Jump to content

Onyx 2012, SCV, Flanagan Braddock.. etc..


thedova

Recommended Posts

I think Fantasia's approach to depicting Nazi Germany is actually quite good - it is a part of history....like it or not, it is. Perhaps the Jewish "firing squad" segment is a bit touchy, but in all honesty, I found it to be quite tastefully done and the ending of their program (assuming it was the real ending) that I saw was quite good.

Perhaps Fantasia is tweaking their program to not be as "offensive" as some may feel it to be... I, however, hope they leave it just the way it is. I LOVE it. Plain and simple. It is good, has GREAT costumes, cool staging moments and very interesting choreography. I'll be cheering loud and proud for Fantasia at WGI in April.

So i got the answer.. Apparently WGI told Fantasia that they may want to reconsider some of their design choices! The whole ending is the controversial part which isnt even necessary, they dont have to kill any jews to get their point across. If they just rewrite it so that the "good german" is the only one who is gonna shoot but then choses not to, then it will be less graphic and offensive to some people.

I wasnt offended, but I can see how others especially those with ties to WW2 might.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

fantasia = tasteless

there is absolutely no reason what so ever for any color guard show to go to this extreme. it's not acceptable in my opinion. and please don't give me the 'pushing the envelope' crap.... that was what everyone was saying about onyx two years ago.

(now go ahead and beat me up for giving my opinion about this)

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

fantasia = tasteless

there is absolutely no reason what so ever for any color guard show to go to this extreme. it's not acceptable in my opinion. and please don't give me the 'pushing the envelope' crap.... that was what everyone was saying about onyx two years ago.

(now go ahead and beat me up for giving my opinion about this)

well i can understand your point! It made several people in my group very uncomfortable. One of the girls there even said, "what is next, are they gonna dress up like muslim and have two towers as props and take them down?" I guess some people who have connections to such an emotional event may feel like its inappropriate.

I mean we have all seen plenty of Schindler's List shows, in fact, I love First Fights this season. So I pose this question, is it okay to do a show from the victims standpoint, i.e. memorial for the jews who killed during WW2, those soldiers who were lost in WW2, 9/11, anywhere, but not okay to do it from the other sides point???? b/c I think people may thing they are glorifying what the Nazi's did!? (I personally dont feel they are, was just wondering what people were thinking)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I do think creative licence is a good thing and that we shouldnt be sensored BUT I also think there is a fine line between taste and tasteless. What bothers me more ( and heres another question ) when its a guard associated with WGI movers and shakers it seems to be ok IF it were someone else,would it be allowed . I remember in recent years someone doing an aids show where everyone was dying and judges walking out and refusing to judge..cant remember who they were. Yes I guess they werent so great of a guard BUT the question being if it were a mover and shaker would those same judges refuse to judge..I think we al know the answer to that. :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, we've had shows about sex, death, violence, drugs,homelessness, 9/11 etc...before.

It's not like Fanatasia is the first to go this route. There is a fine line, and I think that they did a good job in being as respectful as possible, and I do think that the ending adds to it - as violent as it is. Although it is clearly a Nazi themed WW2 show - i also see it as an allegory to what's going on in today's world and the ramifications of "group think" and "group mentality". People getting easily wrapped up in an idea or ideology, follwoing the wave, but not really thinking for themselves about the end results.

Is Fantasia the type of show I enjoy the most - no. I like lighter fare when I go to guard shows. But do I think that they crossed the line - no. It's a very thought provoking show

I do seem to recall that when Union Highschool did their Holocaust show in '89 (I think that was the year) - they had presented their show to the Holocaust Survivors association (or something of the sort) to ascertain that they were not being offensive -as this is very serious subject matter. I wonder if Fantasia did the same thing?

Later,

Mike

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think for those of you who are against Fantasia's "fireline" portion of the show, and maybe even some of you are supporting are completely missing the point of the segment. If you watch, you see that the "good" character does NOT shoot his designated prisoner, which cant really be portrayed any other way i dont think. If it was just a random fire squad where they just shot everyone, then yes it would be pointless and tasteless, but instead they used it to show the humanity of that person, which is not at all pointless or tasteless. It served its purpose.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The last soldier stares down the last lady kneeling in front of him sobbing. After 5 shots and 5 murders, the silence is deafening and seems to last forever as his conscious slowly takes him over and he is unable to execute her. He breaks down sobbing and walks away. The show ends with him removing his red arm band and the crowd jumping to their feet. ( Can I get a "remember" or a "never again" from the Union fans that saw them before they took out the shouting in their silent sections?) Regarding Arcadia I don't want to be a bitter old timer ( too late) and this is my opinion only but I think it is too similar to Marquis in 1994. Similar staging and concept. Big drapes in white ( not maroon), Steve Reich type music ( if not actually), enter from left cross to right, run across back sideline behind the curtains to come back out from the left again and again. The only difference is that Marquis had equipment technique (sorry) that was well, classic EMass. At least Trumble is doing a Marquis "tribute" with a splash of Erre. Big difference IMO between a tribute and what i saw tonight. If it was meant to be a tribute it isn't coming out that way. Hey, Marc Sylvester, what do you think? I can't remember if this was your idea or denise's or dale's back in '94...

Last time I checked using props, staging, and music that are similar to what another guard did a long time is not illegal.

Music is music - so what if someone else did it before. BIG DEAL. Arcadia is doing their interpretation of the music - maybe they wanted it to look like Emerald Marquis... maybe they are just doing what they felt was appropriate to interpret the music.

There are plenty of other shows out there that have been "copied" and no one threw such a fuss. Emerald Marquis was great; Arcadia is great too. Leave it be and move on dude.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...