Beyonce dance audition draws hundreds in Houston

By: Janine Coveney

Hundreds of dancing hopefuls showed up over the weekend as Beyonce held another in a series of auditions in her home town of Houston. Dancers were put through their paces Saturday at a Houston studio, performing choreographed routines to such Beyonce hits as "Deja Vu" in front of choreographer Frank Gaston and several cameras.

Houston is the third location in the cross-country search to fill 40 slots for Beyonce's upcoming worldwide tour. Previous dance auditions have been held in Atlanta and Los Angeles, and the audition process will continue in New York and Chicago.

Beyonce and Gaston will review the tapes and choose 30 finalists from each city. Finalists will be sent to New York or Los Angeles to compete for the final positions.

Competition is bound to be fierce, since open calls for such a high profile artist tour are rare. The chosen dancers will earn between $1,500 to $3,000 a week and get extensive exposure.

Beyonce utilized the open-call audition process to formulate her current all-female touring band.

Tour dates have not yet been announced.