Choreography

      Many people will tell you that judges don't really care about your dancing at show choir competitions. This is not true. More so now than ever before,  show choir has become an event where your dancing and singing are expected to be at the same level of difficulty and that level of difficulty is a very high standard. Dance may not be quite as important as vocals, but, to the audience, the better you look, the better you sound.
     
     Show choir choreography is all about visuals. There are ripple effects, diagonals, group work, sharp movements, level changes, and an infinite number of jazz hands. This all contributes to the visual appeal of the show to the audience. However, no choreography would have a positive effect if it were not precise. The two show choirs that I believe are the best at precision are Clover Hill and Cosby. These two schools have completely different styles of choreography but they are both sharp, together, and precise.
     
      Clover Hill is wonderful at making every move count. The members of Clover Hill's New Dimensions make every lift of their chin and turn of their head look like as amazing as a triple pirouette into an aerial. They are fully aware that every single move they make makes an impact on the audiences experience. They also have discovered the trick of easy choreography executed at high speeds. New Dimension's choreography is not incredibly complex or difficult but they master every step and every step is very fast. This makes the choreography seem 10 times more impressive than it would be at slower speeds. Their quick choreography not only increases the "wow factor" of their show but also helps to hide minor flaws. When a judge or an audience watches a high energy performance, they are less likely to pick up on minor choreography imperfections than if the show was slower paced.

      Cosby's Spotlight is one of my favorite choirs to watch because of the visual effect of their flawless ripples. A ripple is when the same move is executed by every one but in groups at different times. This creates a domino or chain reaction effect. Spotlight always has high intensity ripples that take place at half beat intervals. This is a wonderful effect when seen from an audience's perspective. They are also very creative in how they execute their ripples. They start ripples from the front, back, sides, corners, and center of the stage which always keeps the audience intrigued and mesmerized.

     Here is a video of New Dimension's show from last year. They were undefeated. In this you will see precision and ripples as well as many other aspects of choreogrphy. Enjoy :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsotG4LmMcI