Sunny September

Goofing around while practicing formations during rehearsal.

Hello and happy fall! It’s hard to believe summer is over, but once again I find my backyard full of fallen leaves, my laundry hamper full of sweaters, and my fridge full of soup. Fall has officially taken over Maine, slowly bringing us cooler, darker evenings. Fred is dreading what comes next - the time when I have to force him to wear doggy jackets on our walks so he doesn’t shiver the whole time. While I miss the long summer days, I can’t deny my love for fuzzy socks and boots.

Above all the delicious food and cozy clothes fall brings with it, my favorite thing about this season, the return of PSP! As of the start of September, the pitches are back - back in action, back in rehearsals, and back planning for our fall shows! We have a few performances coming up, so make sure you read all the way through to learn about them.

Rehearsals started with a bang as we have already begun learning two new songs. Victoria, one of our Alto’s (though she sometimes sings Soprano, too!) is arranging a song for us, and we cannot wait for you to hear it. We’re voting on other new songs to sing this year in an upcoming rehearsal - read our September 2024 Newsletter to learn about how we select songs, and keep an eye on our social media for hints at what we’re working on this year.

Amber directs PSP members where to stand in a new formation.

Aside from new music, we’re also working on our fall schedule. We’re making appearances at a few upcoming shows and we hope to see you at some of them. First up is the Forge Theater Labs’ Season Reveal Party at Novel on October 13th. The show starts at 7pm, and we are one of a few performers at this exciting event. Keep an eye on our social media for more performance updates coming soon.

On top of music, we’re also working on other aspects of our performances this fall. One of our main focuses right now is formations - where we stand on stage for each song seems like a small thing, but it has a big impact on performances. Amber has been developing a standard set of formations for us to use this year, and you would not believe the amount of work that goes into it.

Amber directs PSP members where to stand in a new formation.

For each formation, Amber makes sure every member is visible to the crowd, and two people who sing the same voice part are not standing next to each other. That can change from one song to the next, so she also has to match each song to a specific formation, while also making sure everyone is able to hear each other so no one misses a cue. On top of that, we do not want to look like a train wreck when moving formations between songs, so she makes sure most members can smoothly move one or two spaces to their new spot, and do not have to walk all the way across the stage. It is an intricate puzzle, and the work Amber puts in, along with our leaders, Rachel and Lauren, helps us look more polished when we sing.

That’s all for now, but stay tuned for more information about performances this fall, as well as news about our 2026 Annual Concert!