Competing at Area for the first time in their history, the Italy High School Gladiator Regiment Band and Flag Corp performed their “Batman” themed marching routine in front of the Area judges in hopes of advancing to the finals, and perhaps State.

At 12:30 p.m. this past Saturday, in Groesbeck, the Gladiator Regiment Band took center field. Being judged on the sound quality and marching ability. Their dark and solemn rendition of “Batman” set the mood for a classic clash between Batman and Joker.

Fortunately, the caped crusading band foiled the Gotham City’s armored truck heist plotted by Joker and Gotham was safe again.

“I thought it was our best performance of the routine so far this year. I was very proud of the effort and enjoyed every moment of the competition,” said Mr. Perez.

Competing against five other regions, Italy was one of twenty 1A bands that qualified for Area after scoring a 1 in Division. After a long wait, and knowing they needed to rank in the top ten to advance to the finals, the band members finally learned they had placed 16th out of 20 and were not allowed to move on.

It was a sad moment for the Juniors and Seniors as this was their last opportunity to make it to the State competition, since Area only occurs every two years. Of the 10 bands that made it, only 4 advanced to State.

It may not have been the result band and flag corp members were hoping for, but their tears were soon replaced with a feeling of accomplishment. Afterall, the 2009 Gladiator Regiment Band and Flag Corp were the first in IHS Band history to score a 1 in Division and qualify for Area.

That alone is plenty to hang their horns on and wave their flags about. The school year has just begun and already they have gathered a lifetime of memories.

Congratulations to Mr. Perez, the Gladiator Regiment Band and the Flag Corp for their recent accomplishments. To see the band and flag corp perform, tune in this week during the Friday night halftime show, same Bat time, same Bat channel…

A parent’s comment:

My daughter had the privilege to be invited to travel with the band and be part of the band’s “pit crew” this past week. She has had a very motivating experience and is so excited about band.

I wanted to mention something that I witnessed on Saturday night. The trailer was unloaded the buses were put away and there were just a handful of kids standing outside the band hall talking about the “shoulda, coulda, wouldas.”

Their hearts were broken and they just needed to talk about it a little bit with their peers. As Mr. Perez was returning from the bus barn he approached this small group of students and joined in the conversation with them.

Mr. Perez told them what he thought were the deciding factors in the outcome of the contest. He was never negative towards the other bands or the judges. He spoke very calmly and rationally as he always does and spoke of the band program’s bright future. But at the end of the pow-wow he said one sentence that just pierced my brain and my heart….

“Don’t look at this as where you could be; look at this as where you have come from.”

I am honored that I witnessed this !!

~Kelly Lewis