Your Theater Experience

[garfield]

Blue Stars scaffolding is interesting. Kind of overwhelming. Drumlins all on platform scares me. Guard outfit is sad. Not good visually. Too much synth. BUT great horn work and drums. This show needs more contrast. Will the scaffolding hold up for dozens of shows?

Thanks for reminding me...

Blue Stars, love the ramps. But they don't work. Or rather, they only work for the people down low.

There were several high-camera shots and, up there, the perception of the scaffolding is that those kids on it are simply farther back on the field. The perception of height is lost up high, when it's very clear (and cool) down low. I have no idea where the transition point is to "can't see it" level, but if only a 1/3 of the stadium can get the height effect, is it worth the risk and gas to haul them around?

Just my .02, and I love the height when I'm sitting down low.

[Plan9]

Congratulations to Carolina Crown and The Cavies for coming out of the blocks the best this season and ending an amazing run for the Blue Devils. Now if you look in your rear view mirror and see something blue behind you, keep in mind that......."objects may be closer than they appear!"

[sax1210]

Went to a theater in Tampa, Florida.

The sound was, as many have stated, far too quiet for my tastes.

Speaking as a harsh critic of BD 09 and 10, I actually enjoyed the music book far more this year. The drill still seems a bit slow to me but I am open to changing my opinion.

Cavies were great, thought the stilts concept was a little gimmicky but it worked to some degree. The horns were way more on top of the book than previous years, and wow Gaines has done it again with that visual program. Upside tenor players got the most reaction from the theater crowd out of anything the whole night.

Bluecoats were good, but as far as design goes this year does not seem to measure up to last year's breakthrough. Has some great potential as a show though once it gets clean.

As a strong Crown fan for a while now, I can say that I am thoroughly disappointed in this year's program. The worst part of the show to me was that they dodged a chance to hit that "dark chocolate" sound a la Phantom 95 in ROATOP. They completely cut out the climax of that piece and that was unacceptable to me. I thought the whole show was incredibly corny. The whole show just feels to me like a waste of some incredible talent.

Cadets were amazing! The sound at our theater seemed to be lower during this part but the horns still sounded awesome and the drill is, well it's a Cadets book, in a class of its own. I thought the different uniforms/corps were staged beautifully.

Phantom has never looked this tight visually this early, at least to me. I think that this show has the most potential for growth out of all of the shows tonight, and I mean that in a good sense. Once this show gets truly polished, it is going to be remarkable. This music choices for me really puts it over the top.

Unlike most people I really like what SCV has done this year. Unfortunately, the dirt of their show really covered up some of the best parts. If they can push hard until the end of the season this show can be really well done, or it can be a disaster.

The Tarpon Springs, I mean Blue Stars, drum and bugle corps, was really not as bad as some people are making it out to be. The synths are obviously too high, and I am not very keen on the "Bassoon" solo (you'll see what I mean). Overall, I think this program has a lot fo dirt now but definitely has strong potential.

There were about 75 people in the Theater, a pretty strong turn out for this early. I liked being able to see the corps this early with this quality. DCI should keep it.

[MJH]

First off, let me say I'm an old school guy. I don't really get the need to amplify mallets and front ensemble drums. I'm not a big fan of synths and vocals.

All that said, I REALLY liked what Blue Stars did with that stuff! If you're going to have synths, make the most of them! I loved the added pedal tones. I liked the drum machine sounds. I even liked the "balloon filled with air...then slowly let it squeal out" sound. Oh, I thought the scaffolding was way cool, too!

Garfield had the coolest drill of the night.

Cavies show looked like a mid season show. Just awesome.

Crown entertained!

BD had a great music book but they win the ugliest uniform change.

I can't wait to see Bluecoats live to hear how all those tubas sound.

SCV's cymbal line stole the show for me.

Just a few quick thoughts.

[perc2100]

Interesting, IMO, that they kept last night's performance order. It kind of seems counterintuitive in a sense to put the best corps first and the "worst" corps (placement wise) last: they kind of blow their wad in the first hour and the end of the broadcast is anticlimactic and kind of sputters to a close. I guess it's cool that they kept the experience "pure" by putting the shows in true performance order, but it still seems kind of weird from a pacing stand-point.

[dandaman31]

My first thought as I left the theater was that I was extrememly impressed by how prepared all eight corps were (although the cavaliers still have a few sets to learn). That said, I did have favorites, and least favorites.

