They took it off the page about 2 hours after the livestream ended I only got to watch Millard North, Wheaton North, and Urbandale. I’m still really looking forward to watch both Ankeny Centennial and Waukee tjo since I heard they were both neck and neck
I'm curious if anyone has mentioned to the Johnston Innovation team that singing "Chicago is on fire, the city is on fire, and we're gonna let it burn" might be considered bad taste? Much like when Carmel Ambassadors sang the exact same song while doing a show about the terrorist attacks on 9/11. I
am a huge Inno fan but I bring this up because I remember how wildly uncomfortable I was as I sat in the crowd and Carmel sang about the twin towers burning to the ground. Everyone was. I wonder how Johnston's audience feels hearing this unrelated tragedy portrayed by the same song and in the same way... Just food for thought.
I think the fact that the Great Chicago Fire occurred in 1871, as opposed to 9/11 in 2001, makes the use of the song more appropriate. No one living today has any memory of the fire, so it probably won't be offensive to anyone. I personally didn't find an issue with it, but that's just my opinion and I'm sure others may disagree.
Edit: Also, Carmel's show in 2017 was solely based around the 9/11 attacks, while Johnston's show this year is just Chicago themed, with the Fire simply referenced in a song. It's a defining part of Chicago's history, so it would make sense to acknowledge it.
Everything he said. Plus, the songs immediately following are all about rising from the ashes of the Great Chicago Fire (Patrick Stump and Fall Out Boy - Chicago natives, further hitting the theme home), so it kind of mitigates those lyrics to an extent. Honestly, I've heard more grumblings from Sox fans about them singing Go Cubs Go! But I'll say this much about Innovation's show this year - if you don't like a certain song, number, costume, choreography, style, movie reference, (or sports team haha) - you don't have to wait very long til you get something completely different. I have no idea how they crammed so much stuff into 20 minutes. My rough estimate notes there must be close to 300 different costume pieces. That's insane! (talk about giving your tech crew a workout...)
First, beautifully performed and the kids earned the awards, but my uncomfortable moment came with Spectrum's choice of subect. The climax of the show is a double suicide.! Wonder if romanticizing suicide in a school seting is an appropriate chocie.. Anyone else had that thought?
@dgshow, Spectrum has constantly pushed the boundaries with their themes, and this year is no different. Honestly, I'm not sure if it's a Spectrum show if somebody *doesn't* die, and that's part of what I love about them. I'd say about 95% of show choir shows are all super happy and cheerful, which is great, but it doesn't reflect the often dark and tragic parts of life that we all can relate to and deal with. Given that the source material is Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, I think a school setting is completely appropriate as it introduces the ballet to audiences in a more accessible way. I don't think the show would be as powerful if it didn't end the way it did. Not everything has a happy ending, and I love that Spectrum shares that idea in nearly all of their shows.
I am half asleep and delirious from such a long, great day of show choir, but I have to talk about both Ankeny Centennial Spectrum and Waukee Millennium, because, well, WOW.
Two entirely different ways to present a show choir show, and both have cemented a spot in my top 10 shows of all time list. The power, grace, and precision exhibited by these two groups was nothing short of amazing, and they both did show choir in such different yet equally effective ways. Waukee perfected the traditional show design, and Centennial this year is in my opinion the most beautiful story show there has ever been. It was so cool to see them back to back, and that even though they were completely different shows, they left me with the same feeling of awe that I haven’t felt since seeing Los Alamitos 2016 in the Grand Ole Opry. Well done to you two, and to ALL of the groups tonight. Such an amazing show of talent.
What a showing!! Really, a fantastic finals to watch. The results make sense to me, but I have no intelligent comments about why I feel that way. I do think Spectrum was the clear winner here.
I said this earlier today. But Ankeny Centennial, I am so glad that each season, you aim for nothing less than a masterpiece.
Some years are more successful than others. But if you stopped aiming so high, then we would never get shows like the one you have this year. I am in awe!
Johnston Showzam 2020
I only got to watch Millard North, Wheaton North, and Urbandale. I’m still really looking forward to watch both Ankeny Centennial and Waukee tjo since I heard they were both neck and neck
