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Local show choirs compete at Destination De Pere

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Show choirs from across the state converged in De Pere this Saturday, Feb. 1, for Destination De Pere, an annual show choir competition hosted at De Pere High School.

Schools with competing show choirs included Milton, Preble, Onalaska, Bay Port, Ashwaubenon, Green Bay East, Plymouth, New London and Tomah.

Show choirs from Red Smith Middle School, Bay View Middle School, Chappell Elementary and De Pere High School and Middle School performed in the exhibition category.

“[Exhibition performers] are not getting scored based on their performance, but they will be getting feedback from what we call a critique judge,” said Anne Marie Cummings, De Pere’s show choir director. “Every school that performs, including our exhibition groups, will get notes from the critique judge that watches their show. It’s an educational experience. They can have notes for applying to the next time they perform.”

Although many of the show choirs present at Saturday’s event will be competing against each other, Cummings said the atmosphere is not like other competitive events.

“It’s unlike anything else,” she said. “The show choir world is really unique, It’s a unique group of kids that are very supportive of each other. When you go to a sports event, you kind of have a healthy competition. Here, nobody is cheering negatively for other teams. When you get a team up there performing, you get a whole gym full of people not only from their school, but from other schools cheering them on. As a show choir program, you know that you’re always going to do better when the crowd is giving you energy, so they do that for every other team. Instead of not cheering for the team they think would do well, they’re supporting everybody because they’re all kids that do the same thing and know what it’s like and what you go through as a show choir performer. They’re there to support each other.”

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