The best diction award FAME offers always makes me laugh. It feels like such a random award based on a single technical category - why don’t they have caption awards for “best tone quality” or “best transitions”?
Awards:
Best make soloists Johnston Innovation
Best female solosist Bloomington Kennedy
Best make stage presence: Johnston Synergy
best Female show presence: Bloomington Kennedy
Beat Diction: Johnston Innovation
Best individual selection: Johnston Innovstion ""Tifhtrope""
Best show design: Johnston innovation
Best combo: Johnston Innovation
Fame Award: Norris High
Best crew: Johnston innovation
4RU JOHNSTON synergy
3RU: Northridge Northern Lights
2RU: Norris Gold
1RU: Bloomington Kennedy
Grand champ: Johnston Innovation
Best vocals: Johnston Innovation
best choreo: Johnston Innovation
Norris Gold came out strong with a fun, high energy show. Some of the best stste presence of the day with great facial expressions. Large group vocals were spot on and the choir clearly was enjoying themselves up there!
Northridge Northern lights sounded great and had a variety of solosisrs who brought it home. They had a superb band!
Johnston Innovation had extremely strong vocals from the entire choir and outstanding male solosists. Their final portion of the show, which I call the "Irish Death Punch" features 60 singers on 5 levels in an Irish line dance. I saw it at our Urbandale, IA competition and it remains the most spectacular portion of any show that I have seen in the last four years...
I like the winner to come from Iowa; Minnesota, or Utah but It's in the judges hands now. All choirs performed their hearts out!!
Bloomington Kennedy just escaped a blizzard up in Minnesota to make it to Branson and came ready. Their show had a Moulin Rouge theme., and the opening number featured a pair of soloists who really delivered. Their second number, which was very fast-paced, made for challenging choreography, but they kept up, easily validaring 4 "Best choreography" awards out of five shows. Fun and elaborate costuming. Right now this show choir has my pick to win best female soloist, although that one singer, as great as she was, performed essentially all of the female solos, and well over half of the total solos. Overall, another great show!
A great start to the completion! Yakov Smirnoff himself welcomed all teams to his theatre for Nationals!
It's a very nice theatre with comfortable seating but it wasn't made for show choir. The state is tight on the side, especially for larger show choirs and participants and solo singers on the top row weren't lit. No blame to Fame, who I had
To replace Fame Chicago when it cancelled but it's tough, Not a real warmup location, so on the first theee competitors, we were able to hear the next choir warming up particularly during the ballads
But onto the performances and there have been 3 great choirs so far!:
Northridge Starlights opened the show with some fun costumes and had sharp choreography throughout. Great job on their solo vocals. A fun theme, with some fairy tails mixed in. They finished with a Debbie Gibson song which brought back sad memories of when I was a cadet at the US AIR Force Academy and she cancelled on us!
Johnston (Synergy) was led by great solos which have seen them win "best female soloist" at each of their competitions. Strong Choreo and group vocals. Ballad was spot on and during costume changes for each sex we saw some really strong all-male and all-female songs.
American Leadership Academy did an excellent job with a really fun show. Theme was loosely based on Wizard of Oz, with even a song from the Michael Jackson movie, "The Wiz". They had some powerful soloists, especially on the female side.
From seeing the first three choirs. I will say this is shaping up to be a very entertaining day for the fans!
I'm a little late, but my prediction is as follows:
GC- Bloomington Kennedy (Best Vocals, Best Male Soloist)
1RU- Johnston (Best Choreography, Best Female Soloist)
2RU- Norris
3RU- American Leadership Academy
4RU- Northridge
5RU-Johnston Prep
6RU- Northridge Prep
No doubt, choirshow! Didn't meant to seem as if I was ignoring them! Was just referring to 5 strong mixed groups, as well as the "JV"/Prep team from Johnston that is highly competitive with varsity mixed groups!
And it all takes place today at the world famous Yakov Smirnoff theatre in Branson!
This is a legit Nationals....5 strong varsity squads , and with a prep choir that swept every Prep competition they were in and has defeated other varsity mixed choirs head to head . Should be a good dance-off in the "Vegas of the Midwest"!!
FAME Show Choir National Finals 2023
