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WGI Ft. Lauderdale Regional


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EDITOR’S NOTE: Because it’s so VERY early in the season, I’m not going to get into a whole lot of nitty-gritty about the shows that I watched at the Ft. Lauderdale Regional.

Clearly, all of these shows will be a totally different experience after another couple of weeks of rehearsal and “tweaking.” And they’ll be largely different again by the end of the season. So, I’m going to try mostly o give some general thoughts about the performances – with a little bit of detail added when it seems appropriate.

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Flanagan High School

Another powerful program from the 2008 WGI Gold Medalists.

Last season’s champs continue to show us that they’re a top-tier performance ensemble in every way. Once again, a highly demanding show uses an impressive, world class equipment book to focus the spotlight on their limitless energy and their superior technical abilities. And I actually noticed a couple of places in the show where it looks as if “something big” will be added as the season progresses. Wow.

This year’s show, in my opinion, is a little different from Flanagan shows that I’ve seen in previous seasons. Of course, it’s still a first-rate production all around. And it’s still completely Flanagan: bold, powerful and vibrant.

But to me, it seems as if the design and the overall feel of the program are somehow more complete or detailed or something. The show seems more thoughtful in its construction while continuing to emphasize the superior equipment skills of this talented group of performers.

The show is titled “Hopelandic” which, if I’m remembering correctly, is the name of a song or an album by the Icelandic post-rock group Sigur Ros, whose music is used on the soundtrack.

In a nod to the group’s frozen homeland, the show takes us far away to the glaciers and fjords of the Scandinavian north. The floor design features an image of an iceberg on a sub-zero Arctic horizon. Colors in the floor, equipment and uniforms mostly are taken from the “cold” end of the blue spectrum, which makes sense for this program.

Even at this point in the season, Flanagan is demonstrating the incredible depth of talent and ability that their performers have. And they're only going to get better from here on out.

Clearly, this group has their sights set on finishing at the top of Scholastic World again this year. And you can bet that they're going to work their tail-ends off to get there. (We've seen them do this before...!!!)

At first, their score of 81.5 did seem a little on the high end of the scale. After all, the WGI season is barely underway and every guard out there – including Flanagan - has a LOT of cleaning and polishing to do.

But if you take a look at the results from the WGI Regional in Dayton, Avon (last year's Silver Medalist) scored an 80.2 So, Flanagan’s score is totally in line with the scores for the other top guards competing in WGI events this weekend.

Regardless of their score, Flanagan’s program will be a force to be reckoned with at competitions all the way through WGI Finals.

Can’t wait to see how their show builds and evolves as the weeks roll by.

Stoneman-Douglas High School

This perennial WGI Finalist also debuted a bit of a different look.

Most noticeably, they’ve done away with the “scary” make-up and gone for a somewhat lighter visual presentation, which is a refreshing change for them. Believe me, though, a lighter “look” for Stoneman-Douglas doesn’t mean that this guard is any less tenacious than they’ve ever been. These are some fierce competitors - and they project MASSIVE amounts of confidence. (As well they should…!!!) They let it be known from the moment they take the floor that they mean BUSINESS.

The guard is smaller than I remember them being in the past. (I counted 15 or 16 members on the floor, I think.) But the size of the guard doesn’t really make much of a difference as long as the show is designed with a smaller number of members in mind. And that’s definitely the case with this show. Their program was nicely designed and programmed from beginning to end.

As in seasons past, the weapons work in this ensemble is outstanding - especially the sabre line - and many of the more memorable moments of the program are built around these dynamite performers. A versatile, crowd-pleasing weapon line has long been one of the hallmarks of the Stoneman-Douglas program and it looks as if that’s going to continue to be true for many seasons to come.

Also different for S-D this year is their approach to their floor design. Instead of an all-over abstraction of dark, ominous colors – which they’d been doing for a few seasons - the floor is a stylish, graphic interpretation of Wall Street iconography, complete with a bold, eye-catching image of a “Wall Street” sign and various DOW stock ticker symbols.

