SHS Dazzlers
Dynamic dancing earns 18 trophies
By Joe Hendricks, Herald Staff - Sun, Apr 6, 2008

SANFORD – Directed by the mother-daughter team of Maureen and Shannon Maguire, the Seminole High School Dazzlers dance team returned from Forth Worth, Texas, earlier this month as national champions.

The Dazzlers’ Officer Line also brought home a national title.

The Officer Line consists of six “dance officers” selected from the varsity team because of their high skill level. Serving as extensions of their coaches, the dance officers help the other dancers perfect their dance routines.

The 2008 Marching Auxiliaries (MA) National Tournament took place at the Fort Worth Convention Center on March 29 and 30. Eighty-three Dazzlers participated in this year’s event.

Competing in the Medium Division, where the dance teams consist of 16 to 29 dancers, the Varsity Dazzlers’ combined score of 881.50 was the highest score posted by any of the 125 teams participating in this year’s competition, including those in the Super and Large divisions. That score earned the Varsity Dazzlers the Public School Team Winner’s Circle National Title.

The Dazzlers won their first MA championship in 1999 and repeated the feat in 2001 and 2005.

The Dazzlers Elite team finished third in this year’s championship with a combined score of 875. The Elite team is comprised of dancers selected from Varsity team.

The Junior Varsity team finished close on their heels, taking fourth place with an overall score of 874.5.

“Out of the top four teams, we were one, three and four,” said Dazzlers Director Maureen Maguire. “We were the best of the best.”

Dancers competed in large ensembles, quartets, trios, duets and as solo dancers. Dance forms included jazz, high kick, pom (pom-pom), military style, novelty, lyrical and hip-hop.

Five judges scored the dance routines using the Olympic style judging system. The highest judge’s score and the lowest judge’s scores were thrown out and the three middle judge’s scores were used to determine the team’s final score.

The Dazzlers took home a total of 18 first place trophies.

Maguire takes great pride in the fact that the Dazzlers not only did well on the floor, but they were also big supporters of the other competitors when those teams were on the floor.

Maguire said many parents and directors at the Fort Worth competition praised the Dazzlers for their good sportsmanship.

“I was very touched that so many parents and directors came up to me and complimented the girls on their behavior. I think that says a lot for who they are,” Maguire said.

“The wins are very, very nice, but quite frankly nobody can remember from year to year what you’ve done. You always remember people who are kind and do what they are supposed to and I’m very proud of that.”

Earlier this year, the Dazzlers received the Good Sportsmanship trophy while competing in the state tournament in Jacksonville.

The MA championship is one of many earned by the Dazzlers during the 2007-2008 school year.

In January, the team repeated as state champions. The Dazzlers have been Florida State Champions every year since 2002.

In February, the Dazzlers participated in the Universal Dance Association (UDA) national competition held at Disney World. Competing in the high kick category only, the Dazzlers took home the national high kick championship in a performance that aired nationally on ESPN 2.

Under Maguire’s guidance, the Dazzlers won their first UDA high kick championship in 1997. They also won UDA championships in 2004 and 2007.

One for the road

The dancers, directors and the team chaperones traveled to Texas aboard chartered busses. They traveling 1,195 miles each way and spent about 20 hours on the road in each direction.

In past years the Dazzlers have competed in the month of May as well, but due to the exhaustive nature of their Texas trip, the Dazzlers will take a little break before focusing on the Saturday, May 31 Dazzlers revue show that will take place in Seminole High’s new auditorium.

Taking 83 dancers and their directors and chaperones to an out-of-state national championship costs about $35,000. The Dazzlers make the trip only when their funds allow. Each time they have gone to the nationals they have returned as champions.

To pay for the trips, Dazzler dancers and their parents conduct fundraising activities throughout the school year. In the fall, the Dazzlers sell coupon books and much of their funding comes as the result of an annual pie sale.

Dazzlers can often be found selling hotdogs from concession stands during sporting events taking place at the University of Central Florida, the Amway Arena and the Daytona International Speedway.

“If there’s a concession stand, my parents and girls are behind the counter,” Maguire said. “We make a killer hot dog.”

To be a Dazzler

At the start of the season, the Dazzlers are divided into two teams: varsity and junior varsity. These decisions are based on dance skills, not on age or seniority.

“We try very hard to take care of the girls that come to us with a lot of dance experience and we try and take care of the girls that come to us with no dance experience, so there’s a place for everybody,” Maguire explained.

The Dazzlers spend up to 12 hours a week practicing, some of which takes place during the school day in dance classes taught by Maguire and her daughter Shannon.

When asked what it takes to be a Dazzler, Maguire said, “Dedication and hard work. It’s not so much whether or not they can dance when they enter, it’s whether or not they work hard when they’re there.”

