On May 26, Moapa Valley’s Pirate Motion kicked off summer with a weeklong camp packed with training, choreography and team bonding.

Each day from Monday through Thursday began with warm-ups, conditioning and technique led by Coach Anjie Lee. After the morning training, the dancers spent the afternoons learning new routines taught by guest choreographers who were all Pirate Motion alumni.

On Monday, Maddie (Messer) Anderson returned to teach a pom kick routine set to Dolly Parton’s version of “Heartbreaker.” Anderson was a senior on Coach Lee’s very first team back in the 2011-2012 season.

Tuesday brought another pom routine, this one choreographed by Coach Lee’s daughter, Rachle, set to the upbeat track “Praising You.”

The final guest choreographer of the week was Melanie Fisher, the most recent alumna, having graduated in 2024. She choreographed a high-energy pom routine to the song “Doin’ My Thing.”

On Thursday, Coach Lee brought back a bit of Pirate Motion history by resetting a military routine originally choreographed by Amber Leavitt and last performed during the 2013-2014 season.

After wrapping up the day’s training, the team headed into Las Vegas for a night of fun at a Murder Mystery Dinner Show.

The final day of camp was spent reviewing all the dances learned throughout the week, followed by a special class and presentation on choreography for dance and drill teams. To close out the week, the dancers and coaches gathered at a teammate’s home for a pool party and food.

Coach Lee shared, “Mandi [Leavitt] and I are so proud of all the hard work they did. And we can tell the team is going to be exceptional.”

Pirate Motion may be small this year with only 10 team members but is already hard at work preparing for the 2025-2026 season.