2. Choirs staying on stage after their tag and walking off. I saw three groups do it here. They sing their tag, and they stick it.. and then instead of music playing while they dance off stage, there is no music and they just walk off like they walked on. I kind of enjoy this actually.
have you really never seen that before ethan? i've seen SOOOOOOOOOOO many choirs do that over the years. Definitely not new for this year.
There was not one show that I did not enjoy yesterday at Urbandale. And I got to spend the whole day with the wonderful Megan Turner.
That you did!
I absolutely loved this competition and every show in it. It was also one of the most well-run and best planned show choir events I've been to, major props to all the folks at Urbandale who made that happen! I will definitely be back next year if I get the chance.
West Des Moines Valley “Choralation”:
The opener was very fun. I loved the costumes. The swing arrangement of “Eye of the Tiger” was very interesting. Some of the choreo is a little messy, but could be easily fixed. The ballad. Wow. The Wicked Medley. It was so freaking amazing. Guy sound is super impressive. Soloist girl.. Wow. The last note of the ballad when you hit that high note.. WOW. Just wow. The four groups off jazz singing were very good. The costumes for the second half were amazing. They reminded me a lot of Mitchell’s costumes last year. It was SUPER weird hearing “Rockin’ the Paradise” slow and down, but I enjoyed it. The end of the show, with the guys diving to the floor, I loved. It was a great visual. I really, really enjoyed this show. Your finals show was a lot better than your daytime and I loved it. (Shout out to Mr. Newman, who I got into contact with by mistake this weekend haha)
A couple of other things I thought about while driving back to college tonight.
1. It seems to be a popular fad of at the end of a song, choirs go up with a U shape of arms for their final pose on the final drum click, and then the arms come down during the applause. It's a cool aspect, but honestly I prefer the hit it and stick it method instead of hit it and let drop. But depending on the song, I really do like it.
2. Choirs staying on stage after their tag and walking off. I saw three groups do it here. They sing their tag, and they stick it.. and then instead of music playing while they dance off stage, there is no music and they just walk off like they walked on. I kind of enjoy this actually.
3. There were A LOT of policemen at Urbandale yesterday. Is this the norm with some competitions? Honestly, I can't remember seeing any policemen at any show choir competition in my high school career, but at Urbandale, they had 3 or 4 in the auditorium standing in the wings (looking bored, obviously show choir isn't their favorite thing) and more in the hallways and parking lot, too. I just haven't seen this before.
Again, thank you to the Urbandale school district, teachers, students, and parents for a wonderful day yesterday!
This was my second show choir competition of the year, and my first time ever being to Urbandale. Let me tell you, it didn't disappoint. Urbandale's new PAC is very nice--and big. It was a great place for an awesome competition.
Let me start with my reviews of the shows. These are MY opinions. No one else's. I've gotten people mad at me in the past for saying some things. So if I say something that you don't enjoy, I am sorry, but it's not worth freakin' out over.
There was not one show that I did not enjoy yesterday at Urbandale. And I got to spend the whole day with the wonderful Megan Turner.
Non Finalists:
Sioux City East "New Sound":
You guys make me smile. The second song is HILARIOUS. The closer was very fun with the guitars. Good choreography. I sat in the back so it was hard to hear you, but other than that I really enjoyed the show!
Johnston "Synergy":
I really liked your ballad. A lot. Your guys' vocals are freaking fantastic for a prep group. I was blown away, to be honest. Congratulations on first place! You deserved it!
Dallas Center Grimes "Rhythm 'n Red":
I competed against you guys at Emmetsburg for the last two years of my high school career. And I'm not going to lie, you guys were never a threat, usually finishing at the bottom of class 3A. But this year you guys took me by surprise. I was very surprised by your vocals. Not a big group, but the vocals were good. There is this guy front center for the opener who has long hair that covers his eyes and he shakes his head. He needs to cut it. The choreography wasn't extremely clean. During the ballad, there was about an 8 or 16 bar part with no vocals and just instrumentals. You guys just stood there. It was awkward. You should incorporate some movement there. Carwash soloist was fantastic, but she needs to hold the microphone closer to her so we can hear better. I was NOT a fan of the costumes. Overall, this choir wasn't great but they had fun and were a feel good choir, which in my opinion is just as important as winning.
