On the other sits The Forum, an arena that
long ago earned its place as a Los
Angeles
As the 65 finalists enter the building
through a long, backstage tunnel, they pass by a wall with the names and years
of artists who have performed at the historic venue. Prince. Madonna. The
Rolling Stones. Stevie Wonder. Earth, Wind & Fire. Justin Timberlake.
Maroon 5. The list goes on and on and on.
And that’s saying nothing of the
championships the Lakers won while playing in this same building form 1967 to
1999.
It’s a remarkable setting for the finalists
as they compete one last time.
“The special
part about being at the Forum for me is in the 80s, this was part of ‘Showtime’
and the Lakers,” Rams Director of Cheerleaders Keely Fimbres-Bledsoe says. “And
so being a Los Angeles native, coming back here to do this event is very, very
inspiring — not only inspiring, but also rewarding at the same time.”
And yet, as these ladies begin filing into
the area early in the afternoon for the five o’clock showtime, many had already
done plenty to determine their ultimate result during past two weeks.
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TE INTERVIEW
As part of the audition process, the ladies
not only attended rehearsals, but also had a professional interview with
Fimbres-Bledsoe and Rams vice president of Corporate Communications & Civic
Affairs, Molly Higgins.
Conducted over three days the week of the
final auditions, the ladies sat in groups of three or four in an 11th-floor
conference room in Hollywood across the street from the Chinese Theater as Higgins
and Fimbres-Bledsoe asked questions to get to know them better.
“The
professional interview is of critical importance,” Higgins says. “They dance
only 10 times a year, so the majority of their time is actually in the
community representing the organization. So we want to make sure that we’re
comfortable and proud of the ladies we select to be on the final squad.”
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Fimbres-Bledsoe says the goal is never to
trick anyone in the interview portion. That’s why the questions are fairly
basic and open-ended.
What made you want to audition?
What do you do for a living?
What are some of your interests?
Why do you want to be a Los Angeles Rams
Cheerleader?
“I want them
to be comfortable and to be genuine,” Fimbres-Bledsoe says. “So we try to make
them relax and be themselves.”
Authenticity is important as well, because
the organization wants to have young women who prove to be team players. It’s
an aspect of personality Fimbres-Bledsoe believes she can discern from the
interviews.
“Coming to a
new city, there are no returning veterans to help direct, guide, and assist in
the development in what we are looking for in an ambassador,” she says. “So as
a team, and being a team member, and a team player, you are all going to help
each other grow to become the best ambassador this city has to offer. And so
that’s why, to me, the team aspect is the most important element that we need
for this season.”
Body language can be an important context
clue. The young women who continue to support one another — think smiles, head
nods — even though they’re competing for the same spots leave the best
impressions.
All of this is important because the
interview counts for 30 to 40 percent of the ladies’ total score. And so what a
finalist says and how she says it in that conference room may mean more than
however she performs at The Forum in a few days.
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BEFORE THE SHOW
After walking through the storied tunnel on
Sunday, the ladies head into a makeshift dressing room just to the left of the
stage. Each of the finalists has her own personal station set up, complete with
lights and mirrors.
With about four hours until the event
begins, an environment like that could be chaotic and tense. But it actually
isn’t. Some young women are fixing their hair and makeup. Some are having
friendly conversations among themselves. Some are marking the dance routine with
their partner, building up confidence for what will turn out to be a decently
long evening.
“We’re just
kind of stretching, relaxing. You’re going over questions, you’re working on
poses,” Shardia says. “You’re making sure your makeup looks good, your hair
looks good. You’re encouraging other girls. You’re just really getting yourself
in the mindset of performing for the judges and the fans.”
There are a few final preparations that
must occur before the event begins. The ladies need to rehearse the way they’ll
come out when they’re introduced on The Forum stage. Choreographer John Peters
must block the final showcase routine with all 65 ladies.
And then there are the makeup chairs.
Fimbres-Bledsoe has brought in about 25 makeup artists who form an elaborate
setup directly behind the stage to make sure each finalist looks her best.
There’s a particular emphasis on cheeks. It
is a large venue, after all, and the attendees need to be able to see the
ladies from far away.
“The lights
are so harsh on us out there and the audience is so far away, so hopefully the
audience can see our faces really well,” Andi says. “I love getting my makeup
and hair done like this.”
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Once they have their makeup on, the ladies
have their headshots taken in their business attire before lining up to head on
stage.
“I’m so
anxious now because we have 65 going up on stage at the moment, and we’re going
to end up at about 30 to 40 — we’re not sure,” Fimbres-Bledsoe says. “But I’ve
gotten close to a lot of these ladies. We’ve interviewed them, we’ve had
rehearsals with them, so you become friendly and you get to know a little bit
about them outside of the dance world and what they do every day all day. So it
is a little emotional. It can be a little stressful at the same time, but very,
very exciting.”
While Fimbres-Bledsoe’s nervous, finalists
say they feel prepared for everything ahead of them.
“They’ve given
us plenty of opportunities to ask questions, to bounce ideas off the other
girls, to watch the other girls and see what they’re doing. And you can learn
from them,” Shardia says. “So I’m feeling good. It’s just, really, getting your
nerves to not play tricks on you and keep your confidence.”
It seems impossible, but the hours have
quickly passed. It’s five o’clock — time to start the show.
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THE EVENT
The final audition has four parts: the
question and answer session, the swimsuit portion, the partner dance, and the
showcase dance.
