Minneapolis Corps Directors Meeting

[Jeff Ream]

LOL

He PM'd me to say that he's a secret agent consulting with CdS and the G7 corps. This should be interesting. I'm guessing he works for GM too!

well that rules out Allentown, they don't have GM plants there

[JimF-LowBari]

LOL

He PM'd me to say that he's a secret agent consulting with CdS and the G7 corps. This should be interesting. I'm guessing he works for GM too!

Yeah, he's busy changing over old Saturn dealerships to sell VW and Suzuki.

Seriously.... that' what two in my area (including my old dealership) are doing.....

And back on topic, response to: "Imagine you were Cameron MacIntosh and you suddenly had the talent and resources of the top seven drum corps at your disposal for a full summer and you had none of the other lingering expenses or logistics of the other 16 corps to deal with. Start making two lists, knowing what you know about the history of drum corps and all the pros and cons and all that has gone before."

#1 List of what a person knows about DC would be a blank piece of paper for people not already involved with DC. Idea that people will just magically go to $50 shows because "It's the best" ain't gonna work. Doesn't work with shows involving DCs top corps now. (Notice I included both circuits by posting DC instead of DCI).

#2 What about the expenses of the 7 or so corps included in this? And will a young person pay $$$$$ to do an exhibition?

[Martin I. Zing]

Gee, Zing, I find it very interesting that you haven't responded to MarimbasaurusRex's fact-based rebuttals

But I have. And you should know, everything you read is not always a fact.

[Martin I. Zing]

Cirque du Soleil did not morph out of a traditional circus, it came from street performers. Built from the ground up.

Who told you that? Total BS? Sure it did. The Cirque du Soleil company that originally played Calgary and the Santa Monica Pier and finally Las Vegas had some of the greatest circus acts of Europe in their cast. Tested, proven performers all assembled in the same company. Sort of the G7 of circus. The founders of Cirque du Soleil might of at one time been street performers but the "under the light" stars were proven veterans much as Cadets, Blue Devils, Cavaliers, and others will be. Don't let the fictional PR of the sweet, little French Canadian street performers' dream suck you in. There was always a master plan hatched in the sideway cafes of Quebec just as there probably has been one put together on the i-phones along the lonely US highways to nowhere over the last few seasons.

[Martin I. Zing]

According to who?

DCI - Their self-governing, know it all body. Based on this Saturday's results.

[Martin I. Zing]

No 18-22 year older is going to fork over a couple of grand to do exhibitions where along the way he gets to see the country, make new friends,have aspirin available, and maybe gets thrown some useless freebies for all his efforts playing in front of rich people who have no idea why they just plopped down 50- 100 bucks on what they are about to witness. If the G-7 trucks out before the rich and uninitiated anything like the 2010 Blue Devils show, believe me, the circus tent comes crashing down before you can say " Welcome to the Big Top ".

And this is why? Because I forgot the elements of brainwashing, pain and blisters?

[Martin I. Zing]

Actually the non-DC people will look at "SHOW FEATURING THE GREATEST DRUM CORPS IN THE WORLD" and say "What the #### is a Drum Corps and what is this $50 a head ####?".

JimF, I agree with you 100%. This is the challenge. But don't you think Cirque du Soleil had to overcome the same hump when someone said. . . "$100 circus in a tent without elephant or tigers? Are you nuts?" And yet somehow they did it. I'm not saying it will be easy. But I think it can be done.

And I'll tell you why. I've attended a show in Stillwater, MN maybe 4 times in the past 12 years and had to sit through lots of mediocre performances in order to see two or three decent shows. Then on July 17 of this year, I was sitting in a brand new TCF Stadium watching 20+ corps and I again had to sit through some really crummy shows --and I won't name names. But the stadium was gorgeous and the sitelines were beautiful and the sound was fabulous and the crowd was growing throughout the day and then on came the Madison Scouts and lit the place up. Then a few more corps and soon we got to Phantom and the sky opened up and lightning and rains and the show was cancelled before Phantom, Blue Stars and G7 corps could take the field. But I did get to see Glassmen, Troopers, Blue Knights.

And as I sat there I could envision exactly what G7 was talking about based almost entirely on Madison's performance. If you package a 2 and 1/2 hour show with a few gimmicks here and there and give the people what they want. And don't make them sit through all that other crap. Put it in a nice venue with good sound and sightlines and comfortable seating with good lighting and seatbacks and parking and video-boards. Don't make the presentation too obsure and esotheric and make the music familiar and the whole experience touchable and reachable, 10,000 - 15,000 people WILL gladly pay $30.00 or more. AND THEY WANT TO BE ENTERTAINED. THEY MIGHT NOT EVEN CARE ABOUT SCORES OR UNDERSTANDING HOW SCORES WORK. You could even prepare a SPECTACULAR finale with a little patriotic PYRO and send everyone on their way with a smile on their faces. Just like what happens at the end of a Broadway Show or a Cirque du Soleil production.

And I got to thinking if 10,000 show up at TCF stadium to see 23 corps on Saturday, July 17, won't 15,000 show up next year to see the top 7 plus a couple of special guests? And then why won't another 15,000 show up the night before in Madison or the night after in Green Bay or Rockford or Milwaukee or Des Moines? Why do the other 16 corps need to be hauled all around to the same cities as the G7 when all they really do is compromise the quality and impact of the show that the G7 is capable of putting on? What they do is water down the value of the product. They would be better for DC if they were staging shows in a different part of the country at the same time and in smaller markets where they would be better appreciated. I know the truth hurts. But spreading the G7 around to 3 different sites in order to keep them "at the top of the drawing card" in smaller markets is not the best use of their talents. I think they know this and this is what they want to prove to DCI by sticking together and staging their own shows on weekends.

