The St. James Red Regiment Marching Band performed at the Potosi Marching Festival on October 13. Despite setbacks with missing and sick students, the band competed against tough competition and made the finals for the first time.

   “We had a very disappointing preliminary performance, although many of the things we worked on were better. We managed third place in our class and outstanding guard. Much to our relief, we squeaked into finals in the last spot,” Band Director Derek Limback said.
    Although it was a tough preliminary round, the band regrouped and prepared for a tough finals.
    “After a little talk with the band and some time for the students to relax and hang out, we came back together to have our strongest musical performance of the year. We ended up in 10th place out of 12 bands, but the competition was very tough and was made up of nine 5A and 6A bands, two other 3A schools, and one 2A school. We had solid scores in all categories, the second highest guard score, and fifth highest visual score,” Limback explained.
    Having worked on the show since summer band camp, Limback believes the band is on the cusp of putting the music, show, and guard together for strong performance.
    “We have yet to just go out and put the complete package together, but we hope to do that at Missouri State University’s Ozarko performance this coming Saturday,” Limback said.
    Band members will use this week to finalize their preparations before competing in the final marching festival of the year. Limback is confident this week will be a strong showing for the band and invites residents to come and cheer the band at Ozarko. The band will perform at 9:52 a.m.