Comps of the Week: 1/24/26

By William Soquet, Editor-in-Chief

Despite weather concerns knocking out the bulk of competitions in some areas and cold temperatures threatening lineups in other places, the action will remain intense at Gretna East, Johnston, Milton and Millard West.

Gretna East Echoes of the East

The Lineup (groups from Nebraska unless noted)

Mixed: Elkhorn North “adrENaline”, Elkhorn South “Blackout”, Gretna “Revolution”, Millard North “Infinity”, Lincoln East “Express”, Linn-Mar “10^th Street Edition” (IA), Papillion-La Vista “Free Spirit”

Single-Gender: Elkhorn South “Shock Wave”, Millard North “Illumination”, Linn-Mar “Hi-Style” (IA), Papillion-La Vista “Free Spirit”, Papillion-La Vista “Monarchy”

Prep: Elkhorn North “Encore”, Elkhorn South “Power Surge”, Gretna “Evolution”, Millard North “Intensity”, Lincoln East “Elevation”, Linn-Mar “In Step” (IA)

Expanded Coverage: Second Edition of Echoes of the East Brings Plenty of Talent to Gretna East

The top draw here is Linn-Mar, who will put their Grand Hotel show on the competition stage for the first time after performing in exhibition at Supernova last weekend. 10SE is making their first trip to Nebraska since Jan. 31, 2015, where they placed fourth at Omaha Westside (Hastings, Elkhorn South and Lincoln Southwest were the podium choirs that day). It will be incredibly hard for any of the local choirs to hold a candle to Linn-Mar, but if anyone can do it, it is Gretna. Revolution has now fully grown into its identity as a new blood Nebraska titan, but they will have to have an impeccable finals run to get up to Linn-Mar’s level. Elkhorn South and Millard North both enter this competition coming off great results last weekend; Blackout swept at Ralston and Infinity was runner-up at Gretna. Third place at this competition will likely go to one of the two, and whoever grabs it gains momentum as the thick of the season approaches. Elkhorn North and Lincoln East finished fifth and sixth at Gretna last weekend, and there’s a plausible scenario in which that result is duplicated here. However, Papillion-La Vista was left on the outside of finals last weekend, and Free Spirit is too good of a group to be discounted entirely in the conversation for finals.

Johnston Showzam!

The Lineup (groups from Iowa unless noted)

Mixed: Dowling Catholic “Dimensions”, Indianola “Side One”, Norwalk “Sound Revolution”, Prairie “The Ambassadors”, Sioux Falls Roosevelt “Executive Suite” (SD), Urbandale “Studio”, Waukee “Millennium”

Womens: Sioux Falls Roosevelt “Capitol Harmony” (SD), Urbandale “Affinity”

Prep: Prairie “Focal Point”, Urbandale “Vitality”, Waukee “Spirit”, Waukee Prairieview “Genesis”

Expanded Coverage: Waukee, Urbandale Headline Johnston Showzam Lineup

Two classic Des Moines powerhouses will renew a longstanding relationship on the Johnston stage. Waukee, in its second season under Tony Dam’s leadership, already claimed a standout sweep at Des Moines Christian on Jan. 10. Urbandale, in its first season under Adam Brown’s leadership, debuted on Jan. 17 and came up just short in a split-caption decision to Waukee Northwest at Linn-Mar. In a battle of two high-caliber shows, one will prevail. Prairie was sixth last week at Linn-Mar but will travel to Des Moines this weekend; they are a good bet for the third spot and have been a consistent choir in the post-pandemic seasons. The bottom half of the finals field is another exciting aspect of this competition because of the number of different ways it can go. On paper, Indianola has the best results so far this season, but Norwalk was a mere one spot behind Side One at Des Moines Christian two weeks ago. Sioux Falls Roosevelt made finals at a deep Sioux Falls Jefferson contest two weeks ago, a step forward for them from seasons past. Dowling enters as a bit of an unknown quantity, as 2021 Ankeny Centennial grad and 2025 Iowa State grad Allie Pauly has taken the reins for this season.

Milton Rock the Rock

The Lineup (groups from Wisconsin unless noted)

Mixed: Ashwaubenon “Encore”, De Pere “Jam Session”, Dwight D. Eisenhower “Express” (IL), Fort Atkinson “South High Street Singers”, Hamilton “Synergy”, John Hersey “OnStage” (IL), Monona Grove “Silver Connection”, Oswego “Commotion” (IL), Sauk Prairie “Executive Session”, Totino-Grace “Company of Singers” (MN), Waconia “Power Company”, Waubonsie Valley “Sound Check” (IL)

Womens: Fort Atkinson “Lexington Singers”, Sauk Prairie “YTBN”, Waconia “The Current”, Waubonsie Valley “Resonance” (IL)

Prep: Monona Grove “Silver Dimension”, Westosha Central “Central Swing, Inc.”

Milton features a 12-choir top division, which is fairly normal for larger Wisconsin competitions but is a bit of an eye-popping number for circuits with tighter division splits on school size or group size. The headlining matchup will be De Pere and Waconia. Jam Session outsang Power Company last week at New London to take Best Vocals and the win, while Power Company was a hair behind with Best Choreography in second. A week to workshop each show could lead to the same result, or it could lead to something totally different. Sauk Prairie is the only returning finalist from last year’s event and has pieced together two very solid results in the early season; Executive Session will be a contender in finals. Illinois outfits Waubonsie Valley and Dwight D. Eisenhower both had impressive January runs in Wisconsin last season, and they will need good shows again to make the evening round in this crowded contest. Totino-Grace won its final competition of the 2025 season, but Nick McGraw has moved on and Tori Hornby will debut her new choirs at Milton; where they place is anyone’s guess. Monona Grove is the only other choir in the field that has made a finals field so far this year and should be a solid contender as well.

Wildcard: Millard West Music Lives

The Lineup (groups from Nebraska unless noted)

Mixed: Millard South “South on Stage”, Omaha South “The Ambassadors”, Papillion-La Vista South “Titanium”, Sioux Falls Jefferson “Legacy” (SD), Westside “Amazing Technicolor Show Choir”

Womens: Millard South “Stage One”, Omaha South “Amplify”, Papillion-La Vista South “Revolution”, Papillion-La Vista South “Titan Radiance”, Sioux Falls Jefferson “Revelry” (SD), Westside “Simply Irresistible”

Prep: Papillion-La Vista South “Titan Express”, Westside “Warrior Express”

Millard West features an almost-complete “Battle of the Nebraska Show Choir Souths”, with Elkhorn South the only true “South” choir that is not taking part in the event. A tight matchup from Gretna Primetime last week will carry over into Music Lives, Westside (third place last week) and Papio South (fourth place last week) match up once again in what may very well be the battle for the win. Omaha South took last week off after placing fourth at Sioux Falls Jefferson on Jan. 10. The Ambassadors is a group that will grow throughout the season and should be counted on to be better than they were two weeks ago. Sioux Falls Jefferson was a solid fourth at Waukee last weekend, outplacing Southeast Polk and Norris. Legacy is loaded with seniors this year, and the outgoing class will do their best to make their mark on a loaded competition. Millard South will debut for the season under the new direction of Edgar Estrada, and South on Stage’s performance will set the tone for their season. The sixth finals spot will go to a group from one of the lower divisions, and it would not be a surprise to see either Titan Radiance or Simply Irresistible in the six spot.

As long as the weather does not have any more adverse effects on the competition scene, Comps of the Week recap will be back early next week with plenty of takeaways and analysis from this weekend’s action.