Opening Night!

[Ghost]

2 hours ago, henry7184 said:

 as you say, accidents do happen.  

Which are usually preventable.

[lanceengland]

Xmen and Blue Stars were OK.

I actually liked Cadets. It was on the good side of a hot mess, in that I think it will get cleaned up over the next weeks. The chorus parts worked; the spoken words did not.

I just didn't like Cavaliers. :( I was expecting more Green machine and Mars to blow my face off. 

The first two Crown pieces were fantastic. The best part of the night. I'm luke-warm at best on the singer. Lots of potential in the show.

Bloo. I think the stage is already an icon of the 2017 season. Very creative. Not crazy about the uniforms. Also three things that evoked memories of "Feliniesque" (but maybe thats just me):

1. The long white stage crossing the field

2. Tenor feature at the end of a quiet moment that ends with a bell chime

3. The fishnet and guard feature.

The show has tons of potential in this show too. 

I'm not set in my ways (I don't think). I cheered as loud as anyone last year for Bloo to win. I think if I had to sum it up its "Don't just throw crap on the field for the sake of throwing crap on the field".  This phenomenon is certainly not new to this year.

I anxiously await what BD, SCV, Regiment, and Madison bring this year. Oh, and Academy! 

I give tons of respect to all designers and performers. I think season premiers are tough because finals are still fresh and it is a very unfair comparison.

[Ghost]

33 minutes ago, CrownBariDad said:

 $20 for 2 small bottled waters, small soft drink, and small bag of Skittles.  Ugh!

BYO has always worked for me.

[jjeffeory]

10 hours ago, kdaddy said:

I told some friends last night - if BD and SCV saw the broadcast last night, they couldn't be happier. 

And while I think Regiment is going to struggle performance-wise (show is pretty difficult, it sounds), last night should give them some hope.

So you're saying that the corps last night are bad, or the corps out West are just so much better?

[TRacer]

Here on the laid back island of Oahu there was only one theater that had the cinecast. The theater was about half full with mostly middle & high school age kids, some of whom I recognized from my indoor judging obligations earlier this year.

Crossmen – I missed them due to traffic that piled up getting into the parking structure. I was cross.

Blue Stars – Loved the look and the demand. The transition to Lady Marmelade was early-season awkward, and for those of us who used to dance to this tune BITD and know the lyrics (including the classic line in Creole French) I’m not so sure how it fits into a love story theme when the song is straight up about a hook up, all pun intended. 

Cavaliers – my favorite and certainly the “OMG!” corps for the drummers in our audience, particularly during the rotating tenor feature. I got the impression the MMs really have fun with this show, and Cavies garnered the loudest theater reaction of the night. HOWEVER….where is the section of the show where all the MMs come together in a choir formation for the 4-part “AHHHhhhhhhh……MENnnnn!” ?? At one point I was reminded of a tune from Martin Mull’s 1977 “I’m Everyone I’ve Ever Loved” album.

Cadets – I like to drink wine, so after seeing this show I’m going to put my thoughts into the form of a wine critique:  “Subtle yet unassuming, with a slightly delicate afternose. While I found its legs lacking, in the spirit of a Boone’s Farm or MD 20/20, it pours well. Furthermore, it is entirely possible for a grown man to drink enough of it to obtain an honest buzz without inducing hypoglycemic shock, if one were so inclined. Overall a junk wine, albeit one suitable for framing.”        

Crown – I am utterly conflicted, as I’ve been a huge Crown fan for a number of years now and I know they’re trying to get a point across. However, I get the sense Crown is staking their claim to DCI’s “Most Outstanding Waste of a Multiple Jim Ott-Award Winning Hornline” Award. One the upside, their brass took the High Volume Award hands down. Where was this drumline last year?  Also, the caption under the name that appeared before they stepped off should have read “Carolina Crown – Winner 2016 Outstanding Brass Performance AND Outstanding Visual Performance AND Outstanding Color Guard”.  This might be a year they don’t medal.   

Bluecoats – Very much BLAST-esque. Lots of energy; I heard a few kids say “Yikes! Ouch…” when the drummer went down on screen. The “running snake/follow me” was huge. A well-deserved top placing!

[Jurassic Lancer]

5 hours ago, sadtrombonesound said:

Quite agree. When I saw the snare go down, all I could think of was the Tilt ramps. First impression was that a lot of the drill revolved around that ramp on the front of the "jagged line", so if it does become an issue (and I hope it doesn't) it may be hard to make those changes quickly. But I am not an expert at all

I spoke with someone in the know. The prop was a lot wetter than anyone knew. The issue was addressed at length this morning.

[Triple Forte]

29 minutes ago, Ghost said:

BYO has always worked for me.

 Would've cost at least $30 at a New Jersey or New York sports venue :)

[CrownBariDad]

3 hours ago, CrownBariDad said:

Just some random thoughts.  Most of the show critiques have been covered in the thread:

I was in a theater just north of Atlanta (heart of Spirit country).  I estimate there were 400+ folks there -- small stadium seating, about 20 seats per row, probably 20+ rows in the stadium portion, plus seating on the floor in front of the raised seating.  I think I saw a T-shirt for each of the Corps competing, many of them 2017 Tour shirts.  I think the ages tended towards the younger folks.  Video and audio excellent.

The audience was very receptive.  They applauded after each performance (delayed somewhat if unsure the performance was over) and also cheered big brass hits, nice guard tosses, and well -- snare drummers being snare drummers.  (LOL)  Twirling Tenors got a big (positive) response.

While a Spirit stronghold (Freddy Martin attended a few years ago), over the years I've found the audience to also be Crown fans.  Crown got a good reception, but there was strong support for Cavies and Bluecoats.  Of course, there were cheers when the Powder Springs, GA show was announced.

I was impressed with Blue Stars in their Preview show with the Cavies.  I was still impressed after last night's performance.  I thought they should have scored/placed higher.

(As posted in the Atlanta stadium thread)  When they were interviewing Dan Acheson, folks were generally not paying too much attention and there was a lot of hub-bub going on.  When he was asked about the new Atlanta stadium, the theater suddenly got deathly quiet.  I almost laughed out loud.

At the end of Bloo