Redbird Music Fest!

There’s really nothing quite like a Rockbrook Banquet, the spectacular end-of-session party that celebrates our time together at camp. Every session, the banquet is something everyone looks forward to with building excitement. Leading up to it, there’s chatter about the surprise theme. There are rumors about secret costume choices and decorations that might be involved. The whole camp knows it will be an epic, one-of-a-kind party. It will be something crazy fun, a sensory explosion, even at times an emotional event that we’ll all remember. It’s true; “unforgettable” is often used to describe the banquet.

You may recall the CA (9th grade) campers are the hardworking, creative masterminds behind the banquet. They select a secret theme on the first day of camp and then spend all session preparing for the event by painting decorations, designing costumes, selecting menu items, and choreographing musical dance numbers. Their goal is to transform the dining hall into a unique party scene with lights and colorful decorations like streamers, balloons, table props, and yummy treats.

The real magic of a banquet, though, comes from having your camp friends together for the party. It’s a night to celebrate the fun you’ve shared this session, filled with music, dancing, great party food, fun entertainment, and sweet treats galore.

Anticipation for the banquet builds all day as the CAs decorate the dining hall which has been hidden by sheets hung over the screen windows. Near dinner time, everyone gathers outside dressed in their camp t-shirts. When the moment arrived tonight to begin and we rang the bell, everyone screamed with glee. It also started raining, but all the excitement easily overpowered any discomfort of being a little wet (which is pretty typical of life at camp!)

The CAs started by having everyone crawl along the porch through a tunnel made from extra tables draped in sheets and with fairy lights inside. There wasn’t a clue as to the theme inside. But once they entered the dining hall they were met by some of the most popular musical artists around, people like Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, LanaDel Ray, Zach Bryan, Sabrina Carpenter, Tate McRae, Billie Eilish, and Olivia Rodrigo. That’s because tonight’s banquet was a music festival entitled “Redbird Music Fest!”

The dining hall was decked out with music festival-themed decorations, hundreds of streamers draped from the ceiling, and even a disco ball. They had musical instrument props and funny inflated microphone props as table decorations, colored glasses to wear, souvenir cups, colorful table clothes, and even more fairy lights— all adding to the festival feel.

There were four choreographed dances. Britney Spears started with a skit where her “security guards” (who were the CA counselors) pretended the backup dancers were missing. The lights went out, and suddenly spotlights hit Britney as she performed “Hit Me Baby One More Time.” Everyone loved it.

Next Sabrina Carpenter danced and performed “Please Please Please,” followed by Taylor Swift singing her hit “22.” The final performance was a Zach Bryan dance to the song “Revival” where everyone danced around the dining hall singing along. Between each performance the banquet was a massive dance party with the girls and the counselors jumping and dancing together.

Throughout the night, they served pretzel bites, chicken tenders with waffle fries and cookie dough for dessert. Everyone was thrilled!

As we end every banquet, the whole camp stood and sang “Rockbrook Camp Forever.” Arm-in-arm and filled with emotion, the lyrics “friends true and faithful” really hit home. It was a truly special moment that perfectly captures the spirit of camp. It was the best kind of party, the kind that’s fun but also brought everyone closer together. It’s like camp in that same way.