During the weeklong audition process Maguire watches the girls closely to see if they have any problems following the rules she is introducing them to.

“They have to be disciplined,” she said.

Maguire expects Dazzlers to maintain their grades, their family responsibilities, their academic responsibilities and their job responsibilities.

“They can’t be afraid of hard work, discipline and doing what’s right,” she said.

The girls also have to uphold the Dazzler Promise: a code of ethics that includes standards pertaining to treating others as they wish to be treated themselves, keeping their feet on the ground as they reach for the stars, and respecting the wisdom of their parents.

The Dazzler Promise ends with the dictum: “If all I do is learn to dance, then I have learned nothing.”

During football season the Dazzlers perform alongside the marching band. When football season ends, the Dazzlers swing into tournament mode.

As part of their efforts to be good citizens, the Dazzlers also perform at charity events and for folks who could use a little entertainment to brighten up their days.

A family affair

Maguire is a Seminole High School graduate. In her youth, she studied dance at Miriam and Valerie’s School of Dance Arts, under the tutelage of sisters Miriam Rye-Doktor and Valerie Rye-Weld.

The sisters are still around and two of Maguire’s formers Dazzlers have gone on to open dance studios in the Sanford area as well: Focus and Cindy’s Dance Studio.

And Miss Seminole High School 2008 Mallory Gladman is a member of the Dazzlers.

Maguire took over the Sun Maidens dance team in 1984 and renamed them the Dazzlers. Her husband, Bob, was already a faculty member at the time. He now directs the school’s three show choirs, the gospel choir and the show band.

Shannon Maguire joined her parents as Seminole High School faculty members in 2006. With a degree in math, she now teaches geometry classes and helps with the show choir and dance classes in addition to co-directing the Dazzlers.

Shannon has been working with the Dazzlers since 2000. Her youngest sister Megan also helps choreograph dance routines.

Dazzled

Lauren Currie joined the Dazzlers because she loves to dance and thought it would be a great opportunity. Now a sophomore, Lauren has experienced two national championships in her second year as a Dazzler – the UDA high kick championship in February and the MA title last month.

In regard to both, Lauren said, “It felt so good because we had worked so hard and put so many hours into it. It was so rewarding in the end.”

For Lauren, the benefits of being a Dazzler extend well beyond the dance floor.

“Without them I probably wouldn’t have as many friends as I do now,” she said. “It’s made my high school years. They’re like my sisters.”

Lauren praised Maguire for teaching her about life as well as making her a better dancer.

“She taught us to become better people. Everything we do comes with discipline and dedication and it’s so rewarding,” she said.

Lauren’s father, Don, made the trip to Texas last month. He said it was amazing to see the team take home so many trophies, but his appreciation for the Dazzlers is not based solely on the trophy count.

“Yeah, the kids learn to dance, but it’s more amazing to watch the magic between Shannon and Maureen,” he said.

“Shannon is a masterful choreographer and Maureen is a master motivator. Together they have magic with the girls that I think very few coaches could duplicate,” he said.

“I love what my daughter’s getting out of it just from a growth perspective, forget about dancing. Maureen forces them to be disciplined in their dancing and in their academics.”

Megan Stewart is winding down her fourth and final year as a Dazzler. She won her first national championship as a freshman. Over the past four years she has won four national championships – two at the UDA level and two at the MA level.

Megan is now in the process of deciding which New York college she will attend as she continues her pursuit of a career in musical theater – something she has been involved in since she was 12.

“I’ve learned so much from Ms. Maguire,” Megan said. “She has taught all of us how discipline and motivation plays into becoming a champion.”

Noting that she has grown as a person in her four years with the Maguire, Megan said, She’s taught me maturity, how to be a good sport, morals, and dance technique as well.”

Megan also loves the family element of being a Dazzler: “If you have a problem you always have someone to go to,” she said.

“No matter what’s going on with your friends or with or family you can always go to the team or Ms. Maguire and everything will be OK.”

Megan also credited the Dazzler parents for the work they do in raising funds and finding sponsors.

“We couldn’t do it without them. They’re so amazing, without them we wouldn’t be national champions,” she said.

Maguire agreed with Megan’s thoughts on the Dazzler parents.

“The parents do everything,” she said, “from the costumes and the chaperoning to the fundraising. I just teach; they do all the rest of the work. They are phenomenal.”

Maguire also thanked Seminole High Principal Mike Gaudreau, saying, “We are fortunate to have him as our principal and to have his support for the dance program. He’s been instrumental in helping us get to wherever we need to be.”

She then extended her praise to the county level, saying, “We are privileged in Seminole County that our county leaders believe so strongly in the arts. Not every county has it as good as we do. We are one of the most fortunate counties I can think of in regard to the promotion of the fine arts and the school board makes sure we stay that way.”

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