This year’s marching band season is promising to be one of the best yet with a brand new show, line-up and overwhelming optimism for the fall competitions and performances.

Compared to last year’s show, entitled Sing!, this year’s performance will have more of a story to tell on the field. The band plans to convey the battle between the Red Queen and White Queen’s armies in a dark twist on the famed story of Alice in Wonderland.

Hannah Kalas, junior and color guard captain, had only positive words when speaking of how the show is coming along so far.

“It’s the best we’ve been doing for so early in the year, like we’ve never been this good so early in the season,” Kalas said.

A major part of this progress is due to the change in the time of auditions, which took place in May instead of August, a few weeks before the school year ended.  

This change allowed the band to spend more time bonding and getting to know each other as new members joined, as well as starting to prepare for the new season earlier in the year.

Although the show is not yet completed and the new uniforms have not yet arrived, the band performed a snippet of their new production during half-time at the first football game of the season on August 18th.

Lauren Kisicki, junior and drum major’s apprentice, showed much excitement for how promising the first half-time show was.

“The first football game went really well, it was super cool to perform in front of an audience, and we sounded great which is especially cool since we’re so early in the season,” Kisicki said.

As the band works on this new production, however, they also reflect on past productions and strive to create shows that are better than the one before.

Maddie Oleson, senior and drum major, has played flute for the band her entire highschool career and took part in the band’s renowned show, In the Dead of Night.

“It’s the same idea, we have that same work ethic from my freshman year, and that show was very theatrical and had a story, and we were able to connect with that story because it had a very deep meaning to it, and I feel like this year it’s the same thing,” Oleson said.

With such a positive and promising outlook so early in the season, one can be sure that this year’s marching band show will not disappoint. The band’s first competition takes place on September 23rd, and the Eagle Pride Marching Band plans to bring home gold once again.