The first weekend of the 2023 show choir season, like just about every season before it, was chock full of surprises. This was especially evident in the four competitions featured in the Competitions of the Week series for this week. Here is a recap of how those four turned out!
Ankeny Centennial Mid-Iowa Show Choir Championships
Final Results
GC: Linn-Mar “10th Street Edition” (BC)
1RU: Waukee Northwest “Eos” (BV)
2RU: Broken Arrow “Tiger Rhythm”
3RU: Cedar Rapids Kennedy “Happiness, Inc.”
4RU: Waconia “Power Company”
5RU: Waukee Northwest “Aurora”
The one thing about Mid-Iowa that wasn’t a surprise was the top of the results. Linn-Mar had an undefeated season in 2022 and just came out on top of one of the Midwest’s premier lineups in 2023, priming the group for another fantastic season. While not a surprise to some, Waukee Northwest firmly entrenched themselves in Iowa’s elite group of choirs with a very solid second place. That included swiping a caption award, which is something that nobody did from 10th Street in 2022. Broken Arrow sliced and diced well with the Midwest’s best, and while some observers had Kennedy as last of the five varsity groups, they did not place there. Waconia, while last of the five varsity groups, has nothing to hang their head about. In all likelihood, Mid-Iowa will be one of the, if not the, toughest competitions that side of the Mississippi. Waukee Northwest also solidified their place among Iowa’s top with the performance of their prep group, who took down a powerhouse Linn-Mar prep group and a Broken Arrow women’s group that has made finals before.
Colby Central Wisconsin Show Choir Spectacular
Final Results
GC: Onalaska “Hilltoppers” (BV, BC)
1RU: Tomah “Limited Edition”
2RU: North St. Paul “Northern Lights”
3RU: New London “Vision”
4RU: Neenah “Vintage”
5RU: Mayville “Cardinal Singers”
Like Ankeny Centennial, the top of the results should not be a surprise to anybody. Onalaska continued their dominance of the Wisconsin show choir scene, and it probably wasn’t particularly close. Tomah showed considerable upside from 2022, popping off behind a nice usage of the iconic Mystery Machine from Scooby-Doo. North St. Paul seems primed for a typical year, featuring a solid show all around with a couple distinct moments of intensity that highlight the show. Neenah featured a noticeably smaller group than the other finalists, with a set that got progressively better throughout the first half of the show. Mayville, following their typical pattern of doing songs from a specific musical, debuted a Beetlejuice set and beat out a host of other groups to claim the last finals spot.
Papillion-La Vista South Titan Classic
Final Results
GC: Gretna “Revolution”
1RU: Waukee “Millennium”
2RU: O’Gorman “Ovation!”
3RU: Lewis Central “Corporation”
4RU: Sioux Falls Jefferson “Legacy”
5RU: Elkhorn North “adrENaline”
Papio South was a comp filled with surprises from beginning to end. In the days preceding the competition, Waukee’s prep group, “Spirit”, moved up to the varsity division, sparking thoughts of them potentially qualifying for finals. That was not the case, as the original six varsity entrants filled out the finals field. The two standout groups of this competition were Gretna and O’Gorman. While Gretna has long been a finals-caliber group within the Nebraska scene, rarely have they been a championship-level group. Saturday night was one of the times they were, beating a very solid Waukee group that has long been regarded as one of the stalwarts of the Iowa circuit. Perhaps equally impressive was O’Gorman, who finished on the podium after not making any finals in 2022. Something changed – was it the swap in choreographer to Kevin Chase? Was it the continuity with another year under the direction of Nick Engbers? Was it an influx of talent into the group? Whatever it was, O’Gorman put the rest of South Dakota on notice. Lewis Central scored a very solid placement as well.
Viterbo 101
Final Results
GC: Westside “Amazing Technicolor Show Choir” (BV, BC)
1RU: La Crosse Central “Grand Central Station”
2RU: Cedar Rapids Washington “Momentum”
3RU: Xavier “Xhilaration”
4RU: Sauk Prairie “Executive Session”
5RU: West Salem “Singsations”
6RU: Logan “The Class Act”
Viterbo was yet another competition where the winner was fairly predictable and everything behind that broke convention. La Crosse Central looks to be rounding out into a form that is at least within shouting distance of their Mike Esser form of the first twenty years of the century. Xavier was the middle group in an intense seven-group finals, outperforming many expectations. West Salem also proved their worth in a twofold way. Singsations placed a very solid sixth, and Vivace unseated perennial women’s powerhouse group YTBN in the lower division. Sauk Prairie debuted shows featuring the musicals The Greatest Showman (Executive Session) and Moulin Rouge (YTBN).
Check back later this week for a fresh edition of Comps of the Week!
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