Tag Archives: OGHS Centerstage Show Choir

November 9, 2012 · 12:30 pm

Centerstage Show Choir prepares for Fall Show

By: Taylor Parsons

 Staff Reporter

Preparation for this year’s Centerstage Show Choir’s Fall Show has been long and tiring, yet rewarding. The choir had its first official practice on the last day of summer. By the end of that day, singers/dancers had both learned and blocked the opener for the coming show “Ripple in the Water.” “Show choir rehearsal wasn’t my favorite way to spend my last day of summer, but now that I look back, I’d say it was worth it to have one number checked off our list,” sophomore and second year member Karlyn Purvis said.  Some members, however, couldn’t wait to get started, and the summer practice couldn’t have come soon enough. Jaclyn Creel, junior and second year member, isn’t shy about her love for show choir. “I was beyond ready. After attending three show choir camps this summer, an early start was so exciting.” Creel said.

With  almost all of the choir having some prior type of choral/dance experience, the fall show is bound to be exciting. “We have lots of new and energetic faces in the choir this year, and we are all looking forward to the show. Performing just doesn’t get old,” senior and four year member John Baxter said. “I really can’t wait.” The women’s choir, concert choir, and show choir will be performing songs from a variety of genres. The show choir will be performing two numbers from their competition show along with several preliminary numbers.

The concert will be held on Saturday, November 10, at 7 p.m. at William Carey University’s auditorium. Admission is $7 for adults and $5 for students. “Even though I’m new, I have a good feeling about this show. I think it’ll be a good one. You don’t want to miss it,” freshman and first year member McCorey Smith said.

Leave a Comment

Filed under News

Tagged as , ,

April 13, 2012 · 1:30 am

Centerstage! takes Orlando by Storm

by: Brittain Allgood

Staff Reporter

Oak Grove Centerstage! show choir will be attending the FAME national competition in Chicago on April 20. Centerstage! traveled to Orlando, Florida to compete at one of FAME’s national competitions on March 3. The group competed with groups from all over the south region and received third place overall, giving them a bid to the national competition in Chicago. The competition was held on the Hard Rock Live stage in the center of Universal Studios. “It was really cool because the name of our show choir was displayed on the same marquee as rock bands who have performed there,” said senior show choir performer Destiny Lomax. They were the first group to perform on Saturday, so they were able to watch all of their competitors after performing. Surprisingly, there was one other group from Mississippi that attended FAME in Orlando: South Jones High School. Having another school there that they were familiar with made it easier for them to focus and made them feel more at home. “The other groups were amazing,” said Lomax. “We all thought that we performed to the best of our ability and would just have to hold our heads high and accept last place since the competition was so fierce.” The group was so excited to hear that they had received third place because that meant that they had beaten over half of the schools that competed. Along with getting a bid to nationals, senior Clay Gatlin received Best Male Soloist and senior Markos Williams received Best Male Performer. “It was a very humbling experience, and I was extremely shocked because I didn’t think that I would ever receive this award,” said Williams. “Winning this award just made the trip much more exciting.” These specific awards were very significant because the two Oak Grove seniors were chosen as the overall singer and dancer of the entire competition. The week of attending FAME in Orlando was more than just a competition. The group was in Orlando for four days, giving them plenty of time to enjoy the theme parks. They spent Sunday and Monday at Universal Studios riding roller coasters and for some, experiencing Harry Potter World and the world famous “butter beer” for the first time. Oak Grove Centerstage! has had a successful season. Not only did they get a new show choir director, Darren Dale, but they also moved up this year to the large group category. They have made it to finals at every competition that they have attended this year, and have placed in the top three at all of them. Considering that Centerstage! was used to hardly ever making it to finals, this year has truly been a Cinderella story for them. “I have greatly enjoyed working with these talented students this year, and I look forward to competing in Chicago and preparing for next year,” said Dale. Not only have they made a name for themselves on the stage, but they have also been featured on WDAM for their hard work and dedication. The group has been working hard to raise money for the Chicago trip. They have had several fundraisers and have had much success but still have a long way to go to reach their goal. They will be in Chicago from Thursday the 19th through Sunday the 22nd. Since this is most of the group’s first time to the windy city, they will be spending time sightseeing as well as preparing for their competition on Saturday. “I am confident in their abilities, and I know that they will represent Mississippi well,” said Dale. Be sure to wish Centerstage! good luck as they prepare to compete against 18 of the best groups in the country. “This is the biggest competition that we have ever attended,” said Williams. “Everyone is so excited to go to Chicago, and it is a perfect way to end my senior year in show choir.”

