Podcast – 8 Count Audio

Podcast episodes

What’s the best way to launch episode 1 of the 8CA podcast? After a couple THANK YOUs to the amazing dance teams around the state, we got to chat with 3A champs Stevenson before they left for nationals! We run through the other 3 Illinois teams that danced at DTU nationals alongside our new national champs. Speaking of large trophies, we take a look at the top 3 in 3A from IHSA state (we’re saving 2A and 1A for episode 2). We also take a tour of IDTA and the top finishers from IDTA state! And we throw in a couple quick recommendations for watching Minnesota’s incredible state dance action, too.

Almost 6 weeks later and we’re still in awe of the outstanding teams that took home big trophies in 2A and 1A at IHSA state. I’ve got some interesting notes on what I saw at Indiana’s north regional on Leap Day 2020, which is the final step before their state comp. And this podcast just turned up thanks to our very first guest: Kelsey Kunz, the rookie coach who led Joliet Catholic to a 3rd place finish in 1A! We recap her experiences as a first-year coach on a big-name team, throw the spotlight on their trainer (who apparently has unreal flexibility for a middle-aged dude), and uncover the mystery of whether or not an actual celebrity came to one of their football games. Then we reveal our top 8 list of Day 1 routines that didn’t make it to Day 2. Hmm, another guest? Yup, did it. This time it’s former coach Alli Heckman from Crystal Lake Central talking about her first year away from coaching and her thoughts on the routines she watched, along with a deep dive into the secret to developing legit quads! We explore the philosophical question that keeps you up at night: would you rather have a team with clean triples or somewhat clean quads? We wrap it up by revealing our top 8 Day 2 teams who didn’t get on the podium but were still basically awesome.

Sad news about Indiana’s cancelled state dance event, and happier news about teams returning from NDA nationals. We chat with newly-former Waubonsie Valley coach Megan Voitik on her experiences on both days at state and wrapping up her time with WV, plus some fun memories of her time dancing at Neuqua Valley back in the day! We check out Minnesota’s unique way of closing out their dance season. What’s it like to watch competitions as a part of the 8CA squad? Hannah Bolden lets you know. She also tells us what is was like to be on Lincoln-Way Central while they suddenly erupted into an elite 3A team, and we cover some tryouts tips as well. Alli Heckman stops by to talk dance categories, grand jete tips, and spinning disc technique. Hint: it’s all about the booty.

Stuck at home for spring break during these unprecedented times? Well we’ve got plenty of dance for ya. Minooka Coach Melissa Wallace takes us through their 3rd place 3A experience and what it was like to coach such a talented team all year. And what about the teams that didn’t get a state experience? We give 8 of them a big shoutout in our Top 8 non-qualifiers list (and 4 more because we can’t stop at 8). 8CA staffer Sophie Leskis shares what game day is like on her college dance team and gives us the scoop on tryouts at Illinois. We also speak with veteran coach Courtney Gillette of Hinsdale South on what it’s like to do so well in both IHSA and IDTA, and how her program survived budget cuts and added jazz to their dance arsenal. Reavis Coach Kaitlin Farrell joins us for a revealing chat about how she redirected her program towards pom and what it takes to make a pom routine vibrant and successful. Plus…tons of technique, planning, and team management tips sprinkled throughout, like bacon inside of waffle batter. Yes.

Quarantine mode can’t stop us from chatting with Oak Park-River Forest’s Coach Carley Tarantino and Payton College Prep’s Coach Megan Fuechsl! We value growth here at 8CA, so it was great to break it down with 2 coaches who focused on making sure their teams were ambitious, mentally flexible, and continuously prepared through the summer, fall, and winter on the way to significant improvements. Both coaches take us from the start through the end of their seasons and chart their experiences as dancers and coaches. Plus they’ve got a couple coaching insights tucked into the end of their convos! And JV teams, we put the spotlight on you with 8 teams that crushed it during the ’19-’20 season, along with a few extra teams that deserve some high fives, too. With everyone stuck at home, it’s easy to fall into Instagram rabbit holes. Luckily there’s enough entertaining and heart-warming stuff out there thanks to Illinois’ amazing dance teams, and we call out some of the best items we’ve come across in the past couple weeks. Stay well, keep stretching, and when your Houseparty app gets boring, be sure to rewind to our earlier podcasts for more great tips on tech and coaching! Random Office reference: “Peace out, Seacrest.”

