2016 DCI Premiere -- Theater Experience

[OldBones]

Langhorne PA theater about 1/4 full. Same sound issues as everywhere else.

Not much applause all night (except for the end of Bluecoats and Crown).

I agreed with all the final placements.

Unlike most, I have not watched any of the previews on social media.

My take

Boston - It was a very good kickoff to 2016. Better show and performance than last year at this time. Major electronics issues in the front ensemble ruined it for me though. Lets see how this show develops throughout the season.

Cavaliers - Showed more visually this year than last. Had some nice parts hornwise. Drumline was OK. Really liked the guard. Too early to judge.

Phantom - Was better than Boston. I think its way too early to judge this show. Really liked the arrangements. Needs work visually and GE. I really would like to see how this show develops. Again too early to judge.

Cadets - What we saw last night is not what we will see in August. I'm sure they are already planning some changes.

Hated the violinist. She did a nice job, from what I could hear, but does she really add anything to the show?

Loved Pines of Rome. Hated everything after that.

Nice use of the french horns. Not so much with the trombones. Lets see what come out in August.

Bluecoats - Created real excitement in the theater. Extremely ready for the first show and it showed. They hit on all cylinders tonight. Don't know if they will finish on top, but they certainly will be in the thick of it all season.

Crown - Did a typical Crown show. Great hornline, excellent guard, and what should help by August, an improved drumline. I felt their energy level was a little low tonight though.

Overall, not a bad first show of the season.

If last night was an indication of what we will see with show concepts and performance levels, add in the new (no slotting?) judging, it should be an exciting year. Unfortunately I will not be able to see any of these shows live until DCI East.

Thank you to all the members of all the corps for a real fun night of entertainment.

Good luck to everyone this year and safe travels.

[MikeRapp]

Austin, TX south side theater, pretty full. Late arrivals all had to find seats in the first two rows or try to figure out a way to get to a few individual seats scattered among the crowd. Applause was fairly consistent and given for all corps at various times.

My initial thoughts aren't about the individual corps. Every single one had things to offer that are worth a whole lot of my time and attention, and probably my souvie money. My thoughts at the moment are about what I think is happening, overall, in this activity:

It's clear to me that Cirq de Soleil, modern dance and performance companies pushing their envelopes, the spread of pageantry arts like WGI perc and guard, and lots of other ensemble performer acts and activities are becoming more accessible to more people due to social media and video content on demand. DCI seems poised to capitalize on this new public interest for intriguing, intense and awe-inducing performance spectacle. This is a good thing, and I like it. However, one has to wonder if this will be a problem for judging criteria. Then again, judging is fun for an audience - if people pay to see shows and keep coming back, then it's a win win.

So, I guess I'll add a small blurb about each show:

Boston - love the windmills, enjoyed the music, like the new unis a lot, fix the pit balance

Cavies - I'm diggin' the look and the bravado, please finesse the emotional pace of the show

Phantom - sweet ensemble writing, guard was as elegant as always, not sure I'm sold on their theme yet but it's June

Cadets - me during first half: AWESOME!, me during second half: what's going on? And violin tuning could be a big music issue all year. Started fine, but something changed midway through. (mic issues aside) It was grating. I like the concept and sound of it, but not if it's going to be out of tune.

Bloo - new unis made me notice individual differences in movement a LOT more than I would if they were in a more uniform-like uniform. Not sure that's good, but I like the style they chose. I like the show concept, will enjoy this music a lot.

Crown - huh - I should like this show a lot, so why don't I? 2muchcoffeeman summed it up well - felt lacking in build up for me. Again, it's June and I very well might change my tune come August.

All in all, I'm happy about where things are going. Corps seem to be getting better at selling the theatrical aspect of their nature and character. I hope this translates to broader audience appeal outside of the initiated.

Really great review, I concur on all fronts.

If Bluecoats can tighten up the dance/corps movement segments, it will be a visual blast. The segment where the corps progressively adds lines to the back of the block was so simple and yet so stunning, and it had everything to do with uniforms. It didn't really pay off the way I was thinking it might, which showed restraint that I hadn't anticipated.

I wish there was something, anything, that connects this year's Bluecoats to previous years, but that is only my preference. Doubt most kids will even know what I am talking about or care.

The ante is really high already. There won't be any room for "okay" if you want to compete even for the top six. I fully expect the Cadets to circle the wagons and pull out every stop they have, hopefully even a new guard uniform. Maybe even new music? Cadets won't take being three points behind laying down! They have the firepower and the tradition to come charging back.

I wish I had a crystal ball and could look three years into the future and see what this activity looks like.

[BlueStainGlass]

Interesting to hear that Crown hasn't been getting as much applause in some theatres. Opposite of what I would've expected

They get the most applause from the hornline and when your audio suffers in the theatre you lose it.

[Eleran]

North Brunswick NJ...had nice recliners to sit in and watch the show. VERY comfortable. Sound was decent.

Saw it in the same theater. Glad I got there much earlier than usual because what is typically a 50% fill was more like 95% fill as a result of the new seating. Loved the comfort - will be great for quarterfinals when you are in that seat a long time. Sound was okay but there were also video blips throughout almost all performances. Don't know enough about how these things work to comment on why, but it was distracting at times.

That makes three of us. We got their way early, but at least we were happy with our seats. Would not have been happy in the first three rows down low, which is where all the late arrivals ended up.

[erikofsix]

Little late to the party on this thread. Watched the show in the Portland, OR area. Theater was maybe half full and the crowd on the quiet side. Video and audio seemed good for the most part, although like many gave said audio for BAC was off. Good to see it in the theater since I can't see a show for about a week.