Leave a Comment

Filed under News

Tagged as , , , ,

December 9, 2011 · 12:00 pm

Beauties and Beau take stage

By: Julie Robinson
Staff Reporter

This year the choral department added a twist to their annual Beauty Revue fundraiser;

beauties and beaus, left to right: Christina Kemp, Hugh Ford, Vaeda Mann, Isaiah Spencer, April Carr, Nikolay Drake

the formally dressed ladies were escorted by handsome gentlemen from their grades. All of the ladies looked beautiful, but even they would agree that the boys were the stars of both Revues.

beauties and beaus, left to right: Caitlynn Broome, Garrett Himes, Amber Pineda, Colton McMurry, Sarah Rubelowsky, and John Lee

The Revues were at the OG Primary PAC, which was packed both nights. Christina Bostick emceed both nights, and the Golden Spirits choreographed and rehearsed a dance they taught the beaus to perform for the evening’s entertainment.The dancers

beauties and beaus, left to right: Brandon Atkins, Alli Kate Ross, Kayleigh Henry, Picasso Nelson, Erica Lewis, Bailey Weathers

were graceful despite their inexperienced counterparts.

Ninth grade Most Beautiful was Vaeda Mann, and the Beauties were Christina Kemp and April Carr. The ninth grade Most Handsome was Hugh Ford, and the Beaus were Nickolay Drake and Isaiah Spencer. The tenth grade Most Beautiful was Kayleigh Henry, and the Beauties were Erica Lewis and Alli Kate Ross. The tenth grade Most Handsome was Picasso Nelson, and the Beaus were Brandon Atkins and Bailey Weathers. The 11th grade Most Beautiful was Amber Pineda, and the Beauties were Sarah Rubelowsky and Caitlynn Broome. The 11th grade Most Handsome was Colton McMurry, and the Beaus were Garrett Himes and John Lee.

beauties and beaus, left to right: Brittain Allgood, Trey Garraway, Steven Swindle, Taylor Nace, Cort Brinson, Torie Nguyen

The 12th grade Most Beautiful was Taylor Nace, and the Beauties were Torie Nguyen and Brittain Allgood. The 12th grade Most Handsome was Steven Swindle, and the Beaus were Trey Garraway and Cort Brinson.

Leave a Comment

Filed under Features

Tagged as , , ,

November 4, 2011 · 12:00 pm

Choral department welcomes Dale to the stage

by: Laura Prehn

One thing that sets Oak Grove  apart from other schools in the  district is the number and  quality of the extracurriculars,  and no one knows this better  than the members  of the choral  department. Even non-choral  students enjoy hearing and  seeing the choir perform the  “Alma Mater” in the rotunda,  the “National Anthem” at  football  games, and the show  choir performance in the gym at  the end of the year. As a result,  all students are impacted by the installment of new choir director, Darren Dale,  and the new vision he has for the department.

Darren Dale is the youngest of five children, all of whom were involved in choir and show choir in high school. Watching his oldest sister perform with her high school  show choir for the first time sparked his love of music at age six. Dale attended Clinton High School and followed in the footsteps of his siblings by joining the Clinton  Attaché show choir. His favorite part of Attaché, he explained with a smile, was the trips. Dale’s first plane flight and first trip to Disney World both occurred while  traveling to show choir competitions. “It was a great opportunity to travel and see things that I otherwise may not have seen,” Dale said.

