Buffalo Jills audition movers and shakers
Squad’s open tryout is a kick for spectators and contestants alike
Published: April 06, 2009, 12:30 am
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It was too chilly Sunday, even indoors, for most women to want to prance around in tight halter tops and short shorts.
Not so for the approximately 100 young female athletes who strutted into the Town Ballroom to audition for the Buffalo Jills cheerleading squad.
Bringing their own hotness — or perhaps hottie-ness—was part of the deal, and the women knew it as they took the stage in pairs to perform a brief, choreographed routine to high-decibel hip-hop music.
Contestants were required to shake silver pompoms and bounce through hip flips and high kicks, then roll into a split on the nightclub stage, all while smiling for the judges, including the Bills’ Terrance McGee, Chris Kelsay and James Hardy.
Spectators stood four deep in the viewing area above the dance floor, while others watched on a big flat-screen monitor in the barroom.
The idea behind the open audition, the first since 2001, was to bring a TV reality-show quality to the proceedings, said Stephanie Mateczun, who has directed the Jills for eight years and who put in eight seasons as a cheerleader herself.
The emphasis during Sunday’s part of the audition process was clearly on the physical.
Asked what he was searching for in the contestants, radio host Rich Genzler said, “Somebody who could distract me from doing my job.”
McGee willed himself to focus on the girls’ “execution,” adding: “If I’m playing, I hope I’m not looking at cheerleaders.”
The open tryout, Mateczun pointed out, was merely the first step in selecting 35 women for the dance team — those who perform during Bills home games — and 10 nonperforming ambassadors who appear at events off the field.
The previous season’s cheerleaders, except for eight dance captains, must compete every spring against newcomers for spots on the following season’s roster.
The competition was followed by offstage interviews and a first cut of candidates. No matter how well competitors fared on the dance floor, “If they have a poor interview, that can count heavily,” Mateczun said.
Additional cuts will be made Tuesday and Thursday.
tbuckham@buffnews.com
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