Des Moines Lincoln "Infinity":
I felt this show was really cool. It is a theme show (Songs: Good Morning Baltimore, Chicago, Sante Fe, Party in the USA, King of New York, Las Vegas, Anywhere USA). They had a map that hung up. And when they were singing about each city, a light bulb lit up over that city. And during the closer, lights around the USA lit up. It was a great visual for the show. The opener was fun and the soloist was very good. The second song had good vocals and good choreo, but it was kind of boring. Sante Fe. The minute you guys starting singing, I got so excited. NEWSIES. :D. The male soloist.. holy crap. From the minute you started singing nothing else was there. It was perfect. You definitely deserved the best male solo award! Ha, looking at my notes I wrote that I felt you should come to the front In the ballad.. and then you did. : ). Two weekends ago at Omaha I heard Beiber. Now I hear Miley. Ugh. Women sound was very good. Though. Overall I felt this show was very fun.
Mount Pleasant “InMotion”:
If there was one surprise choir of the day, it had to be this one. I hadn’t heard much of Mt Pleasant, so I wasn’t expecting anything. Their choreo was super crisp. Easy, but crisp. And their vocals were fantastic. Not loud and barely any dynamics, but fantastically blended. I loved your dresses in the second song and that dance break was fantastic. One of the highlights of the day came during your ballad. Hallelujah ended, and you got a partial PAC standing ovation. It was a fantastic ballad. I loved every minute of it. I wish there was more dynamic changes, but it was beautifully sung. Thank you for a very entertaining show. Honestly, it was one of my favorites of the day. You guys definitely deserved 1st place in 3A and I could see you guys taking best 3A group in Iowa this year.
Southeast Polk “Ramification”:
I loved the opening of “Someday I’ll Fly Away”. Ask Temple, I love Moulin Rouge. So it intrigued me. I felt like your band was trying to make up for the lack of vocals. It bothered me. The soloist girl who was tiny.. was freaking amazing. I just sat there with my jaw dropped because I didn’t expect to hear that out of her. The show was good. Boring and nothing special, but good.
Finalists:
Millard West “West in the Groove”:
I loved the opening of your show. The costumes were awesome and made it hard to figure out what way you’re actually walking with the masks. And then the robes come off and BAM. Awesome costumes. The second song “Fast” was funny. Though it got a little annoying after a while not being able to understand what was being said. I understand it was the point, but I just felt it went on and on. The ballad was great, but the ending was bleh because everyone ended at a different time, and with the consentient “t” you can’t do that. But it had a great story. The girls/guy number was hilarious with girls doing Bend and Snap and guys being UPS guys. And the guys using their boxes as drums was amazing. Push It was a very fun closer and the drummer guy up top was awesome. I felt this was the funnest show of the day and I was so happy to see you guys!
West Des Moines Valley “Choralation”:
The opener was very fun. I loved the costumes. The swing arrangement of “Eye of the Tiger” was very interesting. Some of the choreo is a little messy, but could be easily fixed. The ballad. Wow. The Wicked Medley. It was so freaking amazing. Guy sound is super impressive. Soloist girl.. Wow. The last note of the ballad when you hit that high note.. WOW. Just wow. The four groups off jazz singing were very good. The costumes for the second half were amazing. They reminded me a lot of Mitchell’s costumes last year. It was SUPER weird hearing “Rockin’ the Paradise” slow and down, but I enjoyed it. The end of the show, with the guys diving to the floor, I loved. It was a great visual. I really, really enjoyed this show. Your finals show was a lot better than your daytime and I loved it. (Shout out to Mr. Newman, who I got into contact with by mistake this weekend haha)
Sioux City East “The Headliners”
Seeing you guys again was fantastic. The very first couple measures of choreo was kind of sloppy, but from there it was fantastic. I love that opener. Always have. That song is perfect for show choir. Look at the sky, usually not my favorite song of your show, really got to me this time. And the ending was fantastic. I LOVE the staging of it. Your ballad, well there’s really not much to say. Sioux City East vocals are always wonderful. Now to the second half of the show, which is my freaking favorite. Wisconsin is hilarious. The closer is my favorite song of any choir this year. Hilarious, amazing singing, well staged, and just flat out wonderful. The ending pose is great, one of my favorites. East is probably my favorite choir of the year so far!
Johnston “Innovation”
The opener was very fun. Very good vocals. Sometimes when you have single hands going in the air, it’s messy. If you could fix that, it’d be fantastic. I love the jeans, really. The vocals in the ballad were fantastic. I have “Awkward” written at the end of your ballad, but I don’t remember what that is for. Oops. Guys and girls numbers were good. Nothing special. But good. I didn’t have much written about your closer except Dancebreak – Wow. It was fantastic. I felt your daytime show was a little better than your finals show. It was awesome to see you guys this year! Congrats on the finish!
