The crowd dies down, the drum major lifts her hands to call “set!”, and the performers strike their first pose. 5…6…5, 6, 7, 8, and the performance begins with the first few notes from the front ensemble.

Immediately calling attention to the giant diamond prop, the high society, performed by the color guard, manages the museum full of famous artwork, statues, performed by the band members, and the precious diamonds. The thieves, performed by the dance team, sneak around to get closer when they come together to create a plan to get in, steal the jewels, and get out without a problem.

Luckily for the thieves, the high society are throwing a masquerade ball where they can sneak in and get past security while everyone else is dancing and socializing. They dress up and interact with the other group to feign innocence and to distract the rich from discovering their true plan.

During the height of the party, the thieves avoid lasers by leaping, rolling, and other acrobatics to get to the vault that holds the biggest diamonds. Security guards line the perimeter, keeping a watchful eye on the most important jewels, but their defense fails when the alarm sounds.

Panicked and afraid, the thieves run with all the diamonds they can carry while the security guards chase after them with everything they’ve got. The chase continues, guards desperate to have their valuable gems back, thieves determined to earn a massive paycheck, when finally the guards are unable to stop the robbers from running away with their precious diamonds.

The drum major holds up her hands to signal the end of the performance before turning to face the audience and give them a bow, thanking them for allowing the Heist of the Century to happen on the field that night. The Entertainment Corps exits, another excellent performance for the 2025 season.

The Entertainment Corps has a good track record for doing well during field competition season. This year they rehearsed during early mornings before school, late nights after school, and all-day camps over the summer in order to prepare for a successful 2025 season.

“Being ahead of schedule, when we are ahead of schedule, is helpful because we can focus on nuance, so we don’t have to focus solely on technical things, we’re actually able to, like, breathe life into the show,” Band Director Avery Smith said. Spending time on character portrayals, musicality, dynamics, visuals, and performing as a group and not just individually has put the Entertainment Corps ahead of most other high school marching bands due to their focus on performing the show rather than just going through the motions.

This attention to detail and countless reps of the show earned them gold medals at Division Championships with a score of 91.95, which is scored out of 100 points. In addition, they also earned the highest score for percussion, which includes both drumline and front ensemble with a score of 95.00.

For the seniors in Entertainment Corps, the Heist of the Century is their last marching band show, their last bus ride to a competition, their last performance and their last time performing for the Entertainment Corps before graduating.

“I feel like marching band is more enjoyable…because I actually get to, like, interact with a lot of people. I feel like…you’re all kind of working together and I think there’s something really nice about that. So, I’m definitely gonna miss it, it’s really sad that it’s over, but it’s also, like, I’m really glad that I got to experience it for four years,” senior and Head Drum Major Karis Aphinyametakul said.

These memories will stick with these seniors for the rest of their lives, just as the people who have been friends with them for years, or just this season. In addition to Aphinyametakul, one of the color guard captains reflects on the 2025 marching band season.

“I think the biggest highlight that I would have is, like, the confidence that I’ve been able to gain throughout the seasons, and what I’ve been able to do. I’ve just gotten more comfortable,” senior and Color Guard Captain Katie Melendez said.

The Heist of the Century was a life changing performance for its performers and directors, with more to come in future seasons!