Pitch perfect performances

FINDLAY — Students took center stage at the 4th annual Findlay Show Choir Youth Camp. A total of 175 students in grades 1st through 9th participated in the weeklong summer camp from June 23 to June 28. Choir Director for Findlay City Schools and Director of the Findlay Show Choir Youth Camp Krista Bigger said the inspiration for the camp came after noticing a similar trend in students who were joining the high school's show choir program. "I noticed that we were getting more and more students that hadn't been involved in our program before and would be auditioning for the first time as juniors and seniors," Bigger said. "Several of them mentioned that they had no idea that the show choir program at the high school existed. That really got me thinking about how I could not only introduce the children in our district at a younger age to this program, but also start to foster a love of performing." The camp serves around 170-200 students each year. In recent years, the camp has extended its welcome to students from neighboring Hancock County schools and places as far as Indiana and Michigan. Alongside Bigger, other camp directors included Alycia Fox, Katie Ferren, and Grace Dickmann. Age groups were broken into three sessions: Session 1: The SoundSations, 51 incoming 1st - 3rd Graders Session 2: The Show Stoppers, 72 incoming 4th - 6th graders Session 3: The Ovations, 52 incoming 7th - 9th graders Around 60% of this year's campers participated last year. Throughout the week, students learned a full, four-song show choir set, three hours each day. Younger students attended shorter, two-hour sessions. "The first two days are just learning the music for the show," Bigger said. "The third and fourth days are all about the choreography. In a similar fashion, we introduce all the choreography on that third day, we review and perfect it on the fourth day. We have the performance on the fifth day." This year, 32 members of Findlay First Edition (FFE) served as camp counselors. "They are each assigned to a small group of students," Bigger said. "Throughout the time that they're together, they get to know each other. We've really seen that bond between the high school students and the younger students come to life." Bigger said many of the FFE counselors were once former campers themselves. "They're all members of the high school choir program and the Findlay First Edition show choir," Bigger said. "Several of them are former campers and now they're on the counseling side." The camp concluded with the final performance. Each group presented their show choir set on the FHS stage, with The SoundStations on June 27 at 10:30 a.m., The Show Stoppers on June 28 at 11:30 a.m. and The Ovations on June 28 at 3:30 p.m. Bigger said performances were based on typical high school show choir sets. "Essentially it is four songs," Bigger said. "It starts with a high energy opener and then the second number usually is something that's a little bit more relaxed. The third song is our ballad. Then we will end with a big high energy closer. That's a very typical set up for designing a show." Bigger said watching the students perform never ceases to amaze her. "Watching these students in the course of four and a half days, essentially learning what could take months in a regular classroom setting makes me so happy," Bigger said. "I'm amazed that they can learn it as fast as they do, but at the same time, I know it's in them to want to push themselves to do that - it's really amazing to see."