As her line of fellow percussionists slowly builds up, freshman Anna LaBay can feel the pressure rising inside of her.

More and more people start popping their heads into her practice room, wondering if she has room in her schedule to prepare them for competition, but the clock is slowly ticking and is forcing her to be quick with her work while also diligent. 

“The first competition was extremely stressful,” LaBay said. “I didn’t have all the things I was supposed to. I ended up waking up late, and when I had to start the makeup, (it was) 30 minutes later than planned.”

Meticulous packing of makeup bags, quick lunches and careful time preparation all equate to LaBay’s process.

While it can all be much, she finds worth in doing hair and makeup for the program since it provides an opportunity to build relationships with the rest of her group members.

“I feel like I’ve definitely gotten a lot closer with some people just because of doing their makeup so up close,” LaBay said. “It’s just a moment to get to talk to them and then learn about them and everything.”

Being tasked as the cosmetologist for the SHS indoor percussion group has proven itself to be a fun yet demanding responsibility. Even when things don’t run smoothly, this new position has helped LaBay to strengthen relationships with her teammates, translating to growth in the activity and for herself.

After two prior years of playing snare drum for indoor percussion, she entered the ‘24-’25 season unaware of the extra responsibilities she would soon be taking charge of until she inquired to her percussion director about who would take on the role.

The director, Brantley Heath, had taken note of LaBay’s professional qualities over time and used them to build confidence in his decision of putting her in charge.

“Anna is a future leader of this program, (and) she’s a very hard worker,” Heath said. “She’s involved in a lot of different activities, and I knew that somebody like her would be perfect for the job.”

The bonds that she forms with her group members allows for better and smoother runs of the show.

“I think that it does translate to better performances because of being closer with everybody,” LaBay said. “It’s weird, but having the makeup and putting yourself in that position brings people a lot closer.”

She gained her passion for makeup at a younger age after taking turns practicing cosmetic work on both her mom and her sister, bonding more and more with her family as each session went by. 

Being able to use her creative outlet to help connect with her family introduced her to the activity she now loves.

“I used to love doing my sister’s hair all the time, and I would do my mom’s sometimes,” LaBay said. “Me and my sister still do this thing where we kind of just (go) ‘Can I do your makeup?’ (and) ‘Okay, only if I can do yours.’”

Fellow percussionists enjoy having LaBay in charge of the task, as hair and makeup provides an opportunity for one-on-one time that they wouldn’t necessarily have had beforehand.

Freshman Jasper Terrell says his friendship with LaBay has fostered over time, even with the short amount of time in their sessions.

“I feel like ever since she started doing hair like that in the practice rooms, we’ve been able to talk a lot more during indoor rehearsals,” Terrell said. “So yeah, it’s pretty nice.”

While she says that the experience doesn’t necessarily have any impact on her day-to-day life, she has noticed some personal growth.

Sticking to a tight schedule has taught her how significant proper time management is in her life and has allowed her to gain a new perspective on how to plan better for herself.

“It’s definitely a learning experience, and time management is a big part of it,” LaBay said. “It’s having a line of people waiting to do their makeup, and you have to quickly and nicely put everything on and make sure everybody’s good to go.”

LaBay does receive some help from parents and even other students in order to do cosmetic work for the whole team before their competitions.

Early on in the season, she approached freshman Sara Tam, a marimba player, about helping to divvy up the workload. Tam, who had a vague background in cosmetics, offered her hand to help Labay.

“Anna said she needed help with the makeup, and I told her I face paint,” Tam said. “She said sweet, and then I said I would help her, and then here I am doing the makeup.”

Her role allows her to come up with and use most of her own original ideas as long as they relatively stick towards Heath’s guideline, and while she does find joy in connecting with her teammates, most of her excitement lies within having so much creative freedom.

“I like having the free will and deciding what to do with the makeup because I feel like it adds my own personal touch into the show,” LaBay said.

As of now, she remains undecided on whether or not she wants to pursue cosmetics for a possible career, but she has years of experience ahead to help guide her as she advances with future shows.

“If she continues with this program, I would love to see her in this type of position again and in more of a leadership role,” Heath said.

Despite her age and inexperience, she continues to help her team and grow with them as she moves down her line, tailoring the show with each head she prepares.

She appreciates being entrusted with the task, and the overall experience has worked to create an environment and season she was content with.

“I thought it was a really fun thing to do,” LaBay said. “Though it did get stressful at times, I did think it was really fun to get to control how everybody looked because not everybody was the same. We were all different, so it was fun to incorporate different little ideas into each person.”

Check out the photo gallery for their Indiana Percussion Association finals competition: https://thejournalrewired.com/32248/showcase/flying-through-finals/#modal-photo