by Norm Ramil / 8ca.music.person & dance.fan

Dance is just huge in Minnesota. You’ve probably Youtubed the big AAA (“3A”) teams from the Minneapolis area, whether it’s their amazingly spectacular state competition on an NBA floor at the Target Center, or their UDA nationals dances. (Of course you’ve watched the much-celebrated University of Minnesota Dance Team). For a little background, here’s a post from last summer.

For the non-clickers out there, here’s the shortest background that a wordy guy can come up with. The state high school league runs the sport of competitive dance, though the Minnesota Association of Dance Teams (MADT) provides support and extra events. Teams are divided into 3 classes: A (“1A”), AA (“2A”), and AAA (“3A”) for the biggest schools. They compete in two categories, jazz and kick. Jazz is a pretty big umbrella category that includes all shades of jazz, contemporary, and lyrical. Kick is a huge spectacle with eye-popping athleticism, huge teams in interesting formations, and just the all-around vibe of the most creative themed pom routines you can imagine (just without the poms), all at a tempo that most non-Minnesota teams would find to be un-kickably fast. Competitions run all winter leading up to Sections (what Illinois teams would call “sectionals”), where teams advance on to state in mid-February.

ROCORI High School is an acronym for the three towns it serves (Rockville, Cold Spring, and Richmond), and it’s about an hour or so northwest of Minneapolis, sort of but not really near the major town of St. Cloud. My first-ever visit to a Minnesota dance comp was at Rocori, and the sweetest thing about that day was watching the winning teams each receive a cake from the local bakery in addition to their category trophies! (Here’s my post from that weekend).

Coach Lea’ Frank leads the Rocori Dance Team. The Rockettes program has 46 dancers when you count up varsity and JV! Sixteen of the varsity girls are returning from a year ago. A special thank you goes out to Coach Frank and Allison Bridges from MADT for helping connect 8 Count Audio with the thriving Minnesota dance community!

Here’s our email interview with Coach Frank and the Rockettes coaches:

Tell us about your team’s technical specialties…

In the past, we have been known for having clean and tight routines!  We feel that we got away from this last year, so we’re excited to improve on that this year!

Which categories will you be competing in?

We’ll be competing in High Kick and Jazz, which are the two categories offered for dance teams in Minnesota.

What skills are required to try out for the team?

Our school district has a participation policy that allows anyone who wishes to be a part of a high school team. We have had girls try out for our team that have no previous dance experience. We do have a Varsity and JV team for both Kick and Jazz. In order to make the Varsity kick team, dancers must have high kicks, flat splits, and high toe touches (Russian jumps). Requirements to be on the varsity jazz team are being able to complete multiple a la seconde turns and numerous leaps.

Do your dancers have studio / technical backgrounds?

Approximately 10 dancers on our current team have a studio or ballet background, and the remaining 75% have been in a youth dance program (Just For Kix) in our community that focuses on the kick technique and style.

What goes on during the summer and fall months?

Our competitive season is during winter, which begins the third week of October and goes through mid–February (for teams that make it to the State tournament). We can hold summer practices during June and July to focus on building strength and dance technique.

In addition to practicing two days per week in June and July, the team attends a four-day dance camp to enhance dance skills and work on dance combos. Our juniors and seniors attend a two-day leadership retreat with our coaching staff. Another summer activity we hold is a family summer picnic as a fun way for the girls to interact outside of practice and for family members to meet one another.

Competitive season coaches are not allowed to coach or instruct dancers on the team from August 1 until October when our season starts. With that being said, our fall team is coached by other coaches from September until mid–October. This team does not compete, but performs during halftime at high school football games and works on endurance for the upcoming season.

Can you tell us about the Rockettes’ performance schedule during the year?

Our competitive season begins the third week in October, and typically, our first competition is the third weekend in November. Our team has roughly four weeks to learn two routines: kick and jazz. Our high school is part of a conference and we compete at three conference meets within the season. In addition to conference meets, we attend approximately 5-6 competitions.

We host a dance show for our community, and we invite the local Just For Kix youth dancers to perform. It’s not only a great fundraiser for us, but it also allows us a chance to perform for our community. We typically end the show with a Father-Daughter performance that our team performs with their dads (or a father figure).

What is your practice schedule like during competition season?

Our winter season we practice five days per week with most competitions on Saturdays. We practice two mornings a week before school (6:15-7:30am) and after school four days per week (3:30-6:00pm). One day a week about 70% of our team attends ballet with the Stroia Ballet Company.

What’s a typical Rockettes practice like, and does it change throughout the year?

Our winter season practices incorporate both kick and jazz. In the beginning of the season, we mainly work on learning and perfecting the routines. As the season goes on, we spend practice cleaning and drilling the dances while also spending time on technique and endurance. Our dance is never the same as it is in the beginning, as we are changing in ways to enhance scores and make the routine visually appealing to the eye.

What’s your practice space like?

We are fortunate enough to have a gym to practice in. We are able to use the high school gym for our morning practices, and in the afternoons, we use two different school gyms in our district. The afternoon practice gym is split between the JV and Varsity teams, so we don’t always have a full gym for each team.

Can you tell us about your all of your coaching backgrounds?

Out of the 7 coaches for the dance team, six have been a part of the Just For Kix programs. Head coach, Lea’ Frank, looks up to her previous high school coach and Just For Kix entrepreneur, Cindy Clough, and uses many coaching techniques and methods from her. Frank has directed numerous Just For Kix programs in Minnesota and North Dakota areas.

Sharaia Goble has also danced under Cindy Clough and continues to teach at Just For Kix camps.

Coaches Samantha Athmann, Taylor Rothstein, and Courtney Wensmann have all danced under Lea’ Frank and learned her style of coaching and incorporated it into their own current coaching practice.

Carina Achman has also trained under Lea’ Frank and has helped with Just For Kix programs.

Katelyn Hendrickson danced for Albert Lea Dance Team, has extensive ballet training, and danced for the College of Saint Benedict Dance Team.

What’s your coaching philosophy?

Our coaching philosophy is focused on self and peer critiquing. We don’t only believe in teaching the girls to be good dancers, but we also teach them to be kind and independent young women.

Can you tell us a little about the program’s history?

The ROCORI Dance Team Program was started 12 years ago, and this will be Frank’s seventh year coaching. Out of the 12 years, ROCORI has made 6 kick state appearances and 5 jazz state appearances.

Alums Ellen Theis, Stephanie Schramel, Justine Schramel, and Riley Court have danced at the college level.

For our readers who aren’t from Minnesota…what’s the competitive dance scene like in your state?

The fan base in Minnesota is prominent. Competitions start early in the morning and parents and fans are lined outside waiting to come in to get the perfect spot for the competition. Parents and fans are dressed in crazy and fun ways to reflect their teams color and dance theme. Minnesota is filled with talented dancers and teams. The level of creativity and difficulty is increasing with every year. There are only 36 teams that have the privilege to make a state appearance, and there are many great teams who end their season early.

Are there other teams your dancers look up to and admire?

3A teams! [8CA: here’s a great rundown of the class AAA teams that danced at Minnesota’s state competition this past February, as found on the excellent Minnesota Dance Coaches Association website. You’ll definitely want to find these teams on Instagram and Twitter!]