The Shattuck Crack Squad (be sure to turn on your sound) started in 1882 as the "Far Famed Fancy Drill Squad" at Shattuck School, a military prep school in Faribault, Minnesota. It has included famous members, such as Marlon Brando. Based on a drill manual developed by John J. Pershing, the squad marches using the "Zouave" step at 250 steps a minute and uses Springfield 45-70 breech-loading rifles from the Civil War era (pdf). They have won many drill competitions, and their performance is thrilling and fascinating. It even has its own Facebook page. [more inside]
posted by Mental Wimp on Feb 28, 2010 - 18 comments

It's that time again. While they aren't otherwise occupied maintaining an open and informed society, and keeping an eye on our first amendment rights, librarians across the country are apparently... breaking out their dance moves. [more inside]
posted by froggmaiden on Aug 5, 2008 - 20 comments

Much like synchronized swimming or a standard drill team, a book cart drill team requires coordination and panache and is complicated enough to warrant its own manual. This year at the 2006 American Library Association Annual Conference in New Orleans, the winners of the “golden cart” in the Second Annual Book Cart Drill Team Competition were the city’s very own Tulane University “Booked on New Orleans”, (YouTube video, no sound) who had only started rehearsing 6 weeks prior and had practiced in the formerly flooded basement of the library.
posted by nekton on Jul 5, 2006 - 21 comments

Llama Drill Team. Yes, it's true. Every June at the Maine Fiber Frolic, which takes place over a full weekend at the Windsor Fairgrounds on Rt. 32, a cadre of camelids and their handlers (who range in age from grade-schoolers to retirees) perform carefully choreographed routines. According to news reports, music for this year's program included marches by John Philip Sousa and Elton John and Tim Rice's "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" (Photos here, here and here.) But Maine isn't the only place you can catch one of these barnyard extravaganzas. Ohio's well-known "All-Star Llama Drill Team" (established in the mid-1990s) are a fixture at the Buckeye State's 17-day state fair, which also features a llama costume contest and a llama obstacle course. What's more, the troupe has traveled around the Midwest to perform at, for example, a camelid convention in Minnesota. [more inside]
posted by GrammarMoses on Jul 2, 2006 - 7 comments