Work That Body

Teresa Shear, director of cheerleaders and game entertainment for the Broncos, used to get calls every year from people asking if they could come watch cheerleader tryouts. The answer was always no, because she didn’t have the right space or setup to accommodate an audience. But this year, she thought, “Why not?” — and so for the first time, Shear says, the public will get to see “what the women go through” at the Cheerleader Tryout Finals.

It sounds terrifying. Sixty-two finalists, narrowed down from 202, will introduce themselves, Miss America style, before performing a series of group dances and a solo routine. By the end of the night, they (and the audience) will find out if they made the final team of 26, which will perform for the finale.

Shear says the room will be tense but fun. “We did make it into more of a show,” she says. “The audience will be constantly entertained.” And the dancing should be phenomenal. The competition gets under way in the University of Denver’s Davis Auditorium at 6 p.m.; Shear expects to have her new squad picked out by around 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 at www.broncoscountry.com/talent.
Sat., May 2, 6 p.m., 2009