They won again!

By Rita LeBleu

dqnewsreporter@yahoo.com

The DeQuincy High School Beta Club and Choir has done it again. They placed first in the state competition.

It was a group effort according to DHS Choir Director Melonee Cooper, who recently shared some of the highlights of the event.

“We were almost disqualified because the judges thought we were lip syncing to a recording. That’s how well those students sang,” she said. “The team that placed second was the national first runner up last year, so the competition was fierce.”

The National Beta Convention will be held in Greensboro, North Carolina the last week in June. Beta sponsors are Teresa Franks and Shannah Moses.

Parents are ready to nail down the details of the trip. “We can’t really schedule a meeting until we’ve gone through all the proper channels for trip approval,” Cooper explained. “We’re also looking at different options for transportation costs and even though we know when the convention is, we only have to be there two days out of the four and we don’t have those dates yet.

While at the state rally, Karley Irwin was asked if DeQuincy was a “performing arts school” -- high praise though Karley thought it humorous.

Danielle Bell reported that one of the competitors said that the group’s dance teacher must be “crazy to ask the performers to all cut their hair and dye it for their number.” In response, Danielle pulled up her wig and laughed.

Wigs that looked like real hair weren’t the only elaborate detail that made the show first rate. Gowns patterned after the 1959 LSU Golden Girls Costumes and sewn by that seamstress were both glamorous and modest, the perfect combination for female high school performers.

Though the state-winning show is based on a fairy tale and winning was a dream come true, everything was underpinned by hours of hard work and the spirit of cooperation.

Moms made costumes that would have cost big bucks. Dads built sets on precious days off. Teachers stitched, hammered and painted alongside students from their classes.

Students not only sing and dance in the show, they also help design and build the set and props and unload and load everything required for the production.