Dartmouth High School's Colorguard has been an award winning competitive unit since the late 70s. It began simply performing with the Marching Band at varsity football games, and has since transformed into the "Pride of Dartmouth".
With an amazing list of talented instructors, and dedicated to the core members, Dartmouth has brought home numerous N.E.S.B.A. and E.M.B.A. "Best Auxilary" awards home during the field show season with the band, and 3 "N.E.S.B.A. Open Class Championships" Awards for Winter Guard.
Each year numerous students who live in the Town of Dartmouth audition for the group in mid June. Tryouts consist of basic dance movements (across the floors) basic flag technique (angles, carvings, drop spins) and ocasionally a simple dance routine to help show performance ability, and coordination in rhythm. For new members audtioning for thier first year of guard, they are judged soley upon "potential for perfection". However, returning members are judged upon execution of technique, and also have to perform harder and more complicated steps during the actual audition. (such as tour jetes, back cats, and flag work from a recent show). It has happened many a time that a returning member not working up to par has been cut from the squad due to a new-comer with high potential.
The Dartmouth High School Colorguard participates in the New England Scholastic Band Association (N.E.S.B.A.) Div4, and as of 2002, the United States Scholastic Band Association (U.S.S.B.A.) for Fall Marching Band. In the winter, they compete in the N.E.S.B.A. Winterguard Open Class. They are multi-time champions of each of the circuts they compete in.
Colorguard members and other dancers that attend Dartmouth High Schoolare eligible to compete with the Dartmouth High School Indoor Percussive Theater Ensemble, which competes in the Scholastic World Division at WGI, and in N.E.S.B.A. as well. The Indoor Percussive Theater uses the colorguard girls as dancers in their shows such as: Batman, West Side Story, Dances of the New World (ethnic), and Passion Fire and Grace (spanish). The Indoor Percussive Theater Ensemble at Dartmouth High has won the WGI Championship twice ('98 and '99), has come in 2nd in '00, and ranked 3rd in the world in '01 and '02.
The Dartmouth High School Colorguard and it's alumni, pride themselves with excellence, not trophies. We call it simply, believing in the "icing on the cake". The instructors mix up the batter of flag work, music, and drill. The performers pour some of themselves into the show each time it is performed, or practiced. Parent volunteers, and floor crew help to bake the cake into the wonderful show it is. At the end of the season, you are left with something wonderful by itself. A show (a cake) you and many others have worked so hard on. At finals, if you get 1st, or 3rd, or even 27th place, all that matters is if YOU had a good show, everything else is just the Icing On The Cake .
