On April 9th 2011, history was made when Show Choir Canada crowned Wexford Collegiate "Gleeks" as our inaugural National Champions, in Canada’s first-ever show choir National competition. Following closely behind, the first runner-ups, by less than a point, was "Splash" from Etobicoke School of the Arts. In 2012, the 2nd-annual National Championships moved to The Sony Centre in Toronto – Canada’s
largest soft seat theatre. The expanded competition, with both returning and new choirs coming from outside the province, including “G Major” all the way from Montreal, was fierce – and after the smoke settled, “Splash” from Etobicoke School of the Arts prevailed on top. Nationals returned to where it all began in 2013, taking place at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto with a record number of high school glee clubs from across the country participating, including our first-ever Western Canada choir competitors from Vancouver! After an mesmerizing and jaw-dropping performances – filmed by TVO for an upcoming feature documentary – once again “Splash” from Etobicoke School of the Arts claimed back-to-back Champions.
2014 looks to be Show Choir Canada’s biggest year yet as Nationals move to a new home, the 1,727 seat Main Stage theatre at Toronto Centre for the Arts, and for the first time, invites American show choirs to also compete against Canada’s best talent in the first Can-Am Invitationals! In 2015, the Championships opened to both community-based groups, as well as those from around the world, where during an epic competition reigning three-time champions “Splash” were unseated by newcomers “KW Glee,” proving that it is anyone’s game. In 2016 SCC welcomed Junior community-based groups for the first time and focused outreach to educators offering free workshops. The Championship was awarded for the first time to a show choir outside of Ontario: “G Major” from St George’s School of Montreal (Montreal, Quebec).
2017 saw the addition of a pre-competitive division and the crowning of our first champions coming from south of the border, Totino-Grace from Fridley, Minnesota, USA.
2018 will see a slightly different stage set-up, following international standards with 4 rows of risers from previously only 3 rows. Much more than just a competition, Show Choir Canada’s annual National Championships gives high-school students from across the country an opportunity to perform in a professional theatre, in front of an enthusiastic audience made up of their peers, fans and leading theater, stage and vocal expert adjudicators, and learn from workshop leaders fresh from Canada’s professional stages.