This floor works great for their show because the theme is – you guessed it – something about Wall Street. (I missed the exact title because the audio system in the gym was nearly impossible to understand from where I was sitting.)

Overall, I’m really appreciating a lot of the things that they’ve introduced into their program this year.

This group, too, will represent South Florida well through the ’09 season. And don't be one bit surprised to see them very much in the running to qualify for WGI FInals again this year.

Seminole High School

Quite a different show from last year’s production about “travels” in which they used the park benches and the orange luggage.

This year, their program is titled “Shiver.” (I think.)

The soundtrack, Vivaldi’s tension-filled ‘Winter’ movement from ‘The Four Seasons,’ even includes the sounds of ice crackling, crunching and shattering into a zillion pieces.

Like Flanagan, this show uses a lot of “cold” colors – blues and purples – to reinforce the icy mood that they’re creating.

Lots of complicated weapon and flag work keep these ladies on their toes – until the very last moment of the show when the frosty climate finally gets the best of them and they lay down and, well, “shiver.”

A really strong program from Seminole that undoubtedly will continue to get better each week.

Freedom High School

Ok. Were there, like, 25 groups from Orlando participating at this Regional…??? I swear, it seems as if every guard’s introduction began “From Orlando, Florida, please welcome…”

But I digress.

It's gotta be just a little bit daunting for even a veteran SW guard to share the floor with the amazing competitors that Freedom encountered at this, their first WGI Regional. But this first-year SW ensemble from Freedom went out there and held their own in every way.

The 2008 WGI Silver Medalists from Scholastic Open cranked-out a really respectable performance at their first WGI event of the season.

Their motivational/inspirational production incorporates numerous excerpts from some of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s most memorable addresses and they delivered their program with both confidence and control.

This group obviously is very well trained in equipment and it really shows. They flagged particularly well on Saturday night, handling some tricky phrasing and passages quite nicely. And their soloists definitely are deserving of the attention that they’ve been given through out the program.

A very appealing performance by this up-and-coming group making the transition to the ranks of Scholastic World competition.

Freedom should easily be able to kick this show up a couple of notches by the end of the season. They seem to have enough talent on hand to make it happen.

Good luck to all of Florida’s Scholastic World guards this season…!!!

:w00t::blink::guinesssmilie::smile::laughing:

Edited by Mr. Know it all
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

EDITOR’S NOTE: Because it’s so VERY early in the season, I’m not going to get into a whole lot of nitty-gritty about the shows that I watched at the Ft. Lauderdale Regional.

Clearly, all of these shows will be a totally different experience after another couple of weeks of rehearsal and “tweaking.” And they’ll be largely different again by the end of the season. So, I’m going to try mostly o give some general thoughts about the performances – with a little bit of detail added when it seems appropriate.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Flanagan High School

Another powerful program from the 2008 WGI Gold Medalists.

Last season’s champs continue to show us that they’re a top-tier performance ensemble in every way. Once again, a highly demanding show uses an impressive, world class equipment book to focus the spotlight on their limitless energy and their superior technical abilities. And I actually noticed a couple of places in the show where it looks as if “something big” will be added as the season progresses. Wow.

This year’s show, in my opinion, is a little different from Flanagan shows that I’ve seen in previous seasons. Of course, it’s still a first-rate production all around. And it’s still completely Flanagan: bold, powerful and vibrant.

But to me, it seems as if the design and the overall feel of the program are somehow more complete or detailed or something. The show seems more thoughtful in its construction while continuing to emphasize the superior equipment skills of this talented group of performers.

The show is titled “Hopelandic” which, if I’m remembering correctly, is the name of a song or an album by the Icelandic post-rock group Sigur Ros, whose music is used on the soundtrack.

In a nod to the group’s frozen homeland, the show takes us far away to the glaciers and fjords of the Scandinavian north. The floor design features an image of an iceberg on a sub-zero Arctic horizon. Colors in the floor, equipment and uniforms mostly are taken from the “cold” end of the blue spectrum, which makes sense for this program.

