Would you like to join the Paly Varsity Dance Team? Find information about our audition process below:

Q: Who are you looking for and how many members will you accept?
We are looking for dancers who are hard working, love to dance, want to be part of a team, and have some experience with dance. Ideally we are seeking dancers who can demonstrate solid musicality and movement quality, and who can execute basic jazz leaps (jete, calypso), a double pirouette, and clean battements. Most importantly, we want new members of the Paly Dance team who are committed and excited to learn and grow. We have no cap on members, however, we will be making cuts at auditions.

Q: Who are you looking for and how many members will you accept?
We are looking for dancers who are hard working, love to dance, want to be part of a team, and have some experience with dance. Ideally we are seeking dancers who can demonstrate solid musicality and movement quality, and who can execute basic jazz leaps (jete, calypso), a double pirouette, and clean battements. Most importantly, we want new members of the Paly Dance team who are committed and excited to learn and grow. We have no cap on members, however, we will be making cuts at auditions.

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Q: Why should I audition for the Paly Dance Team?
You should audition if you:
-love to dance and want to grow your skills
-want to be part of a team & bond with other dancers on campus
-are interested in being part of the spirit leading on campus
- want to perform for your school
-are interested in how to train as a dancer for the NFL or NBA (games and rallies)
-are seeking leadership opportunities (officer and captain positions)
-want to develop your own choreography skills
-are interested in competing

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Q: When are auditions?
Auditions week is April 14th through 18th. Prospective dancers will learn two audition routines as well as some across the floor combinations. There will also be an online application to fill out prior to auditions on Friday.

Tuesday 4/15 4-6pm —> Learn audition routine #1
Wednesday 4/16 4-6pm —> Learn audition routine #2
Friday (4/18) beginning at 4pm- Prospective dancers sign up for audition time slots where they will perform the audition routines in front of a panel of judges. There will be 3-4 dancers auditioning per time slot.

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Q: When will I know if I made the team / next steps?
Audition results will be released no later than Saturday, April 19th via email. All 2025-26 new members should expect to attend a mandatory new team meeting the following week (TIME TBD) with at least one parent or guardian present. We will discuss the commitment, cost, and contracts for the upcoming season.

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Q: If I join the dance team, what can I expect the commitment to look like?
The dance team is a year round sport at Paly. We currently practice in the mornings before school 2-3 times a week, and Fridays after school before games. Team members can choose to participate as a “performance member”, or also join our “competition team”; the commitments vary depending on what you choose.
SUMMER
Little Vikes Fundraiser Camp- June 9th through 13th
Summer Dance Camp- July 17th through 20th
*camp is mandatory for all returning members and new members who do not already have documented summer commitments

FALL
Performances at school rallies and other events
Football games
Technique training and master classes
Competition team learns their routines for comp season
*comp team members expect additional weekend practices

WINTER
2-3 local competitions on weekends
Nationals competition in March
Performances at school rallies and other events
Basketball games
Technique training and master classes

SPRING
May Fete Parade
Spring Show
Auditions
Performances at school rallies and other events

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Q: What if I still have questions?
Reach out to us on Instagram (@palydance) and either a team officer or our coach will respond. You can also contact our coach directly via email at coachalanna@palydance.com

Are you interested in becoming a member of the Palo Alto HS Varsity Dance team? Auditions for our 2022-23 school year team will be held during the 2nd week of May in our Dance Studio at Palo Alto HS! Find more information below:

Monday, May 9th- Friday May 13th

Monday, and Wednesday 4-6pm

Tuesday and Thursday 430-630pm

Friday by time-slot signups

WHAT IS THE SCHEDULE FOR THE WEEK

Monday through Wednesday audition participants should expect to learn three short dance routines in different styles, as well as technique progressions across the floor. Thursday will be an optional day for those who want extra time and space to practice. Friday will be auditions in-person and time slot signups will be made available.

If you make the team you should expect to attend a MANDATORY meeting with at least one parent/guardian on Monday, May 16th at 6pm.

WHAT TO BRING

Water bottle, mask, clothes you can dance/move/sweat in, dance shoes (or socks if you don’t have any)

WHAT DO I NEED TO BE ABLE TO DO TO GET ON THE TEAM?

Our team is an intermediate-advanced dance team based in jazz technique. It is generally recommended that participants can demonstrate a clean double jazz pirouette, calypso leaps, and other basic jazz skills. All levels are welcome to audition and learn throughout the week!

WHEN WILL I FIND OUT IF I MADE THE TEAM?

Decisions will be posted Friday night after auditions!

Are you interested in auditioning for the 2021-22 Palo Alto High School Varsity Dance Team? Auditions will be held at Palo Alto HS in the outdoor basketball courts behind the small gym the week of Monday, June 7th.

Monday June 7th - Thursday June 10th from 9am to 11am

Prospective and returning dancers will learn across the floor progressions, and at least two short routines that they will perform for the audition.

Friday June 11th from 9am-1pm with signups for time slots

Auditions by time slot

To get started, please fill out our interest form at www.bitly.com/padt2122 and read our Q&A below!

Q: What should I wear/bring to auditions?

Please wear athletic clothes and tennis shoes. You will also want to bring dance shoes (e.g. jazz shoes or half soles). It will be warm, so please also bring a full water bottle and a snack. For covid safety, please plan to wear a form fitting mask (KN95 recommended), and bring hand sanitizer.

