-199, third line numbers 200-299, fourth line numbers 300-399, etc. I'm not sure who guides the girls to which line or how they decide the line cut off point, but it is to hasten the check in process so one person isn't checking in 150-400 girls. So if line 2 only has 50 girls in the line, the audition numbers will only run 200-250 with no one being assigned 251-299.  Perhaps in this case only 6 hopefuls were guided to the #400+ line. 

I think what happens is they have a stack of numbers, 1-500. They peek outside and see how many women are waiting in line, and then they start removing numbers from the stack in chunks of 25 or 50. 76-100, 151-200, 251-300, 351-400 all go in the trash. Then they divvy up what's left of the stack between the 5 people sitting at the registration table.

By way of comparison, here is the board for 2011.

The numbers go up just above 450 and are more evenly distributed, however I do see missing chunks of 25.  76-100, 176-200, 276-300, 376-400. Not as many as this year, but there are definitely holes. They've been doing this all along.

For what it's worth, I bet this is a fairly common practice. Most teams want it to look like they had a big turnout. But the kinds of numbers the DCC attracted this year are what you see for the midwest NFL teams where the pool of talent is smaller to begin with.

And while I'm spending way too much time thinking about this, these two photos are from 2012:

This is a zoomable seating chart from AT&T stadium. The photos above appear to be from section 148. 15 rows. 23 seats per row, except for the last row, which has 21, and the candidates take up almost all of it.

This is a screen shot from this week's episode:

This year, they've moved to one of the corner sections that they can fill with a smaller group. It looks like section 144, which is wedge-shaped. The front row only has 15 seats. It looks like the women are only taking 9 rows. The 9th row looks like 23 seats. If they'd had the turnout they've had in past years, they've would've shot in a bigger section, like they have in past. But I give them credit for trying to maintain the illusion.

Edited August 5, 2018 by sleepyjean

[Christineelgene]

17 hours ago, Stagecoach said:

That was Molly. Maddie never danced for a college team.

I think that Madeline Molloy was on the Norte Dame Pom squad.  I could be mistaken, however.

[PBSLover]

The show is good for the brand and the Cowboys. Unfortunately, it has affected the number of dancers trying out. Not to mention the #MeToo movement as well as pro cheerleading getting a lot of bad press these past two years. 

Back in 2007, Kelli boasted a thousand women "filled out applications." Years pass and the number became 500. Now they are admitting it is 400. The numbers could have been made up all along but since they put it out there, Kelli and company now have to save face and do what they can to keep up how ‘desirable’ the job is.

It will be interesting in the next five to ten years to see how many professional sports teams actually keep their cheerleading squads. Team owners didn’t (I’m assuming) see the cheerleading squad as anything really serious. But times change. I don’t see the Cowboys getting rid of theirs, but it may evolve into a smaller squad with proper pay and benefits, which it should have been all along considering what they ask of these women. 

Edited August 5, 2018 by PBSLover

[pizzaandcatsrlife]

I hope Brennan gets cut.  It would be so great to watch.  Sorry, I watch this show for the drama and that’s it. 

[Stagecoach]

1 hour ago, Christineelgene said:

I think that Madeline Molloy was on the Norte Dame Pom squad.  I could be mistaken, however.

Nope, I was wrong. You're right. I was thinking of the other Maddie

[KnyghtRyder]

2 hours ago, sleepyjean said:

I think what happens is they have a stack of numbers, 1-500. They peek outside and see how many women are waiting in line, and then they start removing numbers from the stack in chunks of 25 or 50. 76-100, 151-200, 251-300, 351-400 all go in the trash. Then they divvy up what's left of the stack between the 5 people sitting at the registration table.

By way of comparison, here is the board for 2011.

The numbers go up just above 450 and are more evenly distributed, however I do see missing chunks of 25.  76-100, 176-200, 276-300, 376-400. Not as many as this year, but there are definitely holes. They've been doing this all along.

For what it's worth, I bet this is a fairly common practice. Most teams want it to look like they had a big turnout. But the kinds of numbers the DCC attracted this year are what you see for the midwest NFL teams where the pool of talent is smaller to begin with.

And while I'm spending way too much time thinking about this, these two photos are from 2012:

This is a zoomable seating chart from AT&T stadium. The photos above appear to be from section 148. 15 rows. 23 seats per row, except for the last row, which has 21, and the candidates take up almost all of it.

This is a screen shot from this week's episode:

This year, they've moved to one of the corner sections that they can fill with a smaller group. It looks like section 144, which is wedge-shaped. The front row only has 15 seats. It looks like the women are only taking 9 rows. The 9th row looks like 23 seats. If they'd had the turnout they've had in past years, they've would've shot in a bigger section, like they have in past. But I give them credit for trying to maintain the illusion.