Dancing at the next level after high school isn’t necessarily like the typical Big 10 dance team experience. Perform with the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) Dancing Flames, and you’ll feel some strong pro dance team vibes. No football program? No problem. Lindsey describes how UIC dancers stay busy through the fall with soccer and then really turn it up with a busy game day during basketball season. Then it’s time for nationals…or for this season, having to wait until next year. Coach Lococo explains what most teams are planning to do with this year’s unused routines and costumes. Oh, and she’s choreographed some of Illinois’ most memorable high school dance team routines over the years! You’ll hear about her approach to working with different styles and teams, and her crafty methods when it comes to staging and musicality. What can teams do to scoop just a couple extra musicality points? Coach LL has that covered, too. And for the novice choreographers out there looking to design dances for their team’s halftimes and even comp season routines, Lindsey has some wise advice and tips. Besides that amazing convo, I’ve got my usual shout outs to teams who are killin’ it on Instagram! This week’s random Office quote: “Everyone INSIDE the car was fine, Stanley…”

Dance is hot all around the state of Illinois, and Coach Carleigh Schimpf’s Murphysboro Devil Dazzlers are Exhibit A of that argument for the southern Illinois dance scene! She reveals the ingredients that led her program to break through to the next level, garnering lots of praise and attention at both IHSA and IDTA state. Chicago-area teams (and even St. Louis-area teams), you’ll want to listen in on Carleigh’s thoughts of what makes dance in her part of the state so vibrant! Coach Casey Dugan from Libertyville joins us for an in-depth convo on her team’s two comp routines this past season, and why one of them was such a departure from their normal dance menu. We also touch on the power of Libertyville’s thoughtful athletics culture and philosophy, plus all the benefits of having several high quality studios feed into the high school’s dance program. We wrap it up with a few shout outs to college and high school teams that nailed it on social media over the past week! Random Office quote: “That wasn’t a tapeworm.”

One of Illinois’ mini-hotspots for competitive dance is that stretch of southern Illinois between the St. Louis suburbs and Carbondale. That’s where the Stingers Dance Team (coached by alum Alyssa Lohmann) do their thing, taking on the IDTA season while also going for an IHSA state qualification. Alyssa takes us through the process of putting a team together with virtual tryouts, the mindset of crafting a lyrical or jazz routine and how to make them work for both the IDTA and IHSA rubrics, and her lifelong pathway toward coaching. Next we breakdown the poll results from our insta story post over the weekend: which is grosser, old jazz shoes or old poms? Hard to segue out of that one, but worrying about those mega-popular turns in seconde will snap you out of it! Coach Alli Heckman has her outstanding tips for getting those a-la-seconde turns better, and we also peak into her return to coaching and taking the reins of the Jacobs Dance program. Then I run through the top 8 most interesting things about the 2008 TDI state schedule (which we posted on instagram last week), including certain teams doing styles you could barely imagine them doing right now! We wrap with the effervescent Coach Amling from Huntley. She takes us behind the scenes of their hip hop routine from this past season, uncovers some hip hop dance wisdom, and serves up some tips on how to host a smoothly running competition! Finishing touches: our fave posts from everyone else’s social media over the past week, and a hint to our Illinois coaches on why we’re going to need your help with our 8CA questionnaire!

This week’s random Office quote:

Dwight: What were your favorite moments?

Michael: Oh, hmm, all of them. I loved them all. Every single one.

Dwight: What about when Jan said the branch was closing?

Michael: God, Dwight!

Knockin’ on summer’s door? Depends on your school calendar. And that also means it’s a confusing time for Illinois’ high school dance teams as they grapple with IHSA’s suspension of summer contact days. Does it include virtual contact? Can teams meet virtually, or can they also do physically athletic practice-y stuff? Can it include what they usually do during summer contact, which is choreo and competition elements? And since it sounds a lot like August’s “no contact week,” can coaches even be involved on a Zoom meeting? Yikes. At least we have Part 1 of our awesome convo with St. Charles East’s Kari Batka, who’s among the deans of high school dance in IL. She tells us about how her team flexed its mental flexibility when they and fellow 3A giants Lake Park came to comp season with the same concept, song, and costumes. It’s only half the convo this week, but you’ll hear the thought process of one of our sport’s most experienced minds. And we’ve got a quirky top 8 list: the hardest transitions to make as a dancer within a dance program!

This week’s random Office quote:

“I throw myself at the mercy of the deposition.”

And, we’re back! Sorta. Because high school sports teams can start working out at school again, though for now it’s just conditioning and strengthening. We’ll tell you why this first move isn’t yet very useful for dance teams. We talk about our week-long pause to reflect on racial injustice and how we can do better, and we give a special shoutout to dancers going through the disappointment of knowing that someone close to them is letting them down on this issue. Then it’s time for part 2 from our convo with St Charles East DT Coach Kari Batka! She walks us through her virtual tryouts process and how her new coaching staff helped sort through 54 candidates. She then rips through a concise but amazing timeline of her coaching career, which basically parallels the history of competitive dance in Illinois! Next we chat with Downers Grove South Fillies Dance Team Coach Dawn Jovic who led her program to an excellent season even though they didn’t get to state. She shares how her outstanding assistant and team alum helped build the program back up over the past few seasons, the DGS Fillies’ jazz and pom specialties, and how dance teams have evolved over her career but also how some things never change…like technique fundamentals! Plus we rundown all the info we’re looking for in the 8CA surveys we sent out recently.

