This past weekend, Cabell Midland’s Show Choir presented their annual Winter Wonderland Dinner and Show. The Winter Wonderland Dinner and Show gives the first official debut of their competition season. This show gives the community a chance to see how hard these students work during the year.

As someone who is not in show choir, I was wondering what makes The Winter Wonderland so special and whats its purpose?  “The purpose of Winter Wonderland is to premiere our competition show, which is the main show we work on all year long and compete with. It has a specific theme, with crazy costumes and 5 songs,” said senior Alex McGinnis.  You can tell a lot of time,effort, and hard work goes into show choir and it pays off with these shows. There is so much talent and it truly shows.

The theme for the Rhythm In Red’s competition season is “Apocalypse” and is rumored to be one of the best themes yet. “The theme of the show is Apocalypse it has a variety of songs including “Toxic” and “Radioactive”, ” said senior Josh Adkins. Not only is the theme eye-catching, but so are the costumes this year. “The costumes are very different than any other show choirs. The most exciting is the many different varieties to view the world ending of coming together as friends for the last time,” said senior Taylor Freeman.

This year the show choir is adding new elements to their show by adding sound effects. “I think the most exciting thing about our show is the story line. With the story focusing on the end of times, we include sound effects of news channels, sirens, and alarms to keep the story flowing. We also have one song dedicated to black lights, so we glow in the dark while we sing and dance,” said McGinnis.  By adding new element, I can definitely see the show choir winning multiple first place titles this season!

As expected one of the most exciting parts of Winter Wonderland is the reactions of audience. “The best part is seeing the reactions to everyone seeing our show for the first time, ” said Freeman. No doubt about that, the reactions drive you to work harder while feeling appreciated. “I think there is a lot of hidden talent in this group you don’t see everyday, and it’s amazing to see so many talented people preform,” said McGinnis.  This show does an amazing job highlighting the hidden talent in this group, it gives them a chance to “sing their hearts out”.

There are so many opportunities in show choir and a lot of the work lies behind the stage. “I am apart of stage crew. My role in the choir is to help with costume changes not only that ,but I help set the stage and help with the effects of the show as well. I’m the one [and a few others] who do all the behind the scenes part of the show,” said Adkins. There are also members who like to remain on the stage showing off their talents both Freeman and McGinnis have been members of Rhythm In Red for four years. McGinnis is also a tenor.

With scheduling for next year is just now beginning, here are somethings to keep in mind about show choir. “Anyone can join show choir, there is no limit a lot of people are often scared to because they think “I can’t sing or dance”.  Show choir teaches you to do both. After the year is done, you will know how to sing, dance and how to act on stage,” said McGinnis.  Show choir also takes dedication “It takes dedication, it seems rough at first,but the competition pays off and you meet many friends from different schools and states,” said Freeman. It is always fun to meet others who are interested in what you like to do and show choir gives you a chance to do that. Also don’t forget about stage crew, “Even if you don’t want to join show choir you could always be apart of this awesome experience by talking to Mr. Bailey about stage crew,” said Adkins.

The biggest concept I took away from learning about show choir is that most members will say is that they are a family. “We act as a family for each other outside of our own families homes, and it is an amazing group altogether,” said McGinnis.  Just like with every family there may be some ups and downs. “It is so much fun and the people are really nice, yes we have our ups and downs, but what family doesn’t,” said Adkins.

Overall, I wish the show choir a wonderful season and you should definitely come out and see what this group has to offer. The apocalypse is here!