Guard

DC’s Different Drummers is proud to have a dual-ensemble guard – a Color Guard and a Winter Guard.  As part of the DCDD Marching band, the Color Guard performs parades and standstills, from April to October, while the Winter Guard rehearses and competes independently between October and April as either an Independent Senior class or an Independent World class team.  In addition to dance, flag, sabre, and rifle, the Guard may also incorporate airblade and baton into their routines.

DCDD’s Winter Guard (DCDDWG) debuted in 2022 with the Atlantic Indoor Association (AIA) – the VA/NC regional winter guard circuit – as an Independent Senior class group performing to Robin Sparkles’ “Let’s Go to the Mall.”  In 2023, DCDDWG re-debuted as an Independent World class group competing in both AIA and Winter Guard International (WGI) – the international guard circuit – performing their show “Save the City” using Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero.”  During the 2023 season, DCDDWG also made history as the first Pride Bands Alliance member to participate in the WGI circuit, including WGI World Championships.

DCDDWG rotates between the two classes on an every-other-year cycle so the Guard can march in the annual Cherry Blossom Parade with the DCDD Marching Band one year, and then march at WGI World Championships in Dayton, OH the next year.  Rehearsals are split between D.C. and the surrounding metropolitan area.  Since our “guard for funsies” focuses more on having fun than the trophies – even though a trophy or two is always wonderful to have – skill levels of all types, including those who haven’t spun before, are welcome to join us.  Those interested should reach out to our Membership Chair for more information. 

Dr. Antares Leask, Guard Director

Dr. Antares Leask (she/her) resides in Herndon, Virginia, and is currently in her sixth year as an English teacher for Arlington Tech, a choice high school program in Arlington, Virginia. She is also in her eleventh year as an Adjunct English Professor at Northern Virginia Community College. She is in her twentieth year of secondary school teaching, with combined years of experience in Texas and Virginia. Dr. Leask was the 2009 Outstanding Teacher of the Gifted for Texas Region XI.

Dr. Leask did her undergraduate work in English at the University of Georgia, holds Masters Degrees in Secondary Education and Gifted Education from the University of North Texas, and earned her Ph.D. in English from the University of Texas at Arlington. She holds secondary teaching certificates in both English and Gifted/Talented. She is a member of NCTE and frequently presents at MAPACA and PCA conferences.

She has been responsible for the visual programming and direction of South Lakes and Briar Woods high schools in Northern Virginia, as well as schools in Texas and Georgia. She has choreographed for multiple other colorguards and has consulted in both programming and visual performance for several marching band programs.

In the realm of colorguard performance, Dr. Leask performed with the award-winning Contempo (TX), Allure (TX), Escapade (OH), and Ascension (TX) winterguards and Sky Ryders (TX) and Cadets of Bergen County (NJ) drum corps. In addition, she has done administrative work for Cadets of Bergen County and the Santa Clara Vanguard drum corps, and volunteers regularly with Winter Guard International. Dr. Leask also served for many years on the executive board of Atlantic Indoor Association North, helping to manage indoor colorguard and drumline competitions across Virginia. Dr. Leask is married with two children, a goofy dog, and a cat who’s a jerk.