Drill Team Techniques

Drill teams dance in unison to various types of music. As a coach, you must find a way to choreograph to your team's skill set. You can offer solos or differing steps for portions of the team who are capable of more complicated steps. This gives the overall routine more depth. Drill teams participate in the half-time shows of many types of sporting events, from junior-high teams up to professional teams. Sometimes there is crossover from the dance squad and the cheerleaders, but both occupations require a slightly different skill set.

  1. Turns

    • Turns are used to change direction, add interesting movement and even distract the audience. Different versions of pirouettes are often used, as these are turns on one foot. It requires the dancers to center themselves and use the motion of the lifted leg to force the body around in a spin. The most extreme version of a pirouette changes name to a fouette turn, as the leg actually whips around the body to force the turn. In other pirouettes, the smaller change of position of the raised leg is enough to make the turn. Part of the group can be executing turns while another part of the team gets in position for a different part of the dance. Keeping the flow of the dance going is important for drill teams. Chain turns require all the girls to turn one right after another. These turns are usually partial (not a full 360-degree rotation) and create a wave effect down the line.

    Leaps

    • Leaps add levels to a dance squad. You can show unison by everyone leaping simultaneously or small groups. Height, not distance, tends to be the goal of a leap. Each dancer needs to be secure in her center of gravity. This allows for greater height and focus on body position. Landing a leap requires the dancer to roll through her feet. This helps absorb the impact as not to hurt knees and ankles because of the downward force when coming out of the sky. Some routines have a group of leapers in the front who are joined by the rest of the group charging up upon the landing ending with the entire team doing simultaneous dance. This represents great timing.

    Kicks

    • Kicks, while impressive alone, become even more mind boggling when a group works together for perfect unison. The Rockettes remain a famous example of unison kicking. This requires the dancers learn to work together not only for timing, but also for height and leg alignment. It does not matter if one girl can kick higher than the rest, as the entire line should kick exactly the same every time. Drill squads put in much practice to get the unison kick down. Engaging the stomach muscles to control the kick with the body's core is key.

    Body Position

    • While it seems like a simple concept, body position makes all the difference when it comes to the success of drill teams. Not only does body position promote safety and ward off injury, but it gives the overall finished look to the performance. Bent wrists, floppy arms and poor leg position take away from the lines of the dance. Every motion for a drill team is set, and each member must execute it correctly to give the group the look the choreographer was seeking. If just one drill team member is not careful with positioning, the entire look of the dance changes. Strength training, especially core exercise, helps dancers achieve excellent positioning.