Blue Stars- They know how to put on a finals-possible show. But the music selection was not worthy of drum corps. They played the s*** out of it, but it really has no place on the field. They look great for only their second show and I really look forward to seeing them in August. (synth was WAY too loud)

SCV- After being disappointed with their show last year, I have renewed hope in SCV. They have some great source music and their brass sounds really good. Not the most memorable show though, I remember their encore more than the show...

Phantom- LOVE the new uniforms and all female guard! I've been wondering, did they just tell all the male guard members to get lost, or how did that work? Phantoms musical selections always get me going. Huge fan of classical music and they always deliver. Brass sounds great and despite losing their entire percussion staff, they are doing a fine job so far.

Cadets- JEEZ!! They are HAWLING A** THE ENTIRE SHOW!!! Love the idea of having two sides pitted against each other! Brass sounded pretty good, but the book needs some work. Guard looked amazing and percussion is doing a great job this early in the season.

Crown- What a change from last season. From dark and classical, to bright and modern. They really know how to get the crowd into their shows! I loved the first half till after their rendition of "Eruption", but then things got a little flat to me. But if the wind hadn't already knocked everyone's hats of, the cream team's sound would have! Holy smokes can they play! The production needs a lot of work to get the second half as good as the first.

Blue Coats- I was very impressed by this corps! After sort of coming out of no where (in my oppinion) last year, they seem ready to defend their medal, if not do better this year. Brass sounds great and I'm loving the book. Percussion blew me away! Still looks like the beginning of season, but that might be because it is

Cavies- So clean! And man are they moving too! I'm never really impressed with their brass, but they sounded great tonight; very full and balanced. One of the only guards that really impressed me, but it must have been hard for them in constant 20 mph winds with gust up to 50... This show has TONS of potential. They did not march for the last minute or so of the show because they have a few more sets to learn, bringing their total up to 250! Last year with crown, we had about 180

Blue Devils- NOT impressed. They started the night, which was probably the first time that had ever happened, and the audio and video went out for about five minutes of the show, but I couldn't believe this was the same corps that went undefeated last year... There was only one recognizeable "drill move" and way to much interaction with props. Not enough marching and more walking to sets. On the other hand, its very nice to hear a melody coming from the 14 time champs But it still didn't sound like first place quality. Individual brass stuck out more than in any other corps. I know this show will improve probably more than any other show being put on the field this season so I am excited to see it in August.

So for the theater, I was in Fairfax, VA and as I said before, there were a few times, during the performances, when audio and video would cut out completely for a few minutes, VERY frusturating. After the first two corps, that stopped, but I still wanted it to be louder. Guess that means I have to go to a live show! There were probably a hundred people there with not much crowd response. The only applause was for crown, cadets and phantom...

Edited June 21, 2011 by dandaman31

[Geneva]

About 150 in Revere, MA.

Sound too low at the beginning better the last couple corps.

I thought BD were pretty flat. I was surprised at the number of young faces. Seems like they had a lot of turn over. Screamers were good (nice double C early on), but I think Cavaliers' were even better.

Love the foot precision of the Cavaliers. Very strong performance overall. The upside down multi-tom solo will be one of the memorable gimmicks of the season.

I love Bluecoats' dark driving sound and was surprised that they did not place higher.

For me, Crown was the most enjoyable performance which surprised me since I was skeptical about how well they would be able to sell a show based on rock music. I loved the counterpoint with classical music. I think the concept of how drum corps musicians are striving to be the rock stars of the student instrumental world is right on.

Phantom's performance did not reach me and Elsa sounded underdone.

Cadets were too frenetic for me, but a solid performance.

SCV's show concept very cerebral and not fan friendly. It almost seemed like they were thumbing their nose at Cesario's preachings. Their drum line is a definite wow factor.

Blue Stars win the "thunderous goo" trophy. I liked their show and the ramps/platform is an interesting staging mechanism.

All in all, the corps were amazingly polished for the second show of the season.

[mcjordansc]

Pretty full theater in Myrtle Beach. Of course, many Crown fans and what appeared to be a large group rooting for the Cadets.

My initial thoughts:

Blue Devils - wonderful music, great guard. Very much enjoyed their show.

