Who is FiRED Up Dance Team, you ask? Red Door’s version of a competitive drill team that is rewarding, challenging and so much fun! Read on to hear about this amazing program at Red Door.

FiRED Up currently has 2 teams: Ignite and Inferno, who have a common goal of making their school’s drill team one day or want to get drill experience at a private studio to further their dance and performing journey with us. The program is set up to mimic the atmosphere of school drill team so our dancers find the most success possible throughout the tryout process and the many seasons in a drill team year. 

Want to know what a typical year looks like for Fired Up Dancers? 

We start the year with our preparations in the summer. Our dancers are required to take dance classes over the summer to stay in competition ready dance condition. They can take class in a variety of styles including jazz, ballet, and leaps and turns. We prepared not only the dancers and their technique, but schedules and practice attire too (everyone loves a good team jacket!) 

Then the school year begins. While we have a big chunk of our choreography completed, the teams must continue to learn and work memory and technique to complete the rest of their routines. This year the Ignite Team learned three competition dances- Jazz, Pom, and Hip Hop while the Inferno team learned Jazz, Pom, and Contemporary. As the year grows we, the routines grow stronger through lots of repetition, cleaning and drilling specific skills. This is the life of a dancer! Partially through the year, we host a Technique Workshop that both teams attend to focus on the specific skills in their routines and spend a longer amount of time fine-tuning some technique. By November, all dances are finished! What an accomplishment for just a few short months! 

This year, our FiRED Up dancers met up for a team Thanksgiving dinner for a little out of studio bonding time. The food was delicious and the girls had a lot of fun. In December, both teams performed in the Wylie East Sapphires Winter Showcase in December, a great performance experience before our competitions get here. We always love seeing our girls on stage! By January, we are heading into competition season with full force. 

 January consists of an all-day competition rehearsal. This is very much like something dancers will see on a high school team and one of my favorite events of the year. So much progress is made during this one rehearsal really showing off the talent these girls have and bringing everything together. Going into February, it is time to buckle down! Practices are still full of laughter but it’s ‘go time’! Dress rehearsal happens in February, shortly followed by the first competition. We close out the year with our annual Spring Show, Red Door’s Recital, and an end-of-the-year banquet, all in April, May & June. 

The work of a dancer is never completed and can be challenging, but being a part of a team like this you have so many wonderful personalities, friendships, and memories. I’m telling you, these girls are so much fun! They keep us on our toes! I can’t wait to spend the rest of the year with them and watch all of their hard work pay off on the performance floor!