The ladies begin with the Q and A, first
walking out together in their business attire before each receiving one
question center stage at the microphone.
Most of the ladies cited this section as
the one for which they were the most nervous.
Much like the interview earlier that week,
the point is not to cross up or trick the finalists. They’ve all received a
list of questions that they should be prepared to answer for that night, and
many had them on flash cards in the dressing room earlier that evening.
What has been your most influential life
moment to date?
What’s your dream job?
If you were forced to sing karaoke, what
song would you choose?
What’s one life lesson that you have
learned during college?
If you had one week to live, how would you
live it?
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Once they answer their question, the ladies
go back to the dressing room in order to prepare for the swimsuit portion. They
all wear suits flattering to their figures, as each young woman glides across
the catwalk to, as one finalist puts it, “strut their stuff.”
But those two really serve as the preamble
for the evening’s main event: The partner dance.
The ladies first learned the routine at the
preliminary auditions and refined the same minute-long dance at the first
finalists rehearsal. But now, they will all do this routine in pairs in front
of hundreds of people and the panel of nine judges.
Because of the rehearsal process, the
ladies feel confident and comfortable. Peters has fashioned his choreography
for eight song choices. There are those currently on the charts — like DNCE’s
“Cake by the Ocean” — and those that have more of an old-school vibe — Peaches
and Herb’s “Shake Your Groove Thing.”
But the challenge is that the ladies don’t
know what song they’ll be dancing to until they get on the stage and hear it.
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“It’s a little bit nerve-racking,” Macall says, “but I think there
are several songs that I like. So when it comes on, I think that’ll wash over
me and I’ll be happy.”
The key is practice, and that’s what nearly
all the ladies choose to do backstage. Unlike the preliminary auditions, each
finalist can run through the routine as much or as little as she likes while
the performances are ongoing on stage. This allows the ladies to get that much
more comfortable.
“I think
underneath we all know that we’re nervous,” Justene says. “But right now, it’s
nothing but females empowering other females and supporting one another because
we all know how the nerves are getting to all of us. So we’re able to support
each other.”
“I’m just so
ready to do it,” Macall says. “We’ve really practiced so much, and really put
so much time and energy. I feel confident and ready.”
They enter and exit the stage as pairs, all
of them appearing thrilled at what they’ve accomplished.
“The
excitement, the adrenaline — and watching my partner beside me. It was
awesome,” Linette says.
“All the
nerves are out. All the pressure is off,” Micki says. “We just had a great time
out there.”
“I’m so
relieved. It was so amazing,” Justene says. “The energy of the crowd was great.
I want to go in line again and do it, just like the bathing suit. But I’m
relieved. I’m so relieved. And I want water, but I’m going to get ready for the
finale dance.”
The short final dance is a way to celebrate
all of the young women who made it from nearly 400 who came out to preliminary
auditions to the 65 finalists. While he’s choreographed the Rams cheerleader
auditions before, Peters says he’s never done a finale showcase. But he’s
pleased with how having all the ladies dance on the same stage at the same time
works out.
“It looked
spectacular,” Peters says. “With the girls who make the team, I want to use it
for a halftime number. It looked so good.”
But once the showcase ends, it’s time to
wait. And wait. And wait.
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THE RESULTS
There are few moments better in life than
finding out you’ve reached a long-held goal. And for the finalists, those
moments came after a significant holding period.
The ladies went through a few formations
backstage in the waiting period. At first, they formed small groups. Then, as
videos played for the crowd, they watched silently in a clump where they could all
view a screen.
Finally, they gathered in a circle, holding
hands with one another for support.
“We’ve worked
so hard together, getting to know these girls, I feel like they’re my sisters
already,” Shelbie says. “This feels like a team already. So it’s going to be
insane to see who makes it, but at the end of the day, everyone gave it their
all.”
At long last, the results were ready to go.
As each number and name were called, the joy was palpable. Screaming. Crying.
Leaping. And then a walk out onto the stage, escorted by the mascot, Rampage,
where each newly minted cheerleader would receiver her first gift — a bedazzled
Rams jacket.
When the hosts were finished announcing
names, the cheerleaders — no longer finalists — gathered in the center of the
stage for their first team photo. Then, the hugs and celebrations continued.
“It’s very
emotional, very exciting,” Andi says. “It’s been such a long process and for it
to come to this, it’s just very overwhelming right now. And I’m super excited
for the new team, new teammates. A lot of my friends also my made the team and
it’s really exciting.”
“First I
looked to make sure it was my number. And then I was like, ‘Is that my name?’
And then I just ran through,” Micki says of her reaction. “I wanted to hug
everyone because we’ve all worked so hard to get to this point. And walking
across the stage, I was holding back tears.
“We worked so
hard,” Micki continues on her emotions. “We were so happy. And this is just the
start of something great for L.A.
As the ladies look around examining who
made it, Justene makes a keen observation.Wholesale Nike Los Angeles Rams Jerseys
“The
personalities that they picked are the nicest girls,” she says. It’s a remark
that reflects what Fimbres-Bledsoe had been saying since the audition process
started about looking for team players rather than individuals.
“I think that
they look when we’re not looking,” Justene adds. “We’ve all been interacting
with each other and helping each other, asking questions. So I think that’s
what they notice because they have emphasized to us that teamwork is so strong.
But we just didn’t know how they would go about finding those teamwork players.
So they’re sneaky but they’re good.”
And so are the 28 young women who have been
selected to be ambassadors for the organization. They will dance at the
Coliseum, make appearances all around Los
Angeles
