Illinois Show Choir Rankings (3/14/25)
- homeroomshowchoir
- Mar 14
- 4 min read
By Ethan Parker, Founder
Three regional experts considered 39 show choirs from the Land of Lincoln and voted 20 into the rankings across three divisions. These are the results.
Championship Mixed
Wheaton Warrenville South "The Classics" (3 first-place votes, NC)
Wheaton North “Flight” (NC)
Mt. Zion “Swingsations” (NC)
Naperville North “Entourage” (+1)
El Paso-Gridley “Modulations” (-1)
Dwight D. Eisenhower “Express” (NC)
Waubonsie Valley “Sound Check” (NC)
Manteno “Magic” (+1)
Mundelein “Sound” (+1)
Glenwood “Titan Fever” (-2)
News and Notes
Mt. Zion Madness
Wheaton Warrenville South The Classics end their season after placing as the highest Illinois choir at a national Mt. Zion competition. After sitting 4th place in prelims, Wheaton stormed all the way back in what was their best performance of the year, earning them 2nd place with best vocals and band. Unless one of these Illinois choirs wins the choral classic, it's safe to say Wheaton South will stay at the top of the totem pole.
Flight, Entourage, and Modulations at Showcase of Excellence
Wheaton North Flight is having one of those weird seasons where they seemingly run into all of the other Illinois choirs at the end of the year. Facing El Paso-Gridley, Naperville North, Waubonsie Valley, Mt. Zion, and Glenwood all in a two week span. Regardless, they were able to jump their first Illinois hurdle taking the win at Quincy. In 2nd place was a choir that is always in the center of chaos, Naperville North. They finish their season with their highest placement of the year. Then it is El Paso-Gridley rounding out the podium, taking their 6th best choreography caption of the season, undefeated in that metric.
Choral Classic
Here we go. In a competition that always grabs the national spotlight, it is important to remember the influence this competition has on the Illinois circuit. El Paso-Gridley, Waubonsie Valley, Mt. Zion, Glenwood, and Wheaton North will be battling it out, not only against each other, but against choirs from across the country. The result of this competition is the last domino for most of these choirs, where they land we will see.
Wheaton South Preview Coming Soon to the Blog!
Single-Gender
Wheaton Warrenville South “Esprit” (3 first-place votes, NC)
Mt. Zion “Les Femmes” (NC)
Naperville North “Vivant” (NC)
El Paso-Gridley “Hi Fidelity” (+1)
Danville “Contemporaries” (-1)
Other Receiving Votes: Mt. Zion “You’ve Got Male”
News and Notes
Esprit Proved to be Human
Wheaton Warrenville South Esprit finishes what was a fantastic season at Mt. Zion. This was a choir who went into the competition not only looking for a division win, but was eyeing a potential finals spot at a premier national competition. However, neither of those results came to fruition. Despite putting on a very strong show where the only fault was a sinking ‘runway’ riser, Loveland Allure was able to match and then some taking the division win and that last finals spot. Esprit finishes with 3 division wins and 1 finals appearance.
Hi-Fi Takes Down Vivant at Quincy
El Paso-Gridley’s girls take the win at Quincy over an up and down Naperville North Vivant. After having a strong start to their season, HiFi dropped some questionable competitions that even resulted in them missing the ranking for a few weeks. After a win at Manteno on Feb. 15, where they only faced off against Glenwood Titan Flame, it's been almost a month since the last time they performed. That extra practice seemed to pay off as they end their season on a high-note.
Make Noise at Choral Classic?
Glenwood, Waubonsie, and both Mt. Zion single-gender choirs will have the task of trying to hold off strong divisional groups in Westside Simply Irresistible and Lafayette Jefferson Expressions. Although it seems nearly impossible with the caliber of lineup at the choral classic this year, no single-gender finals means everything is fair game at Wheaton South. Will it happen? Most likely not, however Loveland Allure showed us to expect the unexpected when it comes to competitions like this.
Festival Mixed
Sullivan “Singers” (3 first-place votes, NC)
Danville “Delegation” (+1)
Crete-Monee “Cavaliers” (-1)
Herscher “Class Act” (NC)
Peoria “Soundwave” (NC)
News and Notes
Quincy Leaves Questions
Sullivan wrapped up their fantastic season with a solid division win that granted them the opportunity to perform in finals. After losing to Crete-Monee and Herscher at their second competition in Manteno, Sullivan never looked back racking up two division wins and a second place finish to tier 2 powerhouse Roncalli (IN). Peoria also earned a finals berth after placing second in tier 2. They will finish their season in Ohio at the Fairfield Crystal Classic. Then that leaves Crete-Monee. The Cavaliers have had an up and down season that started off strong with a win at Manteno. Since then they had wins over both Sullivan and Peoria to their name, however they fell short at Quincy with no placement, resulting in them dropping one spot lower on the rankings.
Danville Storms Back
After a result not many saw coming for Danville at Lafayette Jefferson, they came back with a resurgence win at Avon. Defeating Indiana’s Mooresville, Pendleton Heights, and Columbia City. Delegation will end their season at their fourth straight Indiana competition this weekend at a stacked Brownsburg tier 2 division that features Nitro (WV), Winfield (WV), Carmel's (IN) prep group, and many more.
Commenti