Some old school Color Guard

I just rented and watched "Dreamgirls" last weekend. I actually really enjoyed it.

I never saw it live on stage, and I never even listened to the full soundtrack. But, I did know quite a lot of the songs. "How?" you ask?

Why, through my old days in color guard, of course!
(no surprise there)

The reason why I'm most familiar with the songs was by one color guard show way back in 1983. That's right: 1983 - 24 years ago. I was watching it, even then! Back then (from 1983-1985) WGI was broadcast on PBS stations. They had these horrible TV commentators. We taped them on VHS, and I watched those shows over, and over, and over again. I went to my first WGI in 1986 - it was the first time in 3 years that they didn't air it on PBS.

Bug, I digress....

In 1983, The State Street Review from Madison, WI did a show to parts of the soundtrack of Dreamgirls. I didn't know anything about the broadway show at the time. But, oh, did I love this color guard show! It's still one of my "old school" favorites.


State Street Review, 1983: Dreamgirls

In my mind, this show still holds up. Check out the rifle line. This was back when equipment work and precision went hand-and-hand. I secretly wanted to be in the short flag line - look how cute their uniforms were!

The State Street Review went on to win WGI for 5 consecutive years, from 1985-1989. They decided to "fold" (not have a guard) after that season.

That could be the end of my story, but lucky for me, it's not. In 1990, I moved to Dayton, OH to join another color guard, called the Miller's Blackhawks. The Blackhawks had always been a WGI favorite - usually ranking between 2nd and 5th or so, but never capturing the gold. 1990 was supposed to be that year. The staff hired on Sal Salas, who, with his wife LuAnn, was the director of State Street Review. Sal had quite the reputation, of course.

Lucky for us, Sal took an immediate liking to both me and my sister. It could have had something to do with the fact that we were both born in the city where he grew up: Stockton, CA. The 1990 season didn't end terribly successfully for the Blackhawks (a surprise 4th place at WGI) but on a personal level, I learned a great deal in life lessons, and life-time friendships.

Sal would become a mentor, and one of my closest friends - His Soul Sister that's what he calls me.

Sal talked me into moving down to Southern California to join another guard that he was designing for: The Anaheim Kingsmen. This was the year that Mykail and I first marched together (we had become friends, and competed against each other in Ohio in 1990.) We had a great season. It's too bad there aren't any videos on youtube from that show.


Trina & Mykail: Kingsmen, 1991
check out that BIG hair!

After we finished that season with The Kingsmen, Sal and LuAnn decided to bring back State Street Review. After a brief, and misguided stop in Boston, Mykail and I moved ourselves to Madison - for the first of our two years as members of The State Street Review. We were such enormous guard geeks back then, that this all seemed like a surreal dream!


Trina in the State Street Review, WGI 1993

Thank you for all of the memories, Sal & LuAnn. You changed my life, and helped make this guard geek's dreams come true.


Sal and Trina - at my wedding, 2005

Here's another one of my favorite vintage State Street Review shows. It's called The Four Seasons. When I watched this show, I dreamt of being in the sabre line in State Street (again with the cute uniforms!) - a goal I managed to achieve in 1992 (what?! no cute costumes for the sabre line?) Enjoy!


State Street Review, 1986 - The Seasons