The Irish Adrenaline are picking up the pace as competition season is underway. With six such competitions this season, the performers are getting ready to take on their their last five events, practicing more intensely to prepare.

Freshman Nyla Stanback is new to the show choir program on the Hill and has already made her solo debut singing a part in the song, “Mama who Bore Me” at their first competition. She is the first freshman to be given a solo in the show choir from choir director Mrs. Marian Bender. Stanback said, “Being the first freshman with a solo is a lot of pressure. I have a lot to prove. But when people come up to me and say kind things, it feels like it’s worth it. 

Stanback describes show choir as “intense, but loving” comparing it to a sorority in the fact that you build a relationship with other girls easily. She said she’s created a bond with the entire program and is eager to move forward with them in the next four years.

Stanback said, “Although this is my first year in Cathedral’s choir, I know we’re going to do big things while I’m here, continuing on with our next competition. I can’t wait to see what the next four years have in store for us.”

Fresh off of a victory at Fishers High School, the Irish Adrenaline Show Choir is competing at the Edgewood Contest of Champions on Feb. 8. Under the direction of Bender, they will perform their “Girl Power” set including songs such as “Salute” by Little Mix and “Rain on my Parade” from the musical “Funny Girl.”

Competition days are busy for the group as they have to be campus by 4:15 a.m. with hair and makeup already done to what Stanback admiringly calls “Bender’s perfection.”

Stanback said, “Show choir is very specific. We practice our sets a few times while we wait to leave and all the stress goes away.”

 They will leave for Edgewood at 5 a.m., even though they don’t go on stage until 8:30 a.m. While they are there, they watch all the other choirs perform to learn what they can improve upon, departing for campus at 5:30 p.m..

Other show choir programs scheduled to participate include the Homestead Elites, the Ben Davis Sounds, the Franklin Community Sensation  and the Decatur Central Expressions. Stanback said, “We’re up against really big schools with large choirs, but if we give it our all we will definitely have a fair shot.”