[byline]

But I have. And you should know, everything you read is not always a fact.

Yeah, I've read enough of your posts to see that . . . clearly. Call me silly, but I'm going with the word of someone who actually worked with Cirque over someone who cherry-picks among things he's read to bolster his own opinions about the wonderful world of G7.

[Martin I. Zing]

I'm kind of tired again, but I have enjoyed the banter.

Again, I'm pro DC. I'd like to see G7 and DCI survive. I think there is a need for both of them.

I'd like to see more retro corps like Madison and Troopers continue to thrive. I'd like to see a return to entertainment values and music and shows that are more accessible and had more emotional connection with the audience. But I also like innovation. I'm also a fan of thematic story building and finally you can't beat a little humor and visual magic.

These are all elements of DC that hook me and I hope they never stop.

I think adding woodwinds would be a waste of time.

I can see and appreciate that the money being raised and spent on drum corps is not enough to allow it to continue and something needs to be done to raise this amount. The only way to do this is to increase the numbers in the audience. I don't think there is any other way to substantially raise revenues or to reduce expenses in amounts necessary.

I think leadership is too inbred and needs fresh faces and outside opinions.

Whatever happens will happen and I'll stay a fan.

But now I'm off to take a long nap. Probably won't be able to see any of the finals performances. My old corps should finish in the top 12 and I wish them all the best.

And best wishes to all of you. I know even if you disagree with some of the things I've said that we all are fans of drum corps and that is something we share.

Martin I. Zing

Be sure to dry clean those uniforms at the end of the season!

[JimF-LowBari]

JimF, I agree with you 100%. This is the challenge. But don't you think Cirque du Soleil had to overcome the same hump when someone said. . . "$100 circus in a tent without elephant or tigers? Are you nuts?" And yet somehow they did it. I'm not saying it will be easy. But I think it can be done.

And I'll tell you why. I've attended a show in Stillwater, MN maybe 4 times in the past 12 years and had to sit through lots of mediocre performances in order to see two or three decent shows. Then on July 17 of this year, I was sitting in a brand new TCF Stadium watching 20+ corps and I again had to sit through some really crummy shows --and I won't name names. But the stadium was gorgeous and the sitelines were beautiful and the sound was fabulous and the crowd was growing throughout the day and then on came the Madison Scouts and lit the place up. Then a few more corps and soon we got to Phantom and the sky opened up and lightning and rains and the show was cancelled before Phantom, Blue Stars and G7 corps could take the field. But I did get to see Glassmen, Troopers, Blue Knights.

And as I sat there I could envision exactly what G7 was talking about based almost entirely on Madison's performance. If you package a 2 and 1/2 hour show with a few gimmicks here and there and give the people what they want. And don't make them sit through all that other crap. Put it in a nice venue with good sound and sightlines and comfortable seating with good lighting and seatbacks and parking and video-boards. Don't make the presentation too obsure and esotheric and make the music familiar and the whole experience touchable and reachable, 10,000 - 15,000 people WILL gladly pay $30.00 or more. AND THEY WANT TO BE ENTERTAINED. THEY MIGHT NOT EVEN CARE ABOUT SCORES OR UNDERSTANDING HOW SCORES WORK. You could even prepare a SPECTACULAR finale with a little patriotic PYRO and send everyone on their way with a smile on their faces. Just like what happens at the end of a Broadway Show or a Cirque du Soleil production.

And I got to thinking if 10,000 show up at TCF stadium to see 23 corps on Saturday, July 17, won't 15,000 show up next year to see the top 7 plus a couple of special guests? And then why won't another 15,000 show up the night before in Madison or the night after in Green Bay or Rockford or Milwaukee or Des Moines? Why do the other 16 corps need to be hauled all around to the same cities as the G7 when all they really do is compromise the quality and impact of the show that the G7 is capable of putting on? What they do is water down the value of the product. They would be better for DC if they were staging shows in a different part of the country at the same time and in smaller markets where they would be better appreciated. I know the truth hurts. But spreading the G7 around to 3 different sites in order to keep them "at the top of the drawing card" in smaller markets is not the best use of their talents. I think they know this and this is what they want to prove to DCI by sticking together and staging their own shows on weekends.

And I'll take a guess that CdS gets the majority of it's ticket buyers from people who know what circus' are and would be willing to see circus type entertainment of the right type and price. And I'd also be willing to guess that the CdS crowd is a subset (IOW less numbers) of the circus type fans. Now substitute "circus" for "Drum Corps" for the comparision.

My point is the only way for what you're talking about to work is to get large numbers of people who know nothing about Drum Corps to start going to these non-competitive shows. No expert but I'm willing to bet that CdS did not have to get large numbers of people who knew nothing about circus' to buy tickets. IMO, this is where the CdS and DC comparision falls apart.

And cutting the number of corps at a show so you only see the top corps will not get more people to come to a show. if people don't want to see th e"other" corps, they just come late or stay in the parking lot later. And don't see this bringing in people who have never watched a show.

Edited August 10, 2010 by JimF-LowBari