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Behind the Scenes:
Last weekend, in a studio on the east side of Memphis, TN, a group of 14 UCA Staffers got together to shoot the 2009 Summer Material DVD.
The creation of the summer material has been slowly coming together over the last couple of months. One weekend, UCA brought in staff to create the cheers and another weekend was dedicated to the dances.
The material DVD is jammed packed with tons of cheer, sidelines and dances, so if you don’t get enough at camp, you can always go home and learn more from the DVD!
For the taping of the material, the staff spent three days in the studio making sure each cheer and dance was perfect. Last weekend, all of the UCA Staffers hard work and dedication paid off when the Summer Material DVD was completed Sunday night.
Christina Brown, an 8th year instructor said, “This is the third year I have done the DVD and this year’s shoot was the best yet! The material is fresh and new, but it’s a different kind of new. It’s the kind of new that you get excited about when you see it, because it is so unique. I can't wait to see the looks on the kids’ faces when they see the new material!
One of the highlights on the DVD is the cheer portion, which is divided into three sections: sideline, junior high and high school cheers. From defense to offense and football to basketball, the DVD has every kind of cheer your squad will need to know.
Want to check out this original material? Contact your State Director today and get signed up for one of UCA’s Summer Camps!
Making the Dances
Last weekend, the production of the 2009 summer material came to a close in Memphis, TN. The cheer portion of the DVD was created in November, and last weekend the UCA staff finished up the dance section.
To help create the dances for the summer of 2009, UCA flew in some of the top UCA dancers in the industry. They included Denise ‘Dicharry’ Galjour, current head coach of the LSU dance team; Siobhan Johnson, current dancer for the New Jersey Nets; Brooke Rieger, former captain of the Southeast Missouri State Dance team and a dance major; Clariss, who has had many years of dance experience; and Carlos, who has helped make up the summer camp material for many years. Throughout the years, Carlos has made sure each dance represents the correct style of dance UCA is looking for.
Whether you are a beginner or a dance veteran, the UCA Summer Material DVD includes dances for all levels of cheerleading.
When attending a UCA summer camp the majority of the cheerleaders will learn the Xtreme routine Level 2. At the end of each summer UCA always receives a number of emails saying the Xtreme routine was their favorite dance at camp. This dance is one of the camp favorites, because it is a great dance to take back to school and use it in front your crowd. What makes the Xtreme routine so useful is the optional ending; some squads do stunts, tumbling and jumps, while others choose to dance some more! 
Besides the Xtreme routine, the campers also have the opportunity to learn a band chant and time out dance, two other great options to use during a time out at a football or basketball game!
Another dance that is taught at UCA’s summer camps is the Hip Hop dance. Like the Xtreme routine, this dance gives you the option of learning Level 1 or 2 depending on your team’s preference. This is a fun dance that gives the team the opportunity to do more of a free style dance.
Want to learn these dances this summer? Contact your State Director NOW to sign up for a summer camp near you!
Making the Cheers
Some of the most accomplished cheerleaders in the industry flew into Memphis, TN last weekend to create the cheers for the 2009 Summer Material. They were from a variety of different universities including UCF, LSU, West Georgia, Slippery Rock and Morehead.
While they were here, they spent their time working on the words and motions for the cheers that will be taught at camp next year.
"When developing the material it is very important to keep in mind the meaning behind the cheers, which is to get the crowd involved," says tenth year instructor, Josh McCurdy.
When a team attends a UCA camp they expect nothing but the best experience, instructors, and material. The material the cheerleaders learn at camp is very important to the teams because a majority of them use the cheers at their football and basketball games.
Ryan Smith, an eighth year instructor from Virginia, has been creating cheers for our summer camps for four years. He says, "As a coach, the most important reason cheerleaders go to camp is to get new and innovating material, whether it is cheers or stunts. Plus, I believe taking my girls to camp not only improves them as cheerleaders, but also as people."
Tryout Material
Before you know it, it will be spring again, and that means it's time for tryouts!
Tryouts are demanding days for coaches, and UCA knows that we can provide materials that will help to make planning your tryouts easier.
There are many benefits to using the UCA tryout material:
- Your tryouts need to be as fair and impartial as possible. Using material that has been specifically created for tryouts guarantees that no one trying out has seen or learned the material before one of their competitors.
- Coaches can either have the senior members learn the material and teach it to the cheerleader applicants, or they can choose to play the DVD directly for the applicants and have them learn the material from the UCA staffers.
- The DVD includes material that is appropriate for various levels of cheerleader applicants, so coaches can play the material that most suits their needs.
- UCA realizes your Freshman team isn't advanced as your Varsity team, so we have divided the dances into three levels: 1, 2 and 3. Along with the dances you will also get a cheer and sidelines.
To film the tryout material DVD, we selected two of the top UCA Instructors, Jackie Wolcott, a fourth year instructor from Orlando, FL, and Aisha Johns, a fifth year instructor from Dallas, TX. "This is a great DVD that will cater to every coach!" Aisha Johns.
In addition to the DVD, coaches can also find all the appropriate support materials for tryouts on the web at uca.varsity.com under "Coaches." These support material include sample score sheets, interview questions, tally sheets, ect. With the tryout DVD and the website as a resource, UCA cheer coaches should have everything they need to run a successful tryout.
Need help putting together your school's tryouts? Contact your UCA state director and ask for help. Your state director can talk you through tryouts and explain various aspects of tryouts and answer any questions you might have about the process.
The best part, this material is FREE! Everybody who attended camp last summer should receive their DVD in January. If you have any questions or want to receive a DVD call 1.888.CHEERUCA.
