Each year, the BYU Cougarettes hold a two-day audition process where the coaches along with guest judges evaluate auditioning dancers, including members of the previous team, for the next Cougarette season.
The structure looks a little like this — on day one, the dancers go through a technique round of auditions.
In this round dancers are scored based on their ability to control, bend, jump and turn their body. After each dancer shows their technique, a cut is made where the judges allow dancers who scored high enough to continue on with the audition and excuse those who did not score high enough.
After this round, the dancers moving forward learn two combinations — one jazz combination and one hip-hop combination.
After learning the combinations, day one of auditions ends.
The dancers are permitted to practice these dances that night, and will be asked to perform them first thing the next day.
On day two, the remaining dancers are separated into groups and asked to perform the combinations they learned the night before for the judges.
Next, the athletes are asked to show the required skills and tricks listed on the Cougarettes' web page. Dancers interested in Cougarettes are required to have these tricks in order to participate on the team.
After the combinations and tricks are shown, another cut is made where the judges again, narrow down the amount of dancers going into the final rounds.
If a dancer scores high enough to be invited into the last rounds, she is asked to perform a one minute solo of their choice, to showcase their personal strengths. This is done in front of all dancers who have made the cuts thus far.
It is also disclosed that a call back can be issued by the judges at any time during the audition if they feel they need to see a certain dancer re-perform a certain skill or combination.
Finally, the last round of auditions is an interview portion, where the Cougarette coaches Morgan St. Pierre and Stacy Bills interview each new dancer.
This interview is to get to know the dancer personally and identify their core personality traits to see if the dancer is a good fit for the team.
But what are they specifically looking for?
“I am looking for a mentally tough dancer that knows how to juggle a lot,” Bills said. "Coming to BYU and Cougarettes alone is a huge commitment, but it's the ability to handle the school load on top of it.
“It takes organization, time management and prioritizes the things that are most important. The rigors and demands take a toll mentally and physically,” Bills said.
While it is important to these coaches that their team members are well-rounded physically, they emphasized that they are also looking for those with strong values.
They are looking for "dancers that are team players and put the team first,” Bills said.
It is an audition where dancers are thoroughly observed and thoughtfully considered before they are invited to join the team.
While lengthy and intense, it is only fitting that a team as successful as the 26-time national champion Cougarettes has an audition process such as this one.
Auditions for the BYU Cougarettes are April 25-26.