Even at this point in the season, Flanagan is demonstrating the incredible depth of talent and ability that their performers have. And they're only going to get better from here on out.

Clearly, this group has their sights set on finishing at the top of Scholastic World again this year. And you can bet that they're going to work their tail-ends off to get there. (We've seen them do this before...!!!)

At first, their score of 81.5 did seem a little on the high end of the scale. After all, the WGI season is barely underway and every guard out there – including Flanagan - has a LOT of cleaning and polishing to do.

But if you take a look at the results from the WGI Regional in Dayton, Avon (last year's Silver Medalist) scored an 80.2 So, Flanagan’s score is totally in line with the scores for the other top guards competing in WGI events this weekend.

Regardless of their score, Flanagan’s program will be a force to be reckoned with at competitions all the way through WGI Finals.

Can’t wait to see how their show builds and evolves as the weeks roll by.

Stoneman-Douglas High School

This perennial WGI Finalist also debuted a bit of a different look.

Most noticeably, they’ve done away with the “scary” make-up and gone for a somewhat lighter visual presentation, which is a refreshing change for them. Believe me, though, a lighter “look” for Stoneman-Douglas doesn’t mean that this guard is any less tenacious than they’ve ever been. These are some fierce competitors - and they project MASSIVE amounts of confidence. (As well they should…!!!) They let it be known from the moment they take the floor that they mean BUSINESS.

The guard is smaller than I remember them being in the past. (I counted 15 or 16 members on the floor, I think.) But the size of the guard doesn’t really make much of a difference as long as the show is designed with a smaller number of members in mind. And that’s definitely the case with this show. Their program was nicely designed and programmed from beginning to end.

As in seasons past, the weapons work in this ensemble is outstanding - especially the sabre line - and many of the more memorable moments of the program are built around these dynamite performers. A versatile, crowd-pleasing weapon line has long been one of the hallmarks of the Stoneman-Douglas program and it looks as if that’s going to continue to be true for many seasons to come.

Also different for S-D this year is their approach to their floor design. Instead of an all-over abstraction of dark, ominous colors – which they’d been doing for a few seasons - the floor is a stylish, graphic interpretation of Wall Street iconography, complete with a bold, eye-catching image of a “Wall Street” sign and various DOW stock ticker symbols.

This floor works great for their show because the theme is – you guessed it – something about Wall Street. (I missed the exact title because the audio system in the gym was nearly impossible to understand from where I was sitting.)

Overall, I’m really appreciating a lot of the things that they’ve introduced into their program this year.

This group, too, will represent South Florida well through the ’09 season. And don't be one bit surprised to see them very much in the running to qualify for WGI FInals again this year.

Seminole High School

Quite a different show from last year’s production about “travels” in which they used the park benches and the orange luggage.

This year, their program is titled “Shiver.” (I think.)

The soundtrack, Vivaldi’s tension-filled ‘Winter’ movement from ‘The Four Seasons,’ even includes the sounds of ice crackling, crunching and shattering into a zillion pieces.

Like Flanagan, this show uses a lot of “cold” colors – blues and purples – to reinforce the icy mood that they’re creating.

Lots of complicated weapon and flag work keep these ladies on their toes – until the very last moment of the show when the frosty climate finally gets the best of them and they lay down and, well, “shiver.”

A really strong program from Seminole that undoubtedly will continue to get better each week.

Freedom High School

Ok. Were there, like, 25 groups from Orlando participating at this Regional…??? I swear, it seems as if every guard’s introduction began “From Orlando, Florida, please welcome…”

But I digress.

Freedom cranked-out a really respectable performance of their “motivational” show that incorporates numerous excerpts from martin Luther King, Jr.’s most memorable addresses.

The guard flagged particularly well on Saturday night. They handled some kinda tricky passages quite nicely. And their soloists definitely are deserving of the attention that they’re given in through out the program.

Freedom should easily be able to kick this show up a couple of notches by the end of the season. They seem to have enough talent on hand to make it happen.

Good luck to all of Florida’s Scholastic World guards this season…!!!