Cavaliers - My first thought was this is the type of Cavaliers show that can win it all. Another well balanced corps am looking forward to watching them grow throughout the year.

Bluecoats - Great horn sound and drumming. This is a show that will be much more interesting after the guard work is all in (or when conditions allow it all). Maybe a little slow at the start. The "where the hell am I" section did not add much in my opinion and I would not be surprised if it is pulled.

Crown - another show that can win it all. Great sound and look. They need to pick it up a little later in the show, but you can see they will be a crowd favorite this year. This was the first corps the crowd in the theater really appluaded for, but being in SC, that is understandable.

Cadets - about halfway through their show I thought, these guys are great. They really move and still sound great throughout the show. Another championship contender.

Phantom - they always seem to put something beautiful on the field. They appeared the most ready for the weekend execution wise, but that may be due to a little less demand.

SCV - such a difficult show. Truthfully, I expected LESS from them considering some of the comments posted here by people who attended the shows this weekend. Their design is top notch and their drums are championship level. The brass is lagging, but I think they will be fine. This is a show that could move them up a step or two by August.

Blue Stars - great response from the crowd in the theater. Big sound helped by great use of synthesizer. Some people will not like them because of the electronics they use, but I think it adds greatly to the show. To me it seemed as if there were more obvious GE moments than last year. I thought the scaffolding was actually a little under used. I assume we will see it more integrated as the year goes on. This is another show that could jump a few places during the next month. I was surprised by their placement, but I would not be too concerned if I was with the corps. They were basically ten points behind Crown on Saturday and four and half back from them on Sunday. Things will tighten up and places will change over the next few weeks.

Overall, I pretty good showing by last year's top eight. I did not see any of them taking a big step back from last year. If other corps displace any of the corps I saw tonight in the top eight, that means we are going to have a great year of drum corps.

I thought the placements should be:

1) Cavaliers

2) Blue Devils

3) Crown / Cadets tie

5) Bluecoats

6) Phantom / Blue Stars tie

8) SCV

I think we will have a much more competitive year at the top with three or four corps close for first.

[Forevergreen]

Let's see..Watched at Regal in Columbus. Let's see....Like the Devils show--ran out of steam-but I think the heat also helped that happen. Championship show ? Not so sure. Cavaliers- great show- alot of GE..will be interesting to see how this does as things progress. Drill is insane and they play well- with a great volume. Love the guard. Definitely a show to challenge in August. Bluecoats- liked the show. Alot like last year's, but still very good. Crown: Cool show. 1st half is great, they kind of lose me in the second half. If they can kick up the second half of this show- watch out- August can be owned by them. Cadets- this is the best Cadet show I have seen since '00. My only complaint- demons in pepto bismol pink and WTF with the "main angel" who is in my mom's white bathrobe ? They play well, the uniform contrast works. This show will challenge in August. Phantom- They play well, but as with most of these corps they are marching the show-but the emotion is not there yet. Left me a bit flat. SCV- like the music, like the drill- but it needs ALOT of work- both visually and musically. Blue Stars- the beginning of the show is great and then it turns into a cheesy half time band show, but then they come around at the end. SCV and Blue Stars have their work cut out to stay in the top 8 this year.

[chaddyt]

Regal Cinema in Harrisburg, PA.

I'd say about 100 people there, give or take. Cadets got the best reaction (lots of maroon t-shirts).

My thoughts on the corps:

BD - Melody! Little indifferent about the show at this point. Not really getting the purpose of the stuff on the field. Adds some cool visual, but.. not sure why it's there.

Cavies - These guys came out like they want a championship. Very aggressive. Very in your face. Very... Cavies.

Bloo - Diggin it. More so than last year. You can tell they want to build upon their success from 2010.

Crown - I heard the show on Voldemort's site and was left flat. Seeing the show in the theaters, I did a 180. This is a fun show. Not sure how it will stack up in the end, but it's typical Crown.

Cadets - Clean this puppy up and they may be looking at #10.

Phantom - Some great musical moments. Guard is a big step up from them. Hard to say how it will shake out. Get the impression they have to get past the technical aspect and start "feeling" the show.

SCV - Left me a tad flat. Appreciate what they're trying to do. Just... I don't know.

Blue Stars - LOUD. Not sure if the theater cranked the volume for them, but dang. Amps need toned down a lot, but I like seeing this more aggressive side of them. Think they pull it off well.