Good Week to Be from Millard: Nebraska Show Choir Rankings 1/23/26

By Arte Reed, Nebraska contributor

Nebraska show choir is up and running! A majority of these groups have already performed, or will be performing in either competition or exhibition.

Three regional experts evaluated 35 of Nebraska’s top show choirs to determine the rankings. While divisions are primarily based on NSAA cutlines, some adjustments were made for groups that compete in multiple divisions throughout the season.

Large School

1. Millard West "West in the Groove" (2 first-place votes)

2. Gretna "Revolution"

3. Gretna East "Equinox" (1 first-place vote)

4. Millard North "Infinity"

5. Westside "Amazing Technicolor Show Choir"

6. Papillion-La Vista South “Titanium”

7. Elkhorn South “Blackout”

8. Grand Island Northwest “14 Karat Gold”

9. Lincoln Southwest “Resonance”

10. Elkhorn North “adrENaline”

11. Omaha South “The Ambassadors”

12. Lincoln East “Express”

13. Papillion-La Vista "Free Spirit"

14. Norris “Gold”

15. Pius X “Spectrum”

Receiving Votes: Grand Island "Ultimate Image", Millard South "South on Stage", Hastings "Uncaged", Elkhorn "Excel"

News and Notes:

• It is quite early into the season, but there have already been some interesting results. Millard North placed above Westside at Gretna. Grand Island Northwest placed above Lincoln Southwest at Lincoln Links. Some director changes most likely caused these results. Andrew Jacobson, Lincoln Southwest's previous director, is the new director at Westside. Leighton Ware took over Lincoln Southwest's program after moving from Wahoo.

• Gretna and Millard West have not competed this season, yet were ranked to be the top two Nebraska show choirs based on last year's results. Gretna will be performing at Gretna East and Millard West will have their host exhibition this weekend.

• Norris traveled to Waukee and took home fifth runner-up. Iowa is known for having challenging players at their competitions, so this success is a highlight for the start of their season.

Single-Gender

1. Millard North “Illumination” (2 first-place votes)

2. Millard West “Uptown” (1 first-place vote)

3. Elkhorn South “Shock Wave”

4. Papillion-La Vista South “Titan Radiance”

5. Westside “Simply Irresistible”

6. Papillion-La Vista “Monarchy”

7. Millard South “Stage One”

8. Papillion-La Vista “Heart and Soul”

9. Pius X “Prism”

10. Mercy "Treblemakers"

Receiving Votes: Papillion-La Vista South "Revolution", Marian "Momentum"

News and Notes

• Millard North took first place at Gretna, beating both Papio South and Westside. This weekend they will have to face Linn-Mar, a capable single-gender groups from Iowa.

• Uptown has not competed this season, yet still earned second in the rankings due to previous year's results.

Prep

1. Millard North “Intensity” (2 first-place votes)

2. Millard West “Swing Cats”

3. Papillion-La Vista South "Titan Express"

4. Gretna “Evolution” (1 first-place vote)

5. Westside “Warrior Express”

Receiving Votes: Elkhorn South "Power Surge", Grand Island Northwest "Bella Voce"

News and Notes

• Intensity took home first place in prep against Warrior Express and Titan Express at Gretna. This weekend they will have to face two tough opponents, In Step from Linn-Mar and Evolution from Gretna. This will truly tell us where they are at at the beginning of the season.

• Swing Cats has made it to second place in the rankings due to last year's results. They will first compete at Lincoln East on January 31.

Small School

1. Skutt Catholic “Vivace” (2 first-place votes)

2. Wahoo “Royalty” (1 first-place vote)

3. Blair “Ovation”

4. Aurora “Rhapsody”

5. Plattsmouth "Out of the Blue"

Receiving Votes: None.

News and Notes

• Skutt Catholic and Wahoo are face-to-face yet again this season. Skutt Catholic scored second at Maryville on Jan. 10 while Wahoo was able to outperform Lincoln Northeast and scored fourth at Lincoln Links on Jan. 17.

• Blair and Aurora will compete this weekend at Skutt Catholic and Hastings, respectively.