:w00t::blink::guinesssmilie::smile::laughing:

I attended the Ft. Lauderdale Regional as well and I couldn't agree more with your review. Quite frankly, Flanagan ROCKED THE HOUSE! I heard more than once that there are a significant number of new World Guard members on this years team AND here's the kicker, that a number of them are young and have never, EVER spun before. EVER! Are you in any position to know if this is fact or fiction? If it's true then I can't even begin to imagine what next year will be like.

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I heard more than once that there are a significant number of new World Guard members on this years team AND here's the kicker, that a number of them are young and have never, EVER spun before. EVER! Are you in any position to know if this is fact or fiction?

Well, I don't really know anyone directly involved with the Flanagan program. So, unfortunately, I can neither confrim nor deny anything.

But I'm pretty sure that Flanagan has been putting together two winter guards for a couple of years: A World guard and an "A" guard or JV guard whatever term they use.

So, I guess it would make sense that if last year's World guard had a lot of seniors who graduated, then this year's World guard would probably have quite a few members who weren't in the World guard last year. Of course, I'd be willing to bet that many of the "new" members of this year's World guard were active last year in Flanagan's JV guard.

It seems a little unlikely that a program as deep and demanding as Flanagan would have a significant number of "walk-ons" who were capable of jumping right into their competitive World guard with zero experience.

But, it's possible. Some people just have the guard "gift." And with Flanagan's dedicated instructional staff, well, I'm sure that they could quickly bring any rookie up-to-speed with their more veteran members.

Just my two cents.

:thumbup:

Anyone out there have any information on the number of first-year spinners who might be participating in Flanagan's World guard this year...???

As is usually the case, I'm just curious. That's all.

:w00t:

Edited by Mr. Know it all
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I've been informed that slightly less than half of current Flanagan is made up of veterans from their gold-medal show. The rest have either come from last year's JV or are new members and/or freshmen who hadn't ever spun before this year! Amazing! I was able to attend the Ft. Lauderdale regional, and these guys must be working their behinds off because all I saw was fierce talent. I'm excited for what that means as the season progresses.

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...slightly less than half of current Flanagan is made up of veterans from their gold-medal show. The rest have either come from last year's JV or are new members and/or freshmen who hadn't ever spun before this year!

Now, THAT certainly is impressive...!!!

This is further proof that a excellent instructional staff needs only a group of dedicated performers in order to turn out an truly top-notch ensemble.

The Flanagan program sure does seem to be poised to continue producing terrific guards for many seasons to come.

:thumbup:

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Okay for me the surprise of the weekend was Seminole!! Those girls are no joke!! The all rifle section!! WOW!! I love the way the flats re-structure the stage. Not to mention all flag at the end I think there were about 100 girls out there. DO NOT let their in my opinion "too low" score fool you. They were one of the guards effected negativley by the "rouge" equipment judge. I look forward to seeing how they will shake things up in Orlando.

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I've been informed that slightly less than half of current Flanagan is made up of veterans from their gold-medal show. The rest have either come from last year's JV or are new members and/or freshmen who hadn't ever spun before this year! Amazing! I was able to attend the Ft. Lauderdale regional, and these guys must be working their behinds off because all I saw was fierce talent. I'm excited for what that means as the season progresses.

This is confirmed.. IIRC there are only 4 seniors in the guard, Many Freshman in the Weapon line. Truly the staff is the best around and their hard work and their ability to make strong performers is unmatched. They where worried of not having as strong a year this year but that is certainly not the case.

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This is confirmed.. IIRC there are only 4 seniors in the guard, Many Freshman in the Weapon line. Truly the staff is the best around and their hard work and their ability to make strong performers is unmatched. They where worried of not having as strong a year this year but that is certainly not the case.

its absolutley amazing! Only 4 seniors? These guys must be working their behinds of to get to this level, i would have never guess that any of those weapons were freshmen. The show did have a few flaws, but ofcourse its expected. But now knowing that there are so many new members i would have thought that there show would probably be a mess. But they picked up just where they left off. Unstoppable. :thumbup:

I myself, am very impressed. Good Job.

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