Brisbane Broncos Dance Squad: Balancing careers and cheerleading in the NRL
With a rigorous rehearsal schedule and a commitment to perform at every Broncos’ home game, one might expect this to be a full-time job. But the members of the Dance Squad are so much more.
Confidential
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From a town planner to a construction worker and student nurse – the performers in the Brisbane Broncos Dance Squad juggle their rigorous rehearsal and game schedules with demanding full-time jobs.
More than half of the country’s NRL teams have done away with cheer squads, but the Broncos have persisted with the tradition and their dancers are here to stay.
Behind the pompoms, these women are full-time professionals, students, and mentors – and they take their contribution to the Broncos’ electric game day atmosphere seriously.
Yasmin Humphrey, 23, a town planner; Sharni Lewis, 26, a property manager for Harcourts; Chelsea Parker, 21, a student nurse; and Tamara Camilleri, 26, an urban development student at QUT who also works in the construction industry, are just a few examples of the dancers’ busy professional lives outside of the stadium.
Ms Parker expressed the joy she experiences in being able to live our her dream as both a nurse and a dancer.
“I’ve always wanted to join the squad … and now I get to do both [nursing and dancing],“ she said.
“It’s the best of both worlds.”
“I grew up dancing, but I love nursing, and I love kids, I really want to get into paediatric nursing, So when I graduate, that’s what I’ll be applying for.”
Balancing dance squad responsibilities with full-time careers, however, is no easy feat.
Ms Humphrey confessed to having traded many nights out for the dance squad.
“I’ve found that this year, I’ve had to cut back on going out and doing lots of other social things, ” she said.
“I just find that I have to be very disciplined and intentional with my time management, and it can be tricky.
Despite the difficulties, she says, “because the rehearsals and game days bring me so much joy, it’s not hard to put time and effort into it because it’s so much fun.”
Ms Lewis also emphasised the dancers’, adding that a lot more goes into being on the squad then just turning up on game day.
“A lot of people don’t realise the amount of commitment involved” she said.
“We have all our training sessions after hours for two hours at a time, we have extra rehearsals if we need, we always do a new choreography at each of the home games and we constantly having to learn those … so it’s a lot to juggle.”
“we’re always working hard in the studio, always getting there really early on game day and rehearsing, so we have to sacrifice a lot because it is a big job as well as obviously we all have full time jobs.”
In 2019, the Broncos Dance Squad underwent a significant transformation, rebranding to ‘desexualise’ their image.
The change, which included new ‘athleisure’ style uniforms, stirred controversy initially but has been embraced by the dancers themselves.
“I think in the past, the cheerleaders were sometimes objectified, especially with the costumes that they used to wear,” Ms Lewis said
“So, I feel lucky that it’s definitely evolved over the years.”
Ms Camilleri, noted that the changes have led to increased diversity within the squad, something she deeply appreciates.
“There’s more diversity, and that’s something I really love,” she said.
“Because if I auditioned for the dance squad when I first turned 18, or 19, I probably wouldn’t have gotten on the squad based on my looks and my height.
“There used to be a typecast that you needed to fit to be on the squad, and I definitely wouldn’t have fit that look back then.”
Despite the absence of dance squads in other NRL teams, the Broncos dancers firmly believe in their contribution to the game day experience.
“I think it adds like an element of excitement,” Ms Humphrey said.
“In a way, like, we’re like the hype squad. I think it’s really nice having some sort of activation that brings the crowd together.”
Ms Lewis added, “I feel like it makes the game! I believe if there was no one walking around getting the fans hyped, it might not be as good of a game for the crowd.”
Head coach Chloe Hullick stressed the dance squad offers a unique platform for women to pursue a career in dance, celebrate their love for the sport and support the club.
“Opportunities for professional dancers are very limited. The Brisbane Broncos Dance Squad is a safe space where the women can go after their dance dream and be paid for it,” she said.
“They should be celebrated for that.”
“I am so happy with how we are moving and the direction we are going in. We are so supported by the Brisbane Broncos and the fans.”
Yasmin Humphrey, 23, is a town planner working for a private town planning company, where she works primarily in development assessment but also in strategic planning.
Sharni Lewis, 26, is a Property Manager at Harcourts Property Center in Coorparoo. She is responsible for managing repairs and renovations of their asset portfolio which includes around 400 properties.
Chelsea Parker, 21, is a nursing student, with plans to specialise in paediatric nursing, and is currently undertaking her eight-week practical course at the Prince Charles Hospital.
Tamara Camilleri, 26, is a full-time student studying an honours degree in urban development, majoring in quantity surveying and cost engineering. She also works part-time for a consultancy that specialises in project management and cost management within the construction industry.
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