Cabell Midland Show Choir History

Cabell Midland High School was formed in the fall of 1994 through the consolidation of the former Barboursville High School and Milton High School. Barboursville’s show choir, The Chansonettes, and Milton’s show choir, Vocal Dimensions, joined together to form the Cabell Midland show choir.

1994-1999:

Cabell Midland’s original show choir, Vocal Dimensions, was formed under the direction of Ms. Janet Heck. Vocal Dimensions performed at various school and community functions including WOWK’s Christmas morning music festival. Ms. Heck served as director through the 1998-1999 school year.

1999-2004:

In the fall of 1999, Ms. Carolyn Black became director of the newly renamed Singsations. Mr. David Legg served as choreographer as the Singsations continued to perform at school and community functions. Ms. Black served as director through the 2003-2004 school year.

2004:

The fall of 2004 became a turning point in Cabell Midland show choir history. Now under the direction of Ms. Leslie Riedel, and renamed Rhythm In Red by the members of the Class of 2004, Cabell Midland entered the ranks of the competitive show choir circuit. Ms. Riedel served as director through the 2015-2016 school year.

2004-2016 Show Themes, Choreographers, and Highlights:

2004: The show theme was “Disco” and was choreographed by Joseph Kincaid and Brooke Smolder. The group finished in 9th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival.

2005: The show theme was “Gangster” and was choreographed by Joseph Kincaid and Brooke Smolder. The group finished in 7th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival. Also in 2005, the Rhythm In Red Invitational was held for the first time.

2006: The theme was “Freak Show” and was choreographed by Joseph Kincaid and Brooke Smolder. The group finished in 4th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival. For 2006, a single-gender group, The Dazzling Damsels, competed and was also choreographed by Kincaid and Smolder. The Dazzling Damsels were the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival Single-Gender Division Grand Champions.

2007: The theme was “Call of the Wild” and was choreographed by Jared T. Henry. The group finished in 4th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival. 2007 marked the first time that the group qualified for finals at a competition. They also received a Festival Disney Silver Award.

2008: The theme was “Day Into Night” and was choreographed by Antwon Chavis. The group finished in 5th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival.

2009: The theme was “I Want It All” and was choreographed by Antwon Chavis. The group finished 5th at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival. 2009 marked the first time for Rhythm In Red to win a grand championship at a competition (The Capital VIP Invitational). They also received a Festival Disney Silver Award and Overall Outstanding Show Choir Award.

2010: The theme was “License to Thrill” and was choreographed by Antwon Chavis and Jason Johnson. Rhythm In Red won their first WVMEA State Show Festival Grand Championship as well as winning grand championships at the Capital VIP Invitational and Poca MusicFest.

2011: The theme was “Utopia” and was choreographed by Jason Johnson. They finished in 4th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival.

2012: The theme was “Invincible” and was choreographed by Jason Johnson. The group finished in 2nd place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival as well as winning grand championships at the Riverside FusionFest and Capital VIP Invitational. They were also an Arts Alive Honor Group.

2013: The theme was “Beautiful” and was choreographed by Jason Johnson. The group won the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival Grand Championship and Christa Navy was named Best Female Vocalist. They also won grand championships at the Capital VIP Invitational, the Riverside FusionFest, and the Ohio Valley Showcase in Hanover, Indiana. The group achieved a ranking of 7th in the nation according to the national show choir rankings.

2014: The theme was “Cross the Line” and was choreographed by Jason Johnson. The group won the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival Grand Championship and Colt Sowards was named Best Male Soloist. The group also won grand championships at the Riverside FusionFest and the Capital VIP Invitational. They finished in 4th place at the prestigious Fairfield Crystal Classic in Cincinatti, Ohio and received a perfect score at the Festival at Seas competition. The group was ranked 10th in the nation according to the national show choir rankings.

2015: The theme was “Gold” and was choreographed by Jason Johnson. The group finished 2nd place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival and Jesse Donahoe was named Best Male Vocalist. The group won grand championships at the Capital VIP Invitational and the Ohio Valley Showcase. They were ranked 23rd in the nation according to the national show choir rankings.

2016: The theme was “Believe” and was choreographed by Jason Johnson. The group won grand championships at the Capital VIP Invitational and the Ohio Valley Showcase. They were ranked 25th in the nation according to the national show choir rankings.

2016:

In the fall of 2016, Mr. Phillip Bailey became director of Rhythm In Red. Mr. Bailey served as director through the end of the 2020-2021 school year.

2016-2021 Show Themes, Choreographers, and Highlights:

2017: The theme was “The Hero Inside” and was choreographed by Brooke Smolder and Chantz Gould. The group finished 5th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival. The group won a grand championship at the Capital VIP Invitational.

2018: The theme was “Lost in Paris” and was choreographed by Brooke Smolder and Chantz Gould. The group finished 5th place at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival and won a grand championship at the South Harrison Showcase. Also in 2018, The Scarlettes, a non-auditioned auxiliary single-gender show choir was created.

2019: The theme was “Phobius” and was choreographed by Brooke Smolder and Chantz Gould. The group finished 3rd place in Class A at the WVMEA State Show Choir Festival.

2020: The theme was “Apocalypse” and was choreographed by Brooke Smolder and Chantz Gould. The group won a grand championship at the Grafton Choral Classic. The Rhythm In Red Invitational grew to become West Viriginia’s largest competition of the year with an attendance of 23 choirs. The 2020 season was cut short as the Covid-19 pandemic began.

2021: The theme was “Fame” and was choreographed by Brooke Smolder and Chantz Gould. The 2021 season was abbreviated and started late due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The group hosted the WVVMA State Show Choir Festival outdoors at the Barboursville Park Amphitheater and finished 5th place.

2021:

In the fall of 2021, Ms. Dominique Sears became the director. She served as director through the end of the 2022-2023 school year.

2021-2023 Show Themes, Choreographers, and Highlights:

2022: The theme was “Be the Life of the Party” and was choreographed by David Legg. The group competed as a single-gender group and finished in 2nd place in the Women’s Division of the WVVMA State Show Choir Festival.

2023: The theme was “Guilty as Charged” and was choreographed by David Legg and Brooke Smolder. The group competed as a single-gender group.

2023:

In the fall of 2023, Mrs. Jennifer Londeree became the director.

2024 Show Theme, Choreographer, and Highlights

2024: The theme was “Breaking Pink” and was choreographed by Brooke Smolder. The group competed as a single-gender group and finished 3rd place in the Non-Mixed Division of the WVVMA State Show Choir Festival.