Avon stepped on the court poised to win with their show “The Playbook”. They told the classic story of the prizefighter who would give anything to win. Accompanied by six sets of stairs as props, the performers utilized these continuously throughout their program. The ensemble played in the world very well, with different members performing feats of strength and coordination. Avon brought the winning mentality musically as well with their retention of the classic sports tune “Eye of the Tiger” which was done beautifully by the front ensemble.

Chino explores themes of feeling trapped and discovering who you are. They help convey this feeling with cage like props on the floor that represent the different members being trapped. As the ensemble moves through a beautifully intense musical book, the question is asked time and time over, “Who are we?”. The show ends with the cymbal line on raised platforms looking over the battery. As they play the final phrase, five banners fly overhead to reveal the word human, an answer to the imposing question, “Who are We?”

Dartmouth’s 2022 production followed the story of Medusa and how she got her snakes. The ensemble wore roman garbs with togas and other accessories, and the uniforms fit well with the floor dressing, back drops and Roman style columns. Medusa began the show as a normal girl playing an electric violin but finished as the titular character from the legends. The battery brought an unstoppable energy with slamming features from all sections. The front ensemble brought a very nice melodic and emotional touch to the show and the drum set performer captivated the audience with their constant energy.

Arcadia took the floor with a bare tarp and a 10-person visual ensemble. Their show was titled “missing you too” and explored the separation between 2 people. The visual ensemble helped convey this feeling by putting separation between the different members of the battery. The keyboards complemented this theme with spacey and distant Melodies, broken up by a harsh timpani sound at times. They also featured some unique sounds with a flute player and what sounded like snake rattles.

Ayala took the floor with their 2022 show “Invidia”. They brought this theme of greed to the audience with a Midas’ touch type story, where everything you touch turns to gold. The performers slowly started to don gold coverings over their green uniforms to signify that they had been turned to gold. During the final hit of the show a performer, laden with gold coverings, creeps toward the Midas figure at the front of the tarp, but before they can make it they succumb to the weight and fall to signify the cost of greed.

Their show personifies the butterfly effect and ripples through time. The battery had some insane features including the bass and cymbal lines, and the visual performers assisted the battery through an incredible visual package. The way the battery moved and played worked to reinforce the theme of ripples through time with multiple bass breaks and cymbal ripples. The front ensemble added some voice over and laid the foundation for an incredible musical product all around. The energy was off the charts in all sections, and each section feature got the crowd cheering more than the last.

Lambert explored themes of bringing light to the darkness and being controlled. They reinforce this theme by having LED props staged in a square formation in the top left corner of the tarp. The members seemed to be controlled by these lights as they reacted to the changes. Midway through, the first right corner of the tarp was peeled back to cover almost the entire tarp in darkness but was quickly folded back to reveal the team-colored top of the performance floor.

Their show told the story of a lost submariner mentioned in the opening voice over. The battery opened with a layered-in snare break and were accompanied on the tarp by 7 performers who danced with them. The front ensemble helped provide a nice texture to the water theme of the show. They ended the show by putting up 7 pictures of sailors, presumably the sailors lost in the story they tell. They put out a strong vibe of underwater sounds, most present with the puffy mallet bass feature near the end of the show.

Sparkman’s show “So Below” Follows the journey of an explorer who went into the Paris catacombs and found exactly what he was looking for. The explorer is faced with demons and evil spirits. The explorer then becomes trapped in the catacombs. The show ends with another explorer making the same mistake and descending into the catacombs. Sparkman HS featured some incredible set design with their reversible Paris at night/Catacomb wall props. The highlight was the main set piece, the rotating catacomb wall complete with skulls where both explorers descended from. The performers brought energy to their performance from start to finish.

Homestead HS touched on themes of patience and maturity. With a white tarp splotched with green grass, they use watching paint dry and grass grow as symbolism for impatience. They also feature 12 TVs in a block at the back of the tarp that they use to play different short clips like they are changing channels to further reinforce themes of impatience. The crux of the show is the group learning to be patient and grow, while playing some incredible beats of course.

Milton played with John cages 4’ 33’ and used the premise to explore ideas of silence and stopping. They used the premise to call the audience to stop and listen to the world around them. Using 4 triangle shaped props with changing faces, the group displayed images of stoplights and cities to call attention to the loud and often overstimulating world we live in. They played with silence in a super inventive way and in the same vein as cage pointed the microphone towards the audience to examine their reaction

Center Grove took the floor dripping with opulence to explore the themes of legacy and nostalgia with their show “Nothing Gold Can Stay”. The main prop staged at the corner of their bright gold tarp is a moving platform with a clock painted on it, representing the movement of time. The voice over also helped reinforce the theme talking about nostalgia and how things always seem better in hindsight. Musically this ensemble excelled in almost every way and did a great job in featuring their performers with both a piano and xylophone solo.

Franklin Central played with themes of separation and transformation in their show. With the innovative frosted glass prop they were able to reveal their performers in many different patterns as it related to the music. The ensemble donned iridescent full-face coverings as well as black cloaks. Throughout the show, the members began to head away from their black cloaks and by the end of the show each member took off their mask to reveal their true face. The members took this abstract show design and made it their own with unmatched energy and commitment to the performance from start to finish.

Centerville took the floor with their show “Any Way the Wind Blows”. Playing with the theme of wind, Centerville crafted a vibe that conveys that perfectly. With dozens of ensemble ripples, to fans blowing yellow banners on the edges of the sky-blue tarp. The tarp was also covered by formations of bright orange blocks with yellow swirls that were moved by performers throughout the show to create different structures on the floor. The front ensemble complimented the battery book perfectly with their wind like musical qualities. Centerville came to play with rock solid themes and stellar performance quality.

This show tells the story of a pining man trying to get Cupid to shoot his love interest who is sitting over on a park bench. But Cupid ends up shooting the wrong guy and the show takes a twist. The moral of the show is that love doesn’t lie within any external force. The show ends with the voice over “love is what you make it to be” reinforcing the idea that love does not come from Cupid’s arrow, but it comes from the courage to simply ask them out.