6
BROOKLYN WEEKLY, JULY 21, 2019
BUST A MOVE: Dancers show off their moves at open tryouts for the
Brooklynettes on July 13. Photo by Trey Pentecost
MTA makes ‘rogue’
F train offi cial
F OUTTA HERE: Four F trains will run express each day, skipping six stops between
the Jay Street Metrotech and Church Avenue stations. Photo by Tom Callan
This newspaper is not responsible for typographical errors in ads beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2019 by Brooklyn Courier
Life LLC. The content of this newspaper is protected by Federal copyright law. This newspaper, its advertisements, articles, and photographs may not be reproduced, either in
whole or part, without permission in writing from the publisher except brief portions for purposes of review or commentary consistent with the law. Postmaster, send address
changes to Courier Life, One MetroTech Center North, Third Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201.
BY AIDAN GRAHAM
Hundreds of dancers twirled
in to auditions on July 13 for a
chance to become the newest
members of the Brooklynettes
— the offi cial dance squad of
Kings County’s hometown
NBA team.
Judges at the open tryouts
— held at St. Joseph’s College
in Fort Greene — evaluated
approximately 350 would-be
dancers for 20 roster spots on
their ability to meet the fl ashy
demands of life as a dancer on
and off the hardwood fl oor, according
to the team’s director
of entertainment.
“The biggest thing we’re
looking for is the performance
quality — making sure that
dancers can adapt to different
styles of dancing. We do so
many different types of styles,
so you have that chameleon
quality,” said Criscia Long.
“Confi dence is important as
well — not just in the dancing,
but also as an ambassador of
the Nets brand.”
Wannabe Brooklynettes
are eliminated over the course
of a four-day process until 20
dancers remain to fi ll out the
season’s roster. And while the
previous season’s dancers are
welcome to try and reclaim
their spot, they are required to
audition like everyone else.
This year, 13 dancers are
attempting to fend off eager
challengers to remain in the
ensemble and continue as the
headliner of Nets halftime
shows, said Long.
From the original pool of
around 350 candidates, 64 made
the cut to the second day, and
40 made it to the two-day fi nal
round.
“The fourth day is very intense.
We call it the battle royal,
because each dancer goes oneon
one against someone else,”
said Long. “Then, we ask them
a question that they have to answer
it on the spot, in front of
everyone.”
But the high-level scrutiny
is important to maintain the
pristine quality of the dance
team, according to Long, who
noted that there is tremendous
pressure performing at
Barclays Center during 41
regular-season NBA games as
well as any potential playoff
matchups.
BY AIDAN GRAHAM
They F’n did it!
After allegedly running a socalled
“rogue” express F train
for months through brownstone
Brooklyn, transit honchos
made the controversial service
change offi cial on July 10, instituting
limited express service
along the Manhattan- and Coney
Island-bound line that will
skip six stops from Cobble Hill
to Windsor Terrace in an effort
to shorten commutes for transit
starved southern Brooklynites.
Beginning in September,
four rush hour F trains — two
Manhattan-bound trains in the
morning, and two Coney Islandbound
trains in the evening —
would run daily between Jay
Street-Metrotech and Church
Avenue stations, stopping only
at the Seventh Avenue station in
between.
Six Brooklyn stops — Bergen
Street, Carroll Street, Smith-
Ninth Street, Fourth Avenue-
Ninth Street, 15th Street-Prospect
Park, and Fort Hamilton
Parkway — will be skipped.
No new trains would be
added under the current proposal
— rather, four existing local
trains would be recommissioned
to run express.
Councilman Brad Lander
(D–Park Slope), whose district
encompasses all six stations
slated to be skipped, blasted the
Transit Authority for playing
up a service cut as an enhancement.
“This plan adds no service
whatsoever, it simply eliminates
service at six local stations that
are already experiencing overcrowding,”
he said. “Despite
the effort to dress this up as an
improvement for some commuters,
bypassing these stations
amounts to cutting service for
thousands of other riders.”
Lander — along with multiple
other elected leaders, including
state Sen. Brian Kavanagh
(D–Cobble Hill) and Assemblyman
Robert Carroll (D–Windsor
Terrace) — signed a letter sent
to the MTA in March, demanding
answers to reports of F
trains routinely skipping stops
with no forewarning.
“We write to express the frustration
of our constituents about
‘Rogue F Express’ trains, the increasingly
frequent practice of F
trains bypassing local stations,”
read the letter. “Our constituents
report missing their stops,
waiting as trains pass them by,
being late to work or home, and
feeling immensely frustrated
with erratic service.”
Kavanagh slammed the
MTA’s decision to formalize the
‘rouge’ F and demanded guarantees
that the new express service
would not impose delays at
skipped stops.
“It’s disappointing that the
MTA has decided to reduce service
to stations that thousands
of New Yorkers use during peak
hours,” he said in a statement.
“We will be seeking assurances
from the MTA that the scheduled
reduction in frequency
of local trains will not be compounded
by routine disruptions
in local service at stations on
our communities.”
And after chastising the
MTA for failing to consult local
elected offi cials ahead of its
decision, Carroll accused the
Transit Authority of throwing
his constituents under the rug.
“An F express train that creates
winners and losers throughout
my district, is not the kind
of transit system that NYC deserves
or needs,” he said.
The head of the MTA brushed
off the criticisms, arguing that
limited express service would
provide overdue relief to southern
Brooklyn F train riders
who currently commute to Midtown
Manhattan on the longest
of stretch exclusively local service
— 26 uninterrupted stops
between Coney Island-Stillwell
Avenue and Broadway-Lafayette
Street stations — in the city.
The express trains will be
marked with a diamond shaped
logo, similar to other expressversions
of local lines, when
they go into service this fall, according
to the MTA.
Dancers audition
for coveted spots
on Brooklynettes