The Collinsville marching band is taking audiences on a trip into the classics during halftime performances this year.
Band Director Jeff Van Oort said the band is rolling out a show based on the rise and fall of Icarus and the dangers of hubris.
“We are using music from ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender,’ ‘Moulin Rouge’ and ‘Requiem for a Dream,’” he said.
The band plans to present the show not only at football games but also at several marching contests throughout the season.
The seniors in the band have earned the distinction of advancing to the Area marching contest every year of their high school careers so far. They hope to add to that success this year.
“We are really gunning for a State marching band performance this year,” Van Oort said.
The band currently has 61 members and is made up of students in eighth through 12th grades, including a 13-member senior class.
Van Oort said the on-field presentation will include plenty of imagery associated with Icarus, including wings, as well as a four-member color guard.
The program is something Van Oort presented to the students last spring, and he said they quickly embraced the concept.
“The theme of hubris and keeping arrogance in check is super important for everybody to learn,” he said.
Along with learning how to play and march, band members are also learning about community support. Van Oort said the band boosters — and the Collinsville community as a whole — do a great job of supporting the program.
The boosters work to provide meals and snacks for band members when they travel to performances away from home.
“That enthusiasm for the band is also apparent in the growing number of students joining the junior high band,” Van Oort said.