Waukee “Millennium”
You guys surprised me again this year. Saw you last year at Westwood and I was surprised, and you just had to do it again. I liked the power ballad. I would prefer a non-power ballad, but you guys pull it off. Is it becoming a signature of Waukee? Last year it was Earth song, this year Broken Wings. I loved it, though. Great song choice. Amazing lifts, great vocals, and a sweet ending. One thing I was not expecting was to see Lady Gaga on stage. Haha. Props to that girl. She played the part well. And her dancers. You guys were awesome. I really, really liked the purple/yellow/white color scheme. Ahh, the infamous 4 minutes. I realy liked the clockhand choreo. It was clean and good. I have WOW written. That’s about the dancebreak in your closer. It is fantastic. It’s what made me put you guys where I did in my after-finals predictions. It was great.
Ankeny “Visual Adrenaline” :
First off, I loved the costumes. The purple was gorgeous. And your band was fantastic. (I had best band? Written after your daytime show. Called it ). The dance break in your opener left me with my mouth open. It was fantastic and clean. April gives you guys some amazing stuff. Your vocals took me by surprise. Definitely the best diction of the day, especially in your ballad. The one down of your show. Your ballad. It was SO beautiful. But I felt like you guys built it up and built it up….. and then just kind of let down. I didn’t get the WOW feeling I wanted. But it was still freaking amazing. You guys had great soloists all around. Some of the best overall of the day. I really liked the use of tap shoes in the closer. Not just for tap, but for extra percussion purposes. I had you guys in first the whole day. Congratulations on the win. You guys deserved it. (Especially to my friend Maddie in the group who I had a crazy hug with in the hall, Rachel and Sarah in the band, too!)
My predictions:
I love Urbandale’s program. It gives you extra space to write numbers and stuff in the back so it’s easier to keep score. Worth the 2 dollars!
Going into finals I had: (Points out of 100)
1. Ankeny (85)
2. Johnston (82.5)
3. Waukee (82)
4. Sioux City East (77.5)
5. Valley (70)
6. Millard West (62.5)
After Finals I had it:
1. Ankeny
2. Waukee
T3. Johnston
T3. Sioux City East
5. Valley
6. Millard West
Ankeny Sweep
Honestly this competition was amazing. So many great groups and I felt the top four could have gone many different ways. Thank you to everyone at Urbandale for providing an unforgettable day.
OOOOH URBANDALE. I didn’t write anything for your show, but I definite watched. Your ballad is fantastic. Great combination and beautiful vocals. Your dance breaks all around are fantastic. Honestly I felt if you were competing, you would have taken GC.
Congratulations on another amazing Urbandale. (#28, eh!). I will definitely be back next year!
Sorry about the book I get carried away when talking about show choir sometimes.
5th RU: MIllard West "West In The Groove"
4th RU: WDM Valley "Choralation"
3rd RU: Sioux City East "The Headliners"
2nd RU: Johnston "Innovation"
1st RU: Waukee "Millennium"
GC: Ankeny "Visual Adrenaline"
Best Vocals: Ankeny "Visual Adrenaline"
Best Choreography: Ankeny "Visual Adrenaline"
Best Band: Ankeny "Visual Adrenaline" (awarded during daytime awards)
Well, I'm leaving now for Urbandale. I will be at this competition beginning with Sioux City East New Sound or earlier! So if you're gonna be here, hit me up 712 540 8802.
Good luck to everyone. If you want updates from this competition, text it
Urbandale Show Choir Invitational 2011
). The dance break in your opener left me with my mouth open. It was fantastic and clean. April gives you guys some amazing stuff. Your vocals took me by surprise. Definitely the best diction of the day, especially in your ballad. The one down of your show. Your ballad. It was SO beautiful. But I felt like you guys built it up and built it up….. and then just kind of let down. I didn’t get the WOW feeling I wanted. But it was still freaking amazing. You guys had great soloists all around. Some of the best overall of the day. I really liked the use of tap shoes in the closer. Not just for tap, but for extra percussion purposes. I had you guys in first the whole day. Congratulations on the win. You guys deserved it. (Especially to my friend Maddie in the group who I had a crazy hug with in the hall, Rachel and Sarah in the band, too!)
And Ethan says hi to everyone.