Spring has sprung and the weather may be warming up, but we already have Christmas on the mind! And so do 937 other dancers who lined up outside Radio City Music Hall last week in hopes of being cast in our 2017 Christmas Spectacular. 937! To break it down, that’s 102 male ensemble hopefuls, 340 female ensemble hopefuls, 77 Clara hopefuls and a whopping 418 Rockette hopefuls. Here’s a play-by-play of how the week went:
Monday, April 24th: Male Ensemble Open Call Auditions
Monday was dedicated to male dancers as more than 100 talented men made their way to Radio City Music Hall for a 2 p.m. call time. After rockettes.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/05/RCCS_042417_058W.jpg”>
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Not just any female dancer over the age of 18 can audition. Julie looks for dancers who are in great physical shape and have the stamina to perform in up to five 90-minute shows in one day (which we do often during the Christmas Spectacular season!). And don’t forget about the height requirement: you must be between 5’6″ and 5’10½” tall.
The dancers were split into five groups to enter the Large Rehearsal Hall and show off the range of their dance talent in the forms of ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical and kicks! With more than 400 girls and a limited amount of spots, many cuts were made throughout the day, but that didn’t put a stop to the amazing energy of the room.
Even Julie couldn’t help herself: “We are strong powerful women, hear us roar!”
Friday, April 28th: Rockettes Callbacks
Dancers who made it through the cuts of Thursday’s Rockettes auditions started their weekend at Radio City Music Hall on Friday, improving upon their choreography, precision and eye-high kicks in front of Julie, in hopes of joining the iconic kick line that so many dancers dream of being a part of.
We can’t wait to see who joins our Christmas Spectacular cast this year. Merry Christmas to all and to all, good luck!