Q: How will we be covid safe at auditions?

Dancers and coach will be masked at ALL times except for water breaks which will be distanced. Dancers will be appropriately distanced as much as possible during auditions, which will be outdoors.

Q: How many people do you take on the team per year?

As many as make it and are interested! We have never turned down a dancer due to size limits.

Q: What do I need to be able to do to make it on the team?

Dancers must be able to execute intermediate-advanced jazz technical skills such as clean double and triple pirouettes, calypso leaps, and basic a la second turns. It is helpful if you’ve had training in a variety of styles, but not mandatory.

Q: If I make the team, when are practices?

Practices are 4 days a week for 2 hours immediately following after school. We additionally perform at football and basketball game halftimes, and compete on weekends, so additional days outside of practice should be expected. Exact days of the week for practice and a calendar will be provided and discussed post audition.

Q: How big is the commitment?

We are a year round team, so this is a year long commitment. Fall season includes practice, performances at football games, and learning our competition routines. Winter season includes competitions, and performances at basketball games. Spring includes our spring showcase. We also perform at various other school raliies and events, as well as local events in our community (e.g. May Fete Parade). Dancers have the option of choosing between our Performance and Competition teams; competition includes all of the commitments listed above, while a performance team dancer would have a much lighter schedule post fall season.

Q: Who should I email if I have more questions?

coachalanna@palydance.com or message a team member via our Instagram (@palydance)

Thank you so much to everyone who attended our week of audition workshops, and auditioned for our team! We are so excited to welcome the following participants to the 2020-21 team! If you see your audition number below, please plan to attend our mandatory family meeting over Zoom next Sunday at noon! If you do not see your number below, thank you so much for coming out— keep dancing, and we hope to see you at auditions next year!

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Welcome back current and prospective Vikings! We are so excited to keep our community going and growing by offering virtual auditions this year.

Here’s what you need to know:

1) WHEN are auditions?

From 3-5pm Monday, May 25th through Thursday, May 28th dancers will learn across the floor combinations/progressions, and two combinations (1 hip hop, 1 contemporary) that will be used for auditions.

Dancers will sign up for time slots on Friday, May 29th between 3pm and 7pm to perform the audition pieces virtually.

2) WHERE are auditions?

On Zoom! If you are interested in auditioning, please fill out the following Google Form and our coach will add you to the email/Zoom invite list. This code is private and for prospective dancers only.

Google Form Link

3) WHAT do I need to know when I audition?

Across the floor progressions, 1 hip hop combo, and 1 contemporary combo taught during the week. We also recommend dancers understand basic and intermediate dance terms (e.g. chaine, releve, etc), and can perform at least a double pirouette; a la seconde turns are preferred but not necessarily mandatory.

4) Are there any OTHER STEPS I need to take before I audition?

Fill out our audition application! Your application needs to be completed before Thursday of workshop/audition week. Finally, before workshop week, make sure that you a solid internet/wifi connection, and have cleared a space in your house or yards to learn/perform your audition material!

4:00-4:30

• Olivia

• Anna

• Bella Daly

• Khushi

• Riley

4:45-5:15

• Theresa

• Victoria

• Haley

• Marilyn

• Sammy

5:30-6:00

• Isabella

• Azalea

• Rowan

• Shiki

• Nancy

6:15-6:45

• Caroline

• Ashing

Songs

• The Way You Make Me Feel- Michael Jackson

• Boys by Lizzo

• FeFe (feat. Nicki Minaj)

• ilomilo by Billie Ellish

Access our audition application here!

The application must be viewed by a parent or guardian as well, and is due before the workshop on Thursday in order to sign up for a Friday tryout time slot.

Here are the videos for our 2019 tryouts! Make sure to practice a ton so you are really prepared for the audition on Friday :)

Audition week is almost here! Beginning next Monday, we will begin the process for new and returning members to tryout for the Palo Alto High School Varsity dance team. Here’s a little about what to expect and what you should bring:

*Note- all participants who would like to audition should also be prepared to attend the MANDATORY new team meeting during the evening of Friday April 19th (one parent or guardian must be in attendance). New team members should also be prepared to attend practice one day a week for the remainder of the school year)

SCHEDULE

Monday- introductions, stretch, across the floor work (jazz combos), go over paperwork

Tuesday- stretch, practice across the floor work, learn first combination (contemporary)

Wednesday- stretch, practice across the floor work, learn 2nd combination (hip hop)

Thursday- stretch, review all combinations and final cheer, review application and paperwork requirements

Friday- Tryouts (on Thursday you will sign up for a 30 minute time slot between 4 and 7pm)

WHAT TO BRING

Athletic clothes that you can sweat in

Dance shoes (jazz shoes, half soles, sneakers)

Water and a snack

Questions & a great attitude! (:

Thank you for visiting the Palo Alto High School Varsity Dance Team website. Our auditions for the 2018-2019 school year were concluded in April. For more information about our current team members, please visit the link on our home page titled “Our Team”!

The audition dates for the 2019-2020 season will be:

Monday, April 8th - Friday, April 12th 2019

We look forward to meeting you then! If you have any questions, please contact our coach at awilliamson@pausd.org.