Sophomore Ana Oddo eagerly packed all of her essentials for the upcoming weekend and tightly fastened foam curlers into her hair. She ran through the choreography in her head too many times to count and then fell asleep, dreaming of the possibilities to come.

The next day, Friday, Jan. 16, both of Naperville North’s show choirs, Entourage and High Heeled Harmony, arrived in Onalaska, Wisconsin after a four-hour bus ride filled with anticipation.

The NNHS show choirs competed in their first competition of the season against a number of other high schools in the tri-state area at the Onalaska Show Choir Classic this past weekend. High Heeled Harmony, the all-girls choir, managed to sweep first place in the Prep Division, while Entourage, the mixed choir, placed sixth out of twenty competing groups.

According to Oddo, she and her team were surprised by the win.

“We walk into our competitions not expecting anything, just to have fun and do the best we can,” Oddo said. “But winning was indescribable.”

All season, both show choirs have been exerting countless hours of practice and hard work, according to Oddo.

“It’s nice to see how far practicing can get you,” Oddo said.

Sophomore Nora Snyder, junior Ryan Boswell and senior Alyssa Pei also received individual awards. Boswell was named best male soloist at the competition.

“When they called my name, I was just overwhelmed,” Boswell said. “I felt like I was in a dream.”

According to Boswell, receiving the award was an eye-opening and humbling experience that encouraged him to pursue his musical aspirations.

As the season continues, many others in show choir also have both personal and team-oriented goals. Oddo hopes that all members of show choir will not only continue to grow as individuals, but as a group as well.

“As a whole, show choir strives to be better at performing,” Oddo said. “Through the process, we find ourselves to be better people too.”