Broncho Legacy will present “Bring Me Love” for their Christmas show set for 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9 and 10.
Tickets for the pop ensemble are $10 for adults and $5 for children or students. They are available at ohschoir.ludus.com
The show’s name, Bring Me Love, comes from the title of the opening number.
Head Choir Director Ginger Storey said 25 to 30 people are usually involved in the show in some form — theater students, theater teachers and others.
They have 15 vocalists, a stage manager and a sound technician and five instrumentalists. They include Karen Eychaner on piano; Jacob Garcia on keyboards; Johnny Saldivar on guitar; bass is Caleb Williams; and drums is Ezaiah Cisneros. He is an OHS student who plays center snare for the band.
The show is mostly tradition, except for Bring Me Love.
“But we’re doing kind of a mash-up of What Child Is This and Ave Maria. It’s fantastic. It’s beautiful. … When I say mash up that tends to make you think of bright, happy and fast, but it’s not. It’s a very slow, beautiful ballad,” Storey said.
“They are also doing a song from The Nightmare Before Christmas. ‘This is Christmas’ is what it’s called,” she added.
They also will perform Christmas Hallelujah.
“Those are the four big group numbers. The rest of it will be solos. Most of them are pretty traditional tunes maybe sung by a more recent artist,” Storey said. “It’s a little bit more straightforward than our spring show. Our spring show has a lot more theme-oriented things.”
Work started on the show in October and it involves a range of students from various grades.
“We graduated quite a few seniors, especially senior boys last year, so a lot of our boys are younger. We have two seniors in that group of boys and then in the girls, I’ve got quite a few seniors. But then we also have a couple of sophomores and juniors; no freshmen; it’s just 10 through 12th grade,” Storey said.
Students have to be in the choir program for at least a year before they audition for Broncho Legacy.
“We have moved a freshman in like in the middle of the year because we needed someone because of an eligibility issue … But on a general rule, we don’t put freshmen in the group. We also don’t, as a general rule, have freshmen in our varsity choir, but this year because of a scheduling issue with the men’s choir it being at the same time as football, we had to make a few allowances. …,” Storey said.
She added that this group of students is “pretty great.”
“We like them. We’ll keep them,” Storey said.
She added that she is looking forward to the show.
“It’s always a lot of fun to put together. It’s a lot of work and I’m tired, but it is also a lot of fun and it’s rewarding to see the kids come together. This is kind of like their way of figuring out how to work together as a team and see what it’s going to take because our spring show requires so much more of them. This is kind of like their practice to get ready for the big show at the end of the year,” Storey said.
For the spring show, they are considering calling it Sing 23, like the animated Sing 2 movie. They usually focus on the spring show in January.
“We’re calling it Sing 23 and doing some not necessarily music from that show, but some inspired by the show and having a set that would be reminiscent of that. But that’s kind of where we are,” Storey said.
For Caitlin Fitzgerald, an 18 year-old senior who also is president of the choir, and Azari Byford, 18, who is secretary of the choir, this will be their last Christmas show.
Fitzgerald is in her fourth year in choir.
“I think it’s going to be very different than anybody has seen before and I think it’s the most exciting Christmas show that we’ve put on,” Fitzgerald said.
“We have very different songs that we’re doing this year and it’s a very fun group that we have this year,” she added.
Both Fitzgerald and Byford said the show is bittersweet because they’re seniors.
“I’m glad it’s going to be such a good show, but I’m sad it’s my last one,” Fitzgerald said.
Byford has been in choir since middle school.
“I’m actually really excited for it,” he said of the show. “I feel like we have a lot of stuff that we can bring. I feel like the energy is going be high.”
He said he thinks he’s going to miss being part of the choir.
“I think we have to enjoy every moment that we get and the bonds that we’ve created. We’re going to have to just enjoy … being together; completing or finishing this Christmas show; and finishing all the stuff we have ahead,” Byford said.
Fitzgerald and Byford said they have both enjoyed the choir’s community feeling.
“We all get along really well and it’s a good way to get to know people,” Fitzgerald said.
“I like the interactions that you get. You get to see people laugh. You can see them on the good days. You see them on the bad days. Lord knows I have those. (You feel) a family vibe,” Byford said.
They both urged people to come out and see the show in Dec. 9 and 10 at the OHS Performing Arts Center.
“Bring your friends,” Fitzgerald said.