Dale went on to attend Mississippi Delta Community College and Mississippi College, where he majored in pre-dentistry for two years before switching his major to  marketing. He worked at a bank for a year after graduating college. Dale then returned to Mississippi College to pursue a degree in his original interest: music education.  Dale then accepted the position of choir director at Opelika High School, and, although he enjoyed the job, he struggled with the upkeep of the large and still growing  choral program. After five years, Director Darren Dale began looking for a new job opportunity.

But why would a director come all the way from Opelika, Alabama, to Hattiesburg, Mississippi? As fate would have it, Dale’s parents live next door to Principal Wayne Folkes’s sister in Clinton, Mississippi. So, he took the job at Oak Grove, eager for the challenge of creating another award-winning show choir. But the OGHS Centerstage! show choir is in for a few major changes. Dale has already announced that he plans to bump the group up a division for competition season. His biggest goal? To replicate his own high school show choir experience for the students at Oak Grove. “At my high school show choir, every single time we performed, I felt like I was completely ready. There were never any regrets. And, what the result was didn’t matter because we had reached our goal of putting on a successful show,” Dale said.

While Dale looks forward to facing off against what he calls “the big dogs” of the show choir world this February, the  students  themselves are nearly as eager as their director. After polling a few of the members to share their opinions of the bold new director, four-year member Markos Williams said, “I love Mr. Dale! He has a great sense of humor.” Carley Robertson, senior, is optimistic about her second and final year performing with Centerstage! “Even though it’s different for us, I love Mr. Dale and think we’ll have a good year,” she said confidently.

Dale’s first event as director of the Oak Grove choral department will be the Fall Show on December 8th and 9th at the Oak Grove Primary School PAC. The concert choir, show choir, and women’s choir will be featured at the concert.

Leave a Comment

Filed under Features

Tagged as , , ,

February 9, 2010 · 3:01 pm

Centerstage hopes to shine at upcoming competitions

By: Ashley Ricks

Centerstage is Oak Grove’s upbeat, entertaining showchoir. Tim Breland has been sponsoring and directing the choir for eight years. This year, their music numbers have a “party” theme and get the crowd excited.

A few of the familiar tunes Centerstage performs are “Raise the Roof” and “Proud Mary.” They also perform four other tunes that include outstanding solos from Taylor Nace, Arthur Bouldin, Blair Jackson, Clay Gatlin, Shelby Sims, Kayla Purvis, Anne Caroline Lovitt, Dalton Coleman, Codi Brumfield, and Constance Crockett. Most of the members have showchoir as their third block class, and all of them practice after school throughout the week; sometimes they sacrifice their weekends to become the best team they can be. “Although it gets very stressful, seeing the entertained crowds makes the hard work worth it,” showchoir member, Lauren Pace said.

Tammy Mansfield is the musical director for Centerstage and Tony Keeler is the assistant director. Keeler is an Oak Grove showchoir alumni and is currently involved in the music department at William Carey. The 36 members of Centerstage meet once a month with choreographer Chris Sweatt, a student at Birmingham Southern College. Sweatt has been choreographing for Centerstage for two years and his upbeat choreography and rhythm give the songs an energy that carries out into the audience.

Centerstage has participated in many competitions and have won many awards with their always exciting shows. At the Best of the South Invitational, the showchoir placed fourth in their division and second overall. They were awarded best band at the North Forrest Invitational. In 2009, they took home second place in their division and overall fourth runner-up at the Mississippi Showchoir contest. The most important of the competitions, however, is the South Central Classic Showchoir Invitational in Homewood, Alabama. Members hope to outshine Jackson Prep and Jackson Academy at the competition at the end of February. The showchoir will be attending three more competitions this year in Mississippi.

Centerstage shows are filled with entertainment, and guaranteed to make you want to get on your feet and sing a long.
Members

Leave a Comment

Filed under Features

Tagged as , ,