The Brigham Young University ballroom dance team is No. 1 in the nation in the formation team category. But just a few miles to the northwest, the No. 2 dance team practices daily at Utah Valley State College with the hope of someday overtaking the top team.
Led by director Scott Asbell, the UVSC ballroom dance team is getting ready for its second chance at representing the United States at the British Championships in Blackpool, England. But only because BYU bowed out. The event will be held for 10 days in May. The first time UVSC represented the United States in Blackpool was in 1992 - again, when BYU didn't go."You need to be No. 1 or No. 2 to represent a country," said Asbell. If BYU were going, UVSC could still compete in the championships, but it is allowed to represent the United States only because BYU won't be there.
"Politically, it's very good for me at the school," Asbell said.
A product of the BYU dance team himself, Asbell came to UVSC six years ago to head up what was then a fledgling program with only one class. His team quickly danced to the top, and for the past five years UVSC has held the No. 2 spot nationally. BYU has clung to its No. 1 position for 16 years.
Asbell describes his 30 dancers as a finely tuned athletic team. "They're pretty tough," he said. "I would put a good professional dancer up against any athlete."
"People don't often realize that dancing is a contact sport," he said. "Injuries are part of the game." The most recent injuries sidelining dancers include broken toes and a broken wrist.
Like any coach, Asbell said he has to watch his dancers carefully so they don't dance despite an injury when they should be resting and healing.
Becoming a championship dancer requires the same discipline as any other sport. Asbell recalls winning his first competition and being accused of being there just to beat other teams.
Dance competitions can be very social, he said, but he traces his competitive spirit to his training at BYU. In fact, ballroom dance as an Olympic event may become a reality someday, he said. If so, the masters of dance have predicted that the future of ballroom dance is in Utah, where dance training begins young.
The two-year dance program at UVSC competes with universities and colleges with four-year programs. Part of that success comes from the Utah high school dance programs that prepare young dancers for college. Asbell actively recruits among Utah's high schools, even offering scholarships that range from one-fourth tuition to a full-year ride. That effort pays off regularly, he said, as many budding dancers choose to attend UVSC over BYU. Students audition for the scholarships.
"Their skill level is scary," he said of Utah's high school graduates. Many of his new recruits have a much higher skill level than he did when he started at BYU more than a decade ago because of the high school programs, he said.
Asbell and his three assistant directors teach 16 classes at UVSC, all with college credit. Students may take beginning to advanced dance classes where they learn three basic styles - Latin, standard and American. Those chosen for competition may dance on the advanced, backup or touring teams.
"UVSC has possibly the largest publicly owned dance program in the country," Asbell said. Competing comes with a price tag. Performing a six-minute medley costs about $36,000, he said, but little of that comes from the tax-supported school. Most of the money the dance team needs it earns through its ticket sales for concerts and performances and through donations.
The dresses cost about $2,500 each, including their 4,500 rhinestones. Men's hand-made tuxedos run about $1,000 a copy.
"My desire is to have the best team," he said. But catching and overtaking BYU won't be easy, and may not happen for years. "I hope some day to alleviate them of that burden," Asbell said of BYU's top spot. The UVSC team maintains a wide point spread between itself and other teams, he noted. And the point spread between his team and BYU's is just as wide, he said. "But you never know."