Random Office quote: “I…declare…bankruptcy!!!”

Ninety IHSA teams meet up in Bloomington every winter for IHSA state, but their backgrounds and circumstances can vary wildly. West-central Illinois pom specialists Elmwood came out of sectionals on fire. They played their cards rightand landed among all the stellar Day 2 teams in 1A, and Coach Emily Roberts shares with us all the drilling and repetition it took to bring that kind of polish to the IHSA state floor…AND the crafty creativity it takes to come up with a very specific theme. And her small town team? Girls with no formal training but plenty of athletic ability. Around 1 out of every 10 girls at Elmwood are on this Day 2 team! Then there’s 3A York, whose dancers wear the pressure of being recent state champs with a lot of grace and determination. Coach Alyssa Ortiz talks about how she keeps the pressure in check and lets the team thrive on their dancers’ desire and hunger to perform at a high level, especially when it counts at the end of the season. We chat about the sisterhood of being on this elite team, along with her own path from JV coach to elite 3A varsity coach. Alyssa also shares her approach to helping kids who are on the JV-varsity borderline to cross over solidly into varsity territory! Sprinkled elsewhere throughout Episode 11 are all the details on our new 8CA Technique Sessions: what they can do for your team, how they’re way different from any other instructional experience out there, how we built extra value into the pricing, and how we found the best teachers that perfectly fit the 8CA approach and philosophy!

Random Office quote: “Who says exactly what they’re thinking? What kind of a game is that?” -Kelly

Wheaton North’s got a new coach! She’s Coach Strah (for short) and she brings years of 3A experience to the Falconettes. We go over what it’s like to take over a major program in the middle of a pandemic and run practices outside in the 3rd warmest summer on record. Not only do we revisit her time as an Oswego East dancer, but we also talk about her time on the Illinettes Dance Team and what high school dancers can do right now to prep for being on a college dance team. Next up is about 25% of a Top 8 list (’cause we ran out of time…): changes that coaches would like to see in Illinois competitive dance based on the surveys we went out at the start of summer. We only got through #8 and #7, but it’s enough to get the ADs talking. We end with something new: a post-practice chat with Sandburg’s coaches and captains, right in their dance room! Coaches Jill Roberson and Danielle Latorre go over the process of strategizing as either a jazz or a lyrical team, instilling mental toughness, and learning musicality. Their captains also reveal how they improved on specific skills that, at first, didn’t come naturally. Finally you’ll hear a snippet of audio from possibly our only summer practice visit of 2020…

Random Office quote: “Please don’t smell me, Michael.”

ILLINOIS DANCERS

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Belleville East!

2.14.20

Lengthy tradition of dance excellence at Belleville East continues with 2 state bound IDTA routines [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Knoxville!

2.14.20

Knoxville’s kick specialists have had to battle through the season, but they’re headed to Springfield to contend for a single-A kick category championship [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Lyons Township!

2.13.20

These dancers came out on top of several elite programs at their conference comp before taking 2nd at sectionals. LT helps represent the Chicago ‘burbs at IDTA state with a couple top-shelf routines this weekend [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Nashville!

2.13.20

This steadily rising program has now put together a couple nice seasons in a row! The Nashville dancers hit Springfield this weekend with a competitive lyrical and a dominating jazz routine [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Gardner-South Wilmington!

2.13.20

These versatile athletes from the very edge of the Chicago metro area looked great in Bloomington and are now set to compete in single-A pom and jazz at IDTA state [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Murphysboro!

2.13.20

This team’s enjoying a breakout season and are bringing the heat to IDTA state with their jazz and pom dance routines [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Seneca!

2.13.20

They attracted a lot of attention in 1A a couple seasons ago, looked great in Bloomington at IHSA state, and are poised to bring their lyrical talents to IDTA state [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Marion!

2.12.20

Known for their strong kick tradition, Marion frequently packs a punch when it comes to pom and lyrical work. The southern Illinois powerhouse once again graces the IDTA state floor in multiple categories this weekend [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Jacksonville!

2.12.20

Breakout 1A stars in IHSA a couple seasons ago, the J’ettes have been a force in IDTA for years and will show that legacy again this weekend at IDTA state [more]

IDTA State Week Featured Team: Elmwood!

2.12.20

They rocked both days at IHSA state and these pom specialists are back for more at IDTA state this weekend [more]

One more shot to qualify for IDTA state!

2.7.20

Who’s got a little more left in the tank? Teams will go the extra mile to try and qualify for IDTA state in what we’re calling Last Chance Weekend! Here’s a look at the different situations that got them there [more]