The excitement was palpable. Gloved fingers fidgeted with costumes, nervous giggles floated through the air and anxious bodies shifted their weights from one leg to another as the performers patiently waited their turn. They had waited so long for this — in fact, they had waited two weeks longer than they were supposed to.
The California Color Guard Circuit (CCGC) Championships was originally scheduled to take place on April 7 at Independence HS. However, due to a sudden power outage at IHS on the day of, the event was cancelled and rescheduled to April 21.
And so the team gathered at MVHS once again on April 21 to run through last minute rehearsals and put on its costumes and makeup before heading to IHS for the rescheduled championships.
Once they had arrived, the team members used the time they had before their performance to stretch, warm up their muscles and clean up their twirls and tosses.

The team then waited in line for its turn to take the stage in the school’s main gym. The team’s directors Grantís Peranda and Becca Vogt provided the members with words of encouragement, instructing them to go out and give it their best. Before they went into the gym, they took part in took part in a few pre-performance rituals: everyone ate a Tic Tac, chanted ““Suck now so you don’t suck later” and then recited their secret team cheer together.
Finally, it was time for the team to give one of its final performances of the season. Just as they walked through the door, Peranda waved his phone flashlight over each of the dancer’s heads to provide them with some “light” before dancing to Adele’s “Love in the Dark”.

Later, dance technician Janis Valencia, Vogt, Peranda and flag technician Jubilee Hardwick congratulated the team on a great performance, reminiscing over their progress and growth over the past year.
After eating dinner, the team lined up in another smaller gym, along with all the other competing guards, as they waited to attend the awards ceremony. As it appeared custom for the guards to adorn themselves before the ceremony with accessories like lanyards, unusual hats and even balloons in their hair, the team’s directors surprised them with light-up sunglasses and batons, holographic lanyards and rose hair clips. The team proceeded to file into the main gym, where it stood waiting for the awards to be announced.
At long last, the time had come. After months of preparation and a two week long wait for the rescheduled championships, it was finally time for the team to conclude its competition season and wait to see if its hard work would be rewarded. And it was. The team won 2nd place in the Scholastic California A division.

Click through the gallery below to view photos from the event.