Perry High School sent some of its best and brightest to Des Moines over the weekend for state music and dance events.
The Perry High School Pulse Dance Team and Color Guard teams competed Friday in the 2017 Iowa State Dance and Drill Team Association (ISDTA) state dance team championships at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.
The annual ISDTA event is the largest high school dance team competition in the U.S., uniting all of Iowa’s individual drill teams into a single group.
The PHS Pulse Dance Team, coached by Faye Southward, competed in the Class X pom category with Winterset, Ballard, Grinnell, Chariton and Knoxville.
The PHS Color Guard competed in the Class II Color Guard category with Ankeny, Creston, Keokuk, Fort Doge and Saydel.
“We earned a Division 1 rating in pom — scored higher than last year! — and third place in prop,” Southward said Monday.
PHS also sent three student musicians to play in the Drake University Honor Band Festival Friday and Saturday at the Hamon Fine Arts Center on the Drake campus in Des Moines.
This year’s talented musicians were PHS students Miguel Constanza, Vivian Gonzalez and Breanna Penenger, who play under the direction of PHS Instrumental Music Director Brandon Weeks.
During the two-day honor band festival, students and directors rehearsed and attended clinics with guest conductors and members of the Drake music faculty. The festival culminated with two evening concerts, with the Drake Bands and the Bands presenting a wide selection of wind band music.
“The Honors Concert Band and Honors Wind Ensemble are comprised of over 200 students from throughout Iowa and Nebraska,” said a festival spokesperson. “These students are among the finest in the nation.”
“This is great news,” said Perry Community School District Superintendent Lynn Ubben. “Congratulations to Ms. Southward and Mr. Weeks and all our fine PHS dancers and musicians.”
