NJbirder

12 or 13. Can’t remember if I went in 2009 but six (99, 00, 01, 04, 05 and 07) before Lucas Oil for sure plus 22, 19, 17, 13, 11 and 10 in Indy.

I love how they handle retreat compared to many moons ago.

No one’s tenure is perfect, but so many thanks to Dan Acheson for keeping DCI moving forwars

Last year’s final went by in a blink after they had to delay the start. Everyone has to keep moving and soak it in as they keep on trucking. Gotta get out of the building too.

99 is my favorite drum corps show ever. And the repeated drill but with the performers in different spots is amazing to me. From note one to the end, a masterpiece of music and drill.

Funnel cakes at Gate 4. I repeat. Funnel cakes at Gate 4.

Thank you for this. Am I recalling correctly that Gate 1 is at the bottom of the big hill? And was anything said about hours for when the souvenir stands would be open?

Not sure about re-entry, but you may be able to put the tickets into separate Apple wallets for more flexibility? I echo the food situation. They search bags so taking stuff in takes some creativity. Folks will seat jump and last year there was pretty much no staff managing things so be prepared to self advocate. Thursday and Friday are very quiet compared to Saturday. It is all about the business of getting to the next round or celebrating the age outs on Friday night. Have an amazing time. Seeing all of those shows in one day is a treat.

Just watched from the front row in Glassboro. That group is having an amazing time and clearly creating a great experience for its members. If their schedule is different, my guess is it to be fiscally responsible to be around in the future.

I keep hoping this is a Troopers situation where SCV can take the one year break and sort this all out. The debt is huge, though. It will really take some concerted effort. That said, I will be in the San Francisco area next year. Perhaps a bingo night... I would have some entertainment for my money while maybe helping in a very modest way. I will admit that while I love drum corps as a whole, SCV has always been my favorite corps. I never marched in any corps but they captured me my first summer watching in person in 1996. 1999 is magical to me. It makes me so sad to hear that the culture is so bruised both emotionally and financially.

Do the students auditioning pay to attend weekend camps? Does that cover the costs of said weekends?

Whenever these situations come up, I can't help but wonder what the fundraising office looks like for each corps. I have worked in the nonprofit art/education sector my entire career and know that there needs to be a development officer minding the ship and working on grant applications, scholarships, annual fund, etc. We see the "sponsor a meal" or Friends of DCI, but what are the development activities? Resources don't just show up. There has to be a plan in place to pursue money and support. Not sending thank you acknowledgements or responding to your specific desire to support is unacceptable and in regard to tax purposes, illegal.

I applaud the divide and conquer approach. Many theaters, dance companies, music organizations, etc. divide and conquer this way by having an administrative leader and an artistic leader. I know it can be a hit financially, but not spreading one person so thin can hopefully allow both areas to maximize the efforts required for organizational success.

We did go and check and were waved back by an LOS employee to get into the serpentine line. That person must have started to work right after you got there as we were just a few minutes later.

Oh, totally agree. I was just saying that if you get rid of Allentown and make Pittsburgh the closest show to the northeast, that is where you'll have some challenges. Rain dates are not a bad thought it the corps are able to stick around. But having a smaller performance schedule should in theory allow more time at a location.

I wouldn't have a problem driving 4+ hours either. The problem is that Allentown is already 6 hours from Boston, for example, and it is the biggest show close to the northeast/New England area. If you can move it to Met Life Stadium in NJ, that would be ideal from a parking and seat comfort standpoint while not really compromising distances the regulars already drive. And the Newark airport isn't that far away either.

Philly or NYC. About the same.

About 5 hours

Interesting thinking. I'd also like to see the corps compete in an even number of shows for as equal of an experience as possible. But please don't eliminate Allentown... (as we've recently seen, certainly a better staff than Indy!)

DCI isn't equipped to manage audiences, which is ridiculous. They are designed to manage a schedule of events around the country from the performer side of things only, it seems. Cesario claiming in a video earlier this summer that they need the audience interest to grow. Well, start taking your audience seriously, and maybe you can maintain it better which would help it grow. Keep the parents that come for their kids coming back by making the experience better.

I was there all three days and noted the lack of staffing from the get go in the seating area. We arrived on Saturday to the masses at about 5:45. Quickly checked here and social platforms to see if we could move towards the gate, but an LOS employee told us (waved us back) and many others to turn around regardless of whether we had bags or not. We then joined the serpentine line, which I was glad to see was moving with little anger. Literally ran through LOS and screamed into our (occupied) seats as the Troopers were stepping off. Who is at fault? All three parties to a degree. I should have been there earlier (but I shouldn't have had to have been). DCI should have not ignored the situation (10 minutes-really? Clearly needed to be out of the building by midnight with the fastest retreat I've ever seen.). LOS needs to get their act together (yeah, hiring and staffing are tough. Change your model to make your staff feel valued. That isn't just money). I have done this kind of work over the years in major venues, and while I obviously haven't seen this contract, I sense DCI has abdicated any interest in concession sales since the very beginning. (I have been attending regularly since 2009 in this venue.) But the gate management was unacceptable. There must be a formula that is followed to know how many doors for how many tickets, and this was woefully inadequate. I was fortunately able to fire up Flo on my phone and was monitoring what was going on inside as we proceeded towards the door.