By Justin Ternet and A.J. Prentice, Fort Wayne Contributors
Fort Wayne has a rich history, and the 2024 season made some historic moments of its own. Among those, Bishop Luers hosted their 50th Show Choir Invitational, marking history as the oldest continually-held show choir invitational in the nation. Ohio's ETC All Americans concluded their historic undefeated season at this invitational.
The small schools had a historic season of their own, with Huntington North defeating large schools left and right in the state of Indiana. Many groups also debuted new directors which showcased groups' adaptability and new identities.
Despite only having three tried-and-true large stalwart choirs in the region, there was change up and down the board ahead of the 2025 season, which will kick off in the Fort Wayne area on Jan. 18 at Jay County.
What’s Changed?
After the recent resignation of director Chris Mettert, East Noble will be under new directorship for the 2025 season. Heidi Folley, former director at South Side High School, has joined East Noble High School after only seven months of retirement. It is unknown whether Folley is an interim or permanent replacement, however, it will be interesting to see how East Noble performs under this new leadership.
Entering his second year at Northrop High School after replacing longtime director Tom Maupin, Andrew Budd has changed the show choir artistic team quite a bit. Jeff and Ellie Jordan are in their second year choreographing for Northrop’s show choirs. Shelley Johnson still remains assistant director, the one consistent member in Northrop’s leadership team after the transition. This group had an average season in 2024, and will be a school to watch out for in the 2025 season as they settle into this new team of leaders.
Following the retirement of director Heidi Folley, Joseph Godfrey has stepped into place as director at South Side High School. Already, Godfrey has changed the name from Leading Era to Harmonic Archers, a way to honor the school’s mascot. South Side has moved from a unisex show choir to a new mixed show choir, which could highlight some growth in that department. It will be interesting to see how South Side competes in the 2025 season.
Who’s on the rise?
The choirs at Huntington North sure made their mark in the 2024 season. They tore through regular small division contenders like Pendleton Heights and beat large choirs like Avon and Carroll. Varsity Singers tied Findlay First Edition for Best Visuals during Huntington North’s first outing during competition season, a feat that almost no one saw coming. Viking Volume had a fantastic season as well, they managed to beat many similar groups like Pendleton Heights, Northridge, and Jay County.
For such a young group on the competition circuit, Jay County had yet another fantastic season. Just Treble managed to beat groups twice their size throughout the season and ended it with a second place at Noblesville. This group really has some potential in their upcoming season to make some big steps in the competition circuit.
Who has something to prove this season?
Since the removal of longtime director Shelley Johnson in 2018, DeKalb Classic Connection has slowly made their way back up in the small school division. The 2024 season their most successful season yet with director Joshua Doubblestein, winning the entire competition at Southmont and ending their season with on the podium at the ISSMA State Finals. This group needs to prove that their win and placement weren’t just a small field and typical ISSMA mischief. They will face some deep competition throughout their season and will aim for another qualification to the ISSMA State Finals in March.
After having a very successful season in 2024 and earning second at almost every competition, East Noble Premiere Edition ended their season with State Runners-Up honors at the ISSMA State Finals, beating groups like Columbia City and Pendleton Heights. A director change may make forward progress a bit harder, but a statement year from Premiere Edition would spice up the womens scene quite a bit.
What competitions are looking good?
Feb 8: With the final Carroll Classic lineup being posted in mid-December, that has given users plenty of time to make some pre-season predictions on how this competition will go. Currently, New Castle is the top contender against Homestead and Northrop in the large mixed division. However, the small mixed division is really where this competition gets hard to predict. Churubusco, Columbia City, and Norwell are all favored to be in the top three of this division, all eyes are on East Noble and Bishop Luers to see if one of them can work their way into their divisional podium.
Feb 15: DeKalb’s competition has become a hotspot for small school show choirs. It has had some of the most diverse small school bloodbaths in recent years. DeKalb announces full placements during the preliminary awards ceremony, and it is always interesting to see how groups match up. New Castle is one of the large groups and will open as a favorite. However, other small schools like Columbia City, East Noble, and Fairfield will be right beside them and look to play spoiler.
Feb 22: Known as one of the largest show choir competitions in this country, it is no shock that the Homestead Classic Showcase is on the list. Their large mixed division is already packed with Noblesville, Northridge, Huntington North, Lafayette Jefferson, Carroll, and Brownsburg and all confirmed to be competing, as well as notable out of state groups. This is for sure going to be a competition to keep an eye out for in the 2025 season, with several of the groups moving forward from fantastic showings in 2024.
Mar 8: Bishop Luers’ competition is hot off their 50th year anniversary and year 51 seems to be no less, with what seems to have become competition regulars - Carroll and Norwell will both return, but with other groups like Lafayette Jefferson and Franklin Community traveling to compete here, the field makes it out to be a competition that you don’t want to miss.
Mar 15: Columbia City, a recent addition to the competition circuit, has become a competition full of fierce competitors battling it out for one last ISSMA qualifying score before the state fields are set. Avon will return to Columbia City after a one-year hiatus and may be the only school in the large division. With notable small schools Huntington North, Jay County, and DeKalb all confirmed to be competing in the small division.
Mar 15: After the revival of the Norwell Show Choir Invitational in 2023, they’ve had a pretty stagnant competition as far as lineups are concerned. However, the 2025 lineup already seems interesting where Chesterton, Northridge, and Carroll will all battle it out in such a diverse lineup. Their small division also proves no less with Bishop Luers and Anderson returning.
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