? the NSA needs you to be an analyst!

I recently rewatched one of the earlier seasons (I think it was 7...maybe...they blend together after awhile), and there's a marked difference in that "seated in the stadium" scene between then and now. I really think the show has highlighted the difficulties of getting and staying on this team - and it's kept the masses away.  Even the "bad dancer" segment isn't quite as cringeworthy as it used to be (for better or worse). 

Also, please more scenes with judges Choreographer Nick and Tangerine Stylist Marshall ????????!

[NoChtngWhenEtng]

5 hours ago, beachy said:

Did anyone else catch when UCLA’s Daphne and friends went to that restaurant, they all had cookies in their hands and raised them to their mouths to take a bite. All except for the girl on the right - she made a biting motion with her mouth but never made contact with the cookie and then like the others, lowered the cookie back down to her lap. I rewound and watched it several times to make sure I wasn’t crazy. Such a weird detail. If she didn’t want the cookie, could they have just featured her without one? 

Haha! I love that you noticed this and now I'm going to rewatch for just this scene. I went to UCLA and was in a sorority and know the type very well. One PiPhi told me during rush that she ate baby food all summer to keep her weight down. I think there was another UCLA dance member who was a DCC, but now I can't remember who - Mandy maybe? Daphne is probably a shoo in, but I think her face looks oddly old. Like she has wrinkles or something. 

I was a big fan of Meredith - I think she looks a lot like Megan Fox. Madi was so cute, but I doubt she'll make it past semis. 

I felt embarrassed for Paris. She may have been trainable, but no way was she getting past the interviews. She is what Kelly would call an ambassador risk. 

[TeacherWoman]

16 hours ago, Bent said:

Very obvious that they skip chunks of numbers. Outright lie that 400 girls audition. Maybe 150, which is the same number that tryout for college dance teams.... and most have to be accepted to the university. They have to skip chunks of numbers or it would be obvious on the show in their groups while they perform. 

Here is my theory.  The dancers are given numbers as they check-in at tables.  Table one has last names A - G (or however the breakdown would be from the 400 applicants) and assigns numbers 1 - 99.  Table two has names H - N and assigns numbers 100 - 199.  And so on.

If all 400 applicants show up, there are no gaps in numbers.  But there are no-shows withing each alphabetical last name group and number gaps are created.

[TinyHands]

32 minutes ago, NoChtngWhenEtng said:

Haha! I love that you noticed this and now I'm going to rewatch for just this scene. I went to UCLA and was in a sorority and know the type very well. One PiPhi told me during rush that she ate baby food all summer to keep her weight down. I think there was another UCLA dance member who was a DCC, but now I can't remember who - Mandy maybe? Daphne is probably a shoo in, but I think her face looks oddly old. Like she has wrinkles or something. 

I was a big fan of Meredith - I think she looks a lot like Megan Fox. Madi was so cute, but I doubt she'll make it past semis. 

I felt embarrassed for Paris. She may have been trainable, but no way was she getting past the interviews. She is what Kelly would call an ambassador risk. 

OMG. YOUR USERNAME!!!! ❤️

[ByTor]

1 minute ago, TinyHands said:

OMG. YOUR USERNAME!!!! ❤️

Sigh, Meredith was awesome :)

[NoChtngWhenEtng]

Did Meredith try out in the original 2 hr special or in season 1? I saw the scene with her little post-its in the bathroom and I've been a DCC fan ever since. It was like watching another world that I had no idea existed. 

[bigskygirl]

Just now, NoChtngWhenEtng said:

Did Meredith try out in the original 2 hr special or in season 1? I saw the scene with her little post-its in the bathroom and I've been a DCC fan ever since. It was like watching another world that I had no idea existed. 

Meredith tried out in Season One and was cut at finals. She tried out in Season 2 and made the team.

[EricaShadows]

1 hour ago, pizzaandcatsrlife said:

I hope Brennan gets cut.  It would be so great to watch.  Sorry, I watch this show for the drama and that’s it. 

While I completely disagree with your opinion, I admire your guts for saying so and admitting that you only watch for the drama.  However, I really doubt Brennan will get cut this year.  She'll play it very safe and will keep in mind EVERYTHING she's learned in Training Camp from previous years (including what she was told in the office visits) as well as work to improve.  She and Victoria are probably the only two who will be safe this year, but Victoria will always be the second coming of (and some would say, the less talented version of) Cassie.

Edited August 5, 2018 by EricaShadows