The music on Main Street suddenly stops. You glance around, seeing confused park tourists of Disney World looking around. Suddenly four people wearing red vests start clearing the street. You hear the commentator on the speakers announce “from Iowa City, the West High Trojan marching band.” The band marches by, the beat to “Uptown Funk” with them. Kids are screaming, moms are dancing and dads are struggling to get out their phones to videotape.

The West High Trojan Band has been going to Disney World every other year since 1995. But not just any band can go to Disney World. “We need to submit an audition tape to Disney, what they’re looking for is that the band sounds good” Rich Medd, one of the west high band directors used to stress about how the band performed in DIsney World, now he is more interested in connecting with students that he doesn’t get the opportunity to do at school. “I knew the band was gonna be fine, and I wanted to take advantage of all the parks and stuff. And now it’s more building relationships with students n a situation that i don’t get to see them in school.”

The trip begins with students loading their luggage in the auditorium the day they leave. At 3:00 pm, the band students are let out of class and then loaded onto buses. Then they leave for Florida on a nonstop bus. They check in the Rosen Centre Hotel, which is a  14 minute drive from Disney World. On Wednesday the band bussed to Disney World, where they were free to do whatever they wanted until 5:00. At this time, all of the students had to meet at the backstage gate, where they were escorted in. Being escorted backstage, you would see characters, parade floats, and producers making the park run smoothly. The students were given time to change into their costumes, and were marched into the streets of Disney World.

Being gone for a week comes at a price. Dylan Phillibert 20’ and Lillian Igleheart ‘21 ,cite that being on the trip is fun but it follows with stress of a weeks full of homework.” A lot of sleepless nights” said Philibert on the subject of makeup work. Igleheart sources that her grades were affected by the trip. “ Ya, I had so much homework, a few of my grades went to like D’s,(but) I think I’m all caught up with my homework, I might not be though.”

On Thursday, the band played at Universal Studios, marching through the streets by the Rockin’ Roller Coaster and Diagon Alley. Friday and Saturday the students got free time to travel Disney Parks at their own pace. They left on Saturday and returned around 3:00 pm on Sunday, with parents weeping and waiting for their children in the front parking lot.