Mid-summer chat with Alex Strahanoski, Wheaton North's new coach, alongside a post-practice conversation with Sandburg Coaches Jill Roberson and Danielle Latorre, plus their captains! Plus we elaborate on some interesting changes that coaches called for in our summer survey.
Wheaton North's got a new coach! She's Coach Strah (for short) and she brings years of 3A experience to the Falconettes. We go over what it's like to take over a major program in the middle of a pandemic and run practices outside in the 3rd warmest summer on record. Not only do we revisit her time as an Oswego East dancer, but we also talk about her time on the Illinettes Dance Team and what high school dancers can do right now to prep for being on a college dance team. Next up is about 25% of a Top 8 list ('cause we ran out of time...): changes that coaches would like to see in Illinois competitive dance based on the surveys we went out at the start of summer. We only got through #8 and #7, but it's enough to get the ADs talking. We end with something new: a post-practice chat with Sandburg's coaches and captains, right in their dance room! Coaches Jill Roberson and Danielle Latorre go over the process of strategizing as either a jazz or a lyrical team, instilling mental toughness, and learning musicality. Their captains also reveal how they improved on specific skills that, at first, didn't come naturally. Finally you'll hear a snippet of audio from possibly our only summer practice visit of 2020...
Random Office quote: "Please don't smell me, Michael."