| Jazzy Cats hold 2010-2011 tryouts |
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| Education | |||
| Written by Aaron Cedeño | |||
| Wednesday, 17 March 2010 09:00 | |||
Darsi Eveland knows the Jazzy Cats have a reputation to uphold.  As the dance team at Louisburg High School, the group not only performs with the school’s acclaimed marching band, but also entertains crowds at halftime of games, pep rallys and many other spirit-filled community events. Of course, the Jazzy Cats have long carved out a reputation for excellence apart from that of the band, earning top honors at summer camps and competitions — such as one at Shawnee Mission South High School in January, at which they earned a pair of the prized Division I ratings. The team is very aware of that community pride, Eveland, Jazzy Cats coach, said, and the responsibility it entails. “That’s part of our goal is to keep the program at a high level and make the community proud,” she explained. “Just like the marching band. The marching band has always had such a great reputation in Louisburg, and we just want to enhance that, and make the town proud.” Last week, the team held its annual tryouts, and approximately 25 high schoolers for the 2010-2011 academic year showed up, each with the goal of making their own mark on the Jazzy Cats’ budding tradition. Two days of clinic work preceded the Thursday tryouts, during which the prospective dancers learned a completely new routine. The squad was ostensibly looking to replace six current seniors, who will dance their final routine during the LHS band’s trip to the Indianapolis 500 in May. However, the squad’s underclassmen are required to try out again each and every year, Eveland explained, in order to keep things fair. No spot is guaranteed, and a panel of judges including regional dance instructor Alexandra Wilson and former Jazzy Cat Autumn Town made the final selections. The seniors are asked to participate in the week-long clinic as assistants, offering tips and aid to any prospective Jazzy Cat who may need it. It’s a role Eveland said her departing dancers relished. “They love it,” she said. “I think it’s one thing they really look forward to, being a senior and getting to be on the inside on those tryouts. You actually get to sit in and watch.” By Thursday evening, the 2010-2011 Jazzy Cats had been selected, and Eveland said she saw a great deal of talent and potential in the group. Team members are Lacey Hutton, Amber Mazza, Trisha Myers, Mackenzie Robinson, Kimmi Stephens, Jazzy Vickrey, Nichole Ward and sisters Emily and Hailey Winterburg. Five alternatives were also chosen — Gabrielle Bailey, Haley Burton, Tylor Graves, Sarah Huggins and Rachel Wittry — all of whom Eveland expected to work their way to a spot with the squad before the next school year. Early June is when the real work begins, she said, as the team prepares for Dance Camp in July in Warrensburg, Mo. “They make it look easy, and it’s not that easy,” Eveland said of the work necessary to field an outstanding team. “I think some people when they get involved they’re just shocked by hard it is.”
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