It’s not very often that you get to be the opening act and close the show, but that’s exactly what happened Saturday for the Blue Brigade at the Crowd Pleasers Hill Country MS/HS Showcase at Seguin High School.

The team’s day began with a before-dawn wake-up call to get dressed and on campus in time to make the bus to Seguin.

Fresh off the bus that left McCallum around 6:30 a.m., the Brigade opened the competition with its pom ensemble. After a full day of performances, the Blue Brigade was the last team to perform when it took the gym floor just before 4 p.m. for its team pom.

Giving the prime billing, perhaps it’s not surprising that the Brigade enjoyed a huge awards day. The team’s success put an exclamation point on a crazy Saturday-to-Saturday stretch that saw the team perform at one showcase performance, two basketball halftime shows and two dance team competitions.

The officers were not only named best in their category; they were named the OVERALL GRAND CHAMPION after winning first place and platinum ratings for all three routines they performed and also winning judges awards for their contemporary and lyrical dances.

Six Blue Brigade dancers won solo awards. Olivia Falcon won first place in the 11th-grade category, and the Blue Brigade swept first-runner up (second place) in all four high school categories. Elise Crouse (12th-grade), Khi Washington (11th-grade), Sophie Leung-Lieu (10th-grade) and Gaby Alvarado (9th-grade) all won first-runner up for their solos. Kylie Reeves also made the award podium with a second runner-up (third place) finish in the 10th-grade solo category.

The Blue Brigade earned a clean sweep of the duet competition. Senior Charli Cevallos and junior Sophia Kramer won first place, Crouse and Reeves took first runner-up and seniors Anna Schlett and Annabel Winter won second runner-up (third place).

Not to be outdone, the entire team won a Grand Champion team award in the large team category after earning platinum ratings in the three team performances: hip-hop, jazz and pom.

Finally, two ensemble performances earned awards. The pom ensemble won first place among large ensembles and the contemporary ensemble piece earned first place among extra-large ensembles.

It’s a good day when any group that puts in the work throughout the year sees it pay off and then some. On Saturday, it was the Blue Brigade’s turn for that to happen.  We are pleased to make that glorious day and the week that led up to it the subject of this week’s Tuesday Top 10 photo essay. Photos by Dave Winter.

A TALE OF TWO COMPETITIONS: Senior captain Charlize Cevallos leads the contemporary ensemble in its performance of “Love in the Dark” at the 2022 Austin Classic Regional MA Dance competition at Westwood High School on Saturday, Feb. 12. The dance placed second at the Westwood competition, but it placed first at the Crowd Pleasers competition in Seguin the next weekend. “The Westwood competition had a lot more high schools that we were competing against, so it was tougher for us to win any awards,” Cevallos said. “But we still got some good scores for our dances. I loved both competitions, and it was definitely a good last contest season.” Caption by Samantha Powers.

COME TOGETHER: In the team awards category at the 2022 Austin Classic Regional MA Dance competition on Feb. 12, Blue Brigade secured a superior award because the contemporary ensemble was considered a team dance and earned a superior rating. “There was so much good energy, and it felt really good coming together and performing what we had worked so hard on,” said sophomore Kylie Reeves, who competed in both ensembles, including the pom ensemble shown here, as well as a solo and a duet in her division. Caption by Sophie Leung-Lieu.

EL FOR THE W: Sophomore El McGinnis performs in the contemporary ensemble, which placed second in the large select team category at the 2022 Austin Classic Regional MA Dance competition on Saturday, Feb. 12. McGinnis was featured in the piece, titled “Love in the Dark.” “It wasn’t as nerve-wracking as I thought it would be,” McGinnis said. “I thought it was very welcoming for my first competition, and I felt confident.” The Blue Brigade officers also received a Super Sweepstakes award in the officer awards category. All three routines the officers performed at Westwood, jazz, lyrical and contemporary, earned superior ratings for choreography and technique. Caption by Sophie Leung-Lieu.

MAJOR POM: Senior Giselle Fuentes performs in the pom ensemble at the 2022 Austin Classic Regional MA Dance competition on Saturday, Feb. 12 at Westwood High School. The pom dance was one of Blue Brigade’s two ensemble numbers this competition season. The upbeat dance was featured at both competitions and the JV basketball game, which Fuentes appreciated. “The dance is fast-paced and high energy, so it was really enjoyable to perform it in front of a crowd,” she said. “The songs were very fun to dance to, and I loved the choreography.” Caption by Madelynn Niles.

EMILY’S GOT ENERGY: Senior Emily Garza leads the Blue Brigade in a hip-hop dance performed at halftime of the varsity basketball game against Anderson on Feb. 15. Garza and junior Olivia Falcon, another officer, choreographed the dance together. “That dance is really high-energy and fun to perform, so it was really special to get to show it at one of the biggest games against Anderson,” Garza said. The game was full of energetic back-and-forth between fans on both sides, and Garza said that this contributed to the performance. “It was definitely a really intense game, which made us that much more excited to get out there and perform,” Garza said. “It just felt like a pep rally, which I personally love performing at.” Caption by Samantha Powers.

