This past week the Golden Stars dance team traveled to Tampa, Florida to perform in the Reliaquest Bowl Pregame and Halftime Shows, at Raymond James Stadium before a crowd of nearly 36,000 fans in the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The game was between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Illinois Fighting Illini with Mississippi coming out on top, 19-10.
The performance theme was, "Make Your Own Kind of Music". The dancers performed using props including umbrellas, capes, and pool noodles, each routine was unique to the choreography and music selections. There were over 700 performers from 14 different states, ranging from 2nd graders to high school seniors, with the majority of them being Just For Kix affiliated studios. Just for Kix is a leading dancewear and choreography educational materials dealer. Videos of many performances are available to watch on the Just For Kix Facebook page.
The Football themed pre-game show featured all of the performers using black and white poms celebrating the 37th anniversary of the bowl game in Tampa Bay. Dancers took up the entire field spanning from goal line to goal line as they performed their 2-minute routine “Rock The Football”. The performers remained on the field during the National Anthem and flyover.
During the half-time show, dancers filled the field with 5 high school bands in the center of the formation uniting as one mass band to provide the live music for the show. This years’ show titled "Make Your Own Kind Of Music" featuring the songs, “Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows” and “Make Your Own Kind Of Music” The younger dancers, performed with older dancers to “My Favorite Things”. The performance ended with a patriotic finale to "America". Cindy Clough, Executive Director of Just For Kix, was the choreographer with help from Ali Geraets, Sharaia Goble, MaKayla Clough and Adina Belanger.
The trip presented the team members with a long week of firsts: a Dinner Cruise, Disney's Magic Kingdom, and Busch Gardens are some of the experiences that the team had.
"The Florida trip opened a new perspective on dance for me and taught me 'to stay calm and be yourself'," remarked Allyson Capsel, a freshman on the team. "I have loved dance ever since I joined this team and being able to perform in front of hundreds of people on a huge football field was actually one of the best experiences of my life."
Freshman Kendra Schild agreed, "It was so fun! All the long days of hard work was so worth it at the end when the people in the crowd stood up and started clapping for girls they didn't even know. It was always fun and funny and worth every penny!"
"I'm so happy that I had the opportunity to go on this trip," Capsell said. "Florida was so fun. I loved everything about it. The beach, the palm trees, the weather, Disney, Busch Gardens and especially performing pregame and halftime routines in a huge stadium for the Reliquest Bowl! I never would have imagined that I would be going to Florida to perform, but I think anything is possible if you really put your mind to it."
"Being able to dance in Florida was such a beautiful opportunity that I am so grateful I was able to be a part of," said Senior Braxton Steil. "The week was filled with wonderful experiences and fun that will last a lifetime. The performance was an experience on its own, being on the field with the band was an energy I've never felt before."
Choreographer for the overall event, Cindy Clough, the Executive Director of Just For Kix, described what a logistical feat the event was. "It takes a great deal of man power to put together a tour like this. There were 29 buses going to all of the events." Clough also said that the full group took up "4 hotels due to the large number of participants which made it tough logistically but we went in overly prepared and made it our best tour to date.”
Clough credited the Just for Kix crew with pulling the event off smoothly. "We have had the same crew for many years now so it does get easier, as everyone knows what to do. Our crew is so seasoned they really do a great job." And, Clough recognized just how personally tough for the members of the team pulling the whole thing off is. "It is one of the toughest weeks of the year for our staff. We are on the go pretty much 24 – 7 with about 5 hours of sleep on average."
Capsell noted it was a lot of work, but a lot of fun for Eagle Grove's contingent of the show as well. "We worked really hard in order to perform in Florida," Capsel said, "and although we were tired, we did have a lot of fun while we were there. I would like to thank my coaches for letting us go on this trip and for always being there for us as a team. Thank you!"
The Reliaquest Bowl trip is an annual tradition for the dancers, which was started by former Coach Ann Sampson. Current Coaches Meghan Erdman and Brandi Wesselink said they plan to carry on the event in years to come.
