Washington Wizards senior dance team doesn't accept "boundaries of age"
Move over, Laker Girls. The Washington Wizards team is taking a more mature approach, with the Wizdom, a dance team of mostly women – some as young as 50, others in their 70s – who take the court to show all of us that you're never too old to have fun.
And make no mistake: They're hardly retiring.
The Wizards dance team for seniors is showing fans you are only as old as you feel.
Sixty-four-year-old Theresa Cizmar said, "I don't accept the boundaries of age. Period. I don't accept. My husband's 18 years younger! I just don't accept it. I don't know who the 'They say you can't do this' is because I want them to come, and we'll have a chat!"
Cizmar said the Wizdom helped her through the recent death of her nephew and diagnosis with breast cancer. "I mean, who knew that I was supposed to get through cancer? Me!" she said. "Just keep steppin'."
The Wizdom take the court one game a month at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., with 19 women and one guy. "I'm a huge, huge dance fan," said Christopher Johnson. "I've been dancing, my parents would tell you, comin' outta the crib."
But, at 53, Johnson said this is his first time dancing in front of an audience. "It's a dream," he said.
The team's been a dream for so many members, but they do jump through some hoops to get there. First, intense tryouts; then, weekly workouts.
Lulu Hester-Alexander was inspired to try out by her granddaughter, Jasmine, a Wizards dancer, who said of her grandmother, "Sometimes, the dance moves that they do, I'm like, 'Oh my God, why did I have her do this?' But I am her number-one fan."
And often, it's the Wizdom who connect with the fans in the stands. "I think because we're more like them," said Cizmar. "They see themselves. It's like, 'If you can do it, then I can do it.' I look out for people who are kind of looking and dancing with me, and I throw a little face their way."
And, at a Wizdom practice, they invited correspondent Jan Crawford to join in.
To watch the moves of Crawford and the Wizdom, watch the video of her report.
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