STARTING OFF STRONG: Going into a second consecutive competition weekend, Blue Brigade dancers perform a hip-hop number in their pre-competition showcase on Thursday Feb. 17. “It was really fun and different from the other dance styles that we do,” sophomore Kylie Reeves said. “You get to be sassier with your movements and just groove to the music, finding your own beat.” Reeves went on to place as the second runner-up in the solos category during the weekend’s Crowd Pleasers MS/HS Showcase at Seguin High School two days later. “It was definitely a good shock,” she said. ”I was very proud of myself but there is always room for improvement so I hopefully want to place higher next year.” Caption by Alice Scott.

A CLASS ACT: Freshman Gaby Alvarado considered their first contest season as a success. “I just loved the energy this week,” they said. Alvarado was also the only freshman competing a solo at competition, and placed first runner-up at the Crowd Pleasers Hill Country MS/HS Showcase. “It was really nerve-wracking at first,” Alvarado said. “As I was walking up, I realized I might have just won.” Caption by Sophie Leung-Lieu.

A CROWD PLEASER AT CROWD PLEASERS: Junior Khi Washington competed at the Crowd Pleasers Hill Country Showcase in Seguin on Saturday Feb. 19. “The experience was really enjoyable, especially towards the end knowing that I got first runner-up in the junior category,” Washington said. They were shocked by the diversity in team sizes. “It was either a lot of members or very little,” they said. Caption by Cassidy Levin.

SWEET DREAMS REALIZED: Blue Brigade performs a pom dance at the Crowd Pleasers Hill Country MS/HS Showcase in Seguin on Saturday Feb. 19. The dance, set to a remix of “Sweet Dreams,” was choreographed by senior and first lieutenant Annabel Winter and junior lieutenant Nia Wayman. The routine begins as a dynamic and fluid jazz style pom and ends with more traditional and sharp movements. The team spent hours practicing the dance, which according to Winter paid off. “When we did it at competition it felt like the best we’ve ever done,” Winter said, “It was a super fulfilling moment when we left the competition floor and everyone said how good they felt about their performance.” The dance received the highest score out of the team dances, helping secure Blue Brigade first place in its division. Caption by Evie Barnard.

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: Junior Olivia Falcon performs her contemporary solo titled set to the song “Elephant” by Rachel Yamagata at the Crowd Pleasers Hill Country MS/HS Showcase at Seguin High School on Saturday Feb. 19.  “I wanted a song that would stick out from the others and be remembered,” she said. Prior to and during the competition, an ongoing hip injury caused immense pain, which put Falcon “on edge.” “I knew I was stepping into the competition without my best foot forward but I needed to act like I was,” Falcon said. Fortunately, her acting (and dance skills) paid off as she finished in first place in the solo competition for the 11th grade category. Winning the competition allowed Falcon to achieve one of the few goals she has set for herself in her dancing career. “The feeling was surreal to hear my name being called out,” she said, “…it made me feel so accomplished.” As a result of her first-place finish, Falcon delivered an encore performance of her solo at the awards ceremony in the large gym before a packed large gym audience. Caption by Julia Husted.

LAST DANCE: Senior Elise Crouse performs her original solo, “My Immortal,” at the Crowd Pleasers Hill Country MS/HS Showcase on Feb. 19. Crouse won first runner-up in the 12th grade solo category, making it her second year in a row earning that distinction. “I was so excited to place so high with this solo,” Crouse said. “It has a very special place in my heart and I’m glad the judges were able to see that.” As a senior, she felt sentimental about choreographing this final dance. “Since it was my last year competing, I wanted a dynamic solo with lots of feeling,” Crouse said. “I felt that with this powerful of a song, I could match the feeling of it with my choreography.” Caption by Samantha Powers.

THEY ARE THE OVERALL GRAND CHAMPIONS: The Blue Brigade officers celebrate after winning the Overall Grand Champion Award as the top officer group at the Crowd Pleasers Dance Hill Country MS/HS Showcase on Feb. 19. For junior lieutenant Sophia Kramer, the team’s success was more than just a good competition day; it was a redemption story. After a disappointing awards showing at Westwood High the week before, the haul of awards at Seguin was a rejuvenating relief. “There was a huge difference between both contests, and I feel like the whole team being there improved the energy of the dances overall,” Kramer said. “We were really cracking down on time and the day of the contest everyone stepped it up and played their part.” The Blue Brigade won a team Grand Champion Award in the large school category after all of their team dances placed first and earned platinum ratings. The three Blue Brigade duets swept first, second and third places with Kramer and senior caption Charli Cevallos bringing home first place for their duet “Because of you.” While Kramer is excited about her personal success, she found more joy in the team’s result. “We were all so excited!” she said. “It felt so good having all of our hard work pay off, especially having to choreograph team dances and not necessarily having much time on our own.” Caption by Grace Nugent.