Iowa's Biggest Month Kicks Off with An Eventful Weekend of Competition
- Ava Sammons
- Feb 5
- 4 min read
Competition season in Iowa is in full swing after a weekend of five in-state competitions and surprising results all around. Schools from both sides of the state (and right in the middle) hosted choirs from Iowa, Nebraska, and Illinois. Week four brought the season’s first 3A Grand Champions, five groups who swept major captions, and prep groups that shook things up in finals. Here’s a look at some of last weekend’s highlights:
Anamosa Sadie Street Showcase
GC: Marion “New Creation” (BV/BC)
1RU: Iowa City “4th Avenue Jazz Company” (BB)
2RU: Liberty “Storm”
3RU: Xavier “Xhilaration”
4RU: Cedar Rapids Jefferson “West Side Delegation”
5RU: Western Dubuque “5th Avenue”
Anamosa served as a turning point for some choirs and just another mid-season competition for others. After two weekends just outside of the top three, Marion proved themselves and rose above every 4A school at Anamosa. Marion tends to fly under the radar as a 3A choir but could be a contender for a high ranking in Iowa’s Tier II rankings after this competition. All five 4A choirs fill the remaining spots in finals and fall into place where expected. Iowa City rose two places from their first two competitions this season and Liberty went from missing finals to third overall in just one competition. Xavier, Cedar Rapids Jefferson, and Western Dubuque fall into place after the top three, all giving solid performances but struggling to find their way into the podium this weekend.
Ankeny Centennial Mid-Iowa Show Choir Championships
GC: Ankeny “Visual Adrenaline” (BV/BB)
1RU: Waukee “Millennium” (BC)
2RU: Southeast Polk “RAMification”
3RU: Ankeny “Perpetual Motion”
4RU: Waukee “Spirit”
5RU: Dowling “Dimensions”
This weekend’s only central Iowa competition was also this weekend’s only competition with a major caption split. Ankeny Visual Adrenaline won Best Vocals and was able to secure the win over Waukee Millennium, but Waukee managed to take Best Choreography in a close competition of vastly different shows. Waukee Spirit and Ankeny Perpetual Motion also split captions in the prep division during daytimes, with Spirit achieving Best Vocals and Perpetual Motion winning Best Choreography. Southeast Polk, with the most theatrical set of the day, was able to hold their own and took 3rd overall. Dowling Dimensions rounded out the finals competition, making it to finals for the second week in a row after missing three times in 2024.
Only having four groups in the mixed division meant prep groups were given the opportunity to make things interesting in finals. Spirit and Perpetual Motion made their way into finals and took the 4th and 5th highest spots overall. Perpetual Motion took it a step up in finals and placed higher than Spirit, who won first in the prep division and beat Perpetual Motion in daytimes. A smaller number of schools and hosting on a different weekend clearly did not make Ankeny Centennial any less competitive of a competition this year.
Davenport North The Big Dance
GC: Davenport Central “Central Singers, Inc.” (BV/BC/BB)
1RU: Pella “AcaPella”
2RU: Cedar Rapids Washington “Momentum”
3RU: Naperville North “Entourage” (IL)
4RU: Muscatine “River City Rhythm”
5RU: Naperville North “Vivant” (IL)
Davenport Central is right back in the limelight after sweeping their first competition of the season. A later start clearly didn’t stop them from being the group that was known last season for winning competitions left and right. AcaPella came in right behind them to continually make a name for themselves as a top 3A program in the state. Cedar Rapids Washington finished off the podium, leaping back up in placements after getting 7th in daytimes at Linn-Mar. Momentum missed finals for the first time since 2011 and ended their streak of 54 consecutive finals appearances two weeks ago. Needless to say, Momentum’s season has taken a turn for the better after this weekend. The lone out-of-state program, Naperville North, ended up with both their groups in finals. Entourage and Vivant are new faces to this competition and managed to keep a handful of Iowa choirs out of finals. Vivant swept the prep division and scored high enough to beat Bettendorf, Fort Madison, and North Polk for a spot in the evening round. Muscatine found themselves in 5th for the second competition in a row, an improvement from the non-placement they ended last season with.
Other moments from last weekend:
All three of Linn-Mar’s choirs made finals at Prairie Premiere. This is the second time in program history that all groups appeared in finals at the same competition; 10th Street Edition took first and swept all major captions, In Step came in 4th and Hi-Style was right behind them in 5th.
Glenwood Gala had a 3-4 split of Iowa and Nebraska groups in their finals competition. Bishop Heelan Harmonia Mundi becomes the second 3A group of the season to win a Grand Championship. Dallas Center-Grimes Momentum and Des Moines Christian Light, Inc. place right behind them, and the four Nebraska choirs fill the 4th-7th place spots in finals.
Sioux City East The Headliners swept Sioux Falls Roosevelt Executive Showcase in South Dakota. This is The Headliners’ second win in a row after a Grand Champion drought in 2024.
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