Last weekend Bishop Hendricken High School hosted seven schools from southern New England at the first Annual “Lil’ Rhody Rumble” show choir competition. Ten teams from seven different schools came together Saturday, March 28 to compete in Rhode Island’s show choir competition. The event had been in the works for about a year, according to Richard Sylvia, the organizer of the Rumble.

Within the venue, a temporary stage expansion was erected to give performers enough space to move during their performances. While this was set up by an external crew, a crew made up of volunteers involved in Paramount, Bishop Hendricken’s show choir team, managed any stage configuration changes and props for individual teams.

The competing teams brought their A-game to the Rumble across all four levels of competition. Only one middle school team competed, Maestros, from Tantasqua Regional Junior High School, performing a show based around Disney classics, including Finding Nemo and Mary Poppins.

Two teams from Somerset-Berkley Regional High School competed as single-gender teams. Their all-female team, Amplify, won best costumes, with their first outfit being dresses covered with a playing card pattern, and their second outfit being red and black dresses with necklines mimicking card suits.

Within the smaller mixed division, “Sound Impressions” from Lowell High School came in first, performing a show based on a Guitar Hero competition, including music from artists such as Willow Smith, Foreigner, Twisted Sister, and Eminem. Their opponent in this division was a first-year program from Leominster High School, who performed a journey through adolescence, including a performance of Radiohead’s “Creep” to a backing of classical music.

Within the large mixed division, Waltham High School took home the overall grand champion prize and a gold medal with their “Music Unlimited” program, which has not taken any medal lower than gold since 2018. Their competition was incredibly strong, however, competing against a team performing their interpretation of The Matrix, including choreographed slow-motion fight scenes and flips. Tantasqua Regional High School’s team performed a show based around greeting cards, While Somerset-Berkley’s large mixed group performance was based around being the best you can be.

Being the best you can be, as well as community and support, seem to be major points for most teams on the competition circuit. “The community is also one of the most supportive communities ever,” says Darian Clay, a performer for Paramount. While looking back on a prior competition, he continued, “there was a group that had never performed before, and everyone welcomed them with open arms helping them go through the process of the day.” After said “process of the day” was complete, Paramount had their chance to compete. As the host school, they were not eligible for awards, yet still put their hearts into the entire day, including their performance. “Paramount is a family,” as performer Cait Brown puts it. “Sometimes families fight, but at the end of the day the treasure we find is really the family and love between us.”

Editor’s note: A Hendricken student Aidan Cahill is performing his senior work experience at the Warwick Beacon.