Fans Not Clapping at the End of a Corps Show ?

[JimF-LowBari]

Only Div I shows I saw recently were Cadets and Crossmen in 2005/2006. I don't like amps and I don't like vocals which were both used. I sat on my hands when amps/vocals were in use.

At the end of the show and the corps trooped the stands I stood and applauded because the members worked their collective butts off to put on that show.

Would be a real hypocrite if I didn't because I was in a rebuilding corps that didn't get a lot of end of show applause either. Guess what, took a lot of effort to get a last place show on the field too.

Edit; STILL takes a lot of effort for a last place corps to learn and do a show.....

Edited October 22, 2007 by JimF-3rdBari

[thePerfectbuzz]

I dont know...I just clap and applaud for every show. Not because I feel I have to, but just because I do. And for the shows that are extremely good that make you go "OMG!" then I clap louder, maybe clap longer, and probably stand and hollar a little bit. So that way the corps that just threw down a performance know the difference between an applaus, and the audience giving it to them. But I dont golf clap for everyone....I just make sure to clap and applause.

[Liam]

Having marched in a small corps (equivalent to div. III) and a championship corps I've been on the receiving end

all types of crowd response. To not applaud a corps after a performance to me is the epitome of snobbery and arrogance.

If anyone has ever marched at any level they know the amount of time & effort that has went into a show,

to not acknowledge this at the end of ANY show is beyond rude. It ranks right up there with carrying on a conversation

during a show with others or even worse carrying on a conversation on the phone during a show.

To me, the talking during a show (with each other or on a phone) is MUCH worse than not clapping. Talking during the show shows disrespect not only to the performers, but also to the other paying customers.

I always applaud the effort, but it never really bothered me if others sat on their hands. Now booing .... well that's another story entirely :)

[Whiskey]

You have to remember that some cultures don't clap for something just because it's good. I can think of my own culture (Native American) and after certain dances/ceremonies, even if it is the best thing you ever saw or heard, there is no clapping. It's a sign of respect. When my parents use to go or still go to shows, they usually won't clap for anyone. They're not being rude, in fact usually afterwards they're gushing about what they saw. How dare some of you say everyone has to act like you or act a certain way because the majority do so. Surprisingly no one has ever said anything to my parents, but I'm still waiting for that day to happen. It all comes down to the simple rule that not everyone is the same.

[Dale Bari]

I can't believe what I'm reading. It is so appalling to read the lack of classy behavior in the stands, and yet the moment a member of a corps acts less than perfectly, these forums jump on them and the corps. No, this is not socialism, this is common sense and to not do so is barbarism. I don't even know what to say. To not clap is the ultimate in disrespect to a performer because you do not acknowledge their presence, much less their hard work. I think it is you who needs to get off your high horses because no one here or in existence is so perfect as to not grant every single performer(in drum corps or otherwise) the respect they deserve.

And the Politeness Nazis strike again! How egalitarian of you to demand that everyone conform to your idea of what's rude and not!

"Classy behavior" is congratulating your hated competitor for defeating you. "Classy behavior" is being a gracious winner. ClassLESS behavior is booing. It is turning your back to the corps on the field or making snide remarks to anyone wearing a corps' colors or logo. Not clapping, in and of itself, is NOT classless behavior, just like clapping in and of itself is not "classy" behavior. Given the correct context, it might gain "classy" status, ie Cadets applauding BD for winning. The two extremes are not all the possibilities available; what falls outside of "classy" is not automatically deemed "classless".

I think that most people on here have construed a good policy: Applaud if you like it, cheer yourself hoarse if you loved it, and whatever else, at the very least don't boo. But, apparently that's not good enough for some people. Is coerced applause a good thing?

As someone else posted, sometimes everyone else is standing, and I remain in my seat. I'm still putting my hands together, but I'm not pulled up to my feet by what I just witnessed. Am I being rude because I'm not conforming? Hardly. Conversely, if I'm the only one jumping to my feet by something a corps just did, am I being rude? Hardly, either. (Funny how no one condemns that!)

Let's put this into perspective. There are four opportunities to applaud for a corps: when they enter the field, when they finish their performance, when they troop the stands after the performance, and when their score is announced. (There used to be one more: when they played off the field after retreat.) I think we're really only talking about the second one in this thread: at the conclusion of the performance, when we are most affected by it.

If you want to show your respect for the members' hard work even if you hated the show, I think it's quite reasonable not to clap at the end of the show but stand and applaud as the corps troops off the field.

I don't know that I ever saw a show that I disliked so badly that I didn't clap at all, but I reserve my right to do so in the future.

I guess it comes down to this question: Is a "golf" clap condescending toward a corps and its members? (Put it in the category with the "white lie".) Should I clap for any ol' piece of crap put on a football field, even if I thought it was the worst thing ever done, just to spare someone's feelings?

Probably, most spectators would decide that it doesn't cost them much to slap their palms together a few times to discharge any responsibility they may feel toward others who put themselves out, attempting to entertain. However, I think most spectators would also balk at the requirement to do so, when externally imposed upon them.

[JimF-LowBari]

As someone else posted, sometimes everyone else is standing, and I remain in my seat. I'm still putting my hands together, but I'm not pulled up to my feet by what I just witnessed. Am I being rude because I'm not conforming?

Another reason might be that the person not standing has a physical problem and standing is either a (literal) pain or unsafe due to narrow stadium rows.

Sore point for me as my wife went to DCA with a one year old knee replacement and new pinched nerve. With the knee replacement, getting in/out of the seat was a team effort so she would not fall. With the pinched nerve we heard a lot of the shows from the concession area as prolonged sitting was causing back spasms.

Not seeing a bunch of shows wasn't being rude in this case. It was the only way we could attend anything that weekend and show our support.

[The Voice of Logic]

I know, as a member of a top 3 division 1 corps, hearing a crowd that is dead or refuses to clap is extremely disheartening.

We don't do it to win, we don't do it for the competition...it's entertainment. Corps feed off crowd reaction, especially during the show. Ever notice how a corps will play better when the audience is positive during the show? If you're not entertained, then why do we do this?

[pistolpete]

I stand up and clap for every corps. The kids deserve it. If you dislike the direction a corps director is going, send him an e-mail.

[Dale Bari]

I know, as a member of a top 3 division 1 corps, hearing a crowd that is dead or refuses to clap is extremely disheartening.

We don't do it to win, we don't do it for the competition...it's entertainment. Corps feed off crowd reaction, especially during the show. Ever notice how a corps will play better when the audience is positive during the show? If you're not entertained, then why do we do this?

Sometimes it's not the crowd's "fault". I use quotes around fault to say that it's a poor performer who blames the crowd for not getting his performance, yet the problem may not have been the performer's either.

Sometimes it's the venue or the location. Some stadiums don't allow the audience to feel the corps' shows in the same way as another stadium. Some shows are done where the audience is corps-savvy, therefore more responsive, and some are less so - ie, lots of locals who show up not knowing much about drum corps, or who only came to see the hometown corps.

As far as your last question goes, lots of us do drum corps because there's something intrinsic to being a performer, away from getting the applause. To me, the doing is the main course. Getting the applause is the dessert. Winning is the icing on the cake.

[Galen]

I know I'd always feel ###### when we came off the field to the sound of crickets. But it also gave us the question, "Did we give the crowd something to clap FOR?"