Even though November is generally not regarded as competition season, it is the prime of groups getting out there and showing off their shows alongside other groups! Here is a quick snapshot of what’s taking place around the nation this Saturday:
Chippewa Falls SuperShow
The Lineup (all groups from Wisconsin): Altoona “Locomotion”, Augusta “Mixtape”, Chippewa Falls “Chi-Hi Harmonics”, Chippewa Falls Middle “Melodics”, Eau Claire North “Northernaires”, Fall Creek “Cricket Choralation”, Holmen “Midwest Express”, Logan “The Class Act”
This event serves as a preview for most of the main players in the northwestern Wisconsin scene, with Eau Claire Memorial being the only big name that is not participating this year. Holmen and Logan are also making the trip north from the La Crosse area, giving the event a little bit of Mississippi River flavor as well. Of note: Chippewa Falls’ middle school is back after debuting on the performance stage last year, and Augusta will compete this year for the first time in 32 years.
Neosho Show Choir Festival
The Lineup (all groups from Missouri unless noted): Cabool “Rhythm in Blue”, Carthage “Sound Machine”, Carthage “Suite Sounds”, Carthage Junior “Sound Machine”, Carthage Junior “Sound Intensity”, Cassville “Center Stage”, East Newton “Patriot Singers”, Jenks “Trojanaires” (OK), Jenks “Trojan Spirit” (OK), Neosho “Choraleers”, Neosho “Sugar & Spice”, Neosho “Phenomenon”, Neosho Junior “Wildcat Singers”, Neosho Junior “Sho Stoppers”, Nevada “Soundsational Singers”, Nevada “Treble Effects”, Nevada “Vocal Fusion”, Nevada Middle “Future Sounds”, McDonald County “Rhapsody n’ Rhythm”, Raymore-Peculiar “Rush”, Seneca “Starstruck”, Webb City Junior “Polyphonics”, Webb City Junior “Euphonics”
Southwest Missouri is one of the sleeper regions in the country for producing both high-quality shows and simply a lot of shows. Part of that is a robust fall scene, which Neosho kicks off. Several of the region’s top show choirs are attending, including the host school, Carthage and Nevada. Additionally, several of the region’s consistent smaller programs will be present as well, including East Newton, Seneca and McDonald County. A newcomer to the festival this year is Jenks, who takes the drive up from the Tulsa area to get an early start on their show choir season. For the first time, Neosho will also host a competition in spring in addition to this festival in fall.
Scottsbluff Old West Choir Fest
The Lineup (all groups from Nebraska unless noted):
5A: Vista PEAK “Ascencion” (CO), Vista PEAK “Aspyre” (CO), Vista Ridge “Rhythm” (CO)
4A: Alliance “Harmonics”, Alliance “Velocity”, Gering “Harmony”
3A: Chadron “Cardinal Singers”, Mitchell “Limited Edition”, Sidney “Sidney State of Mind”
2A: Bridgeport “Audacity”, Dundy County Stratton “Homegrown Harmonies”, Harvard “Cardinal and Black Singers”, Kimball “New Dimension”
Grade School: Bridgeport “Euphoria”, Bridgeport “Treble Makers”, Kimball “Infinity”, Kimball “Velocity”, St. Agnes “Singspirations”
The one competition on the schedule this weekend, Old West is a unicorn in the show choir world. It is part of a larger Old West Fest held each fall in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, in the panhandle near the border with Wyoming. This is its 40th year holding a choir fest! It has a finals round, but it is not the traditional top six scores: the top group from each high school division qualifies, plus the next two top-scoring groups. The judges then have an option to add a seventh wild card into the finals round. Vista PEAK won last year’s edition and enters as the favorite, while Sidney won in 2021 and Vista Ridge won the 2019 and 2018 editions.
There will be no recap column this week due to the noncompetitive nature of the events, but check back next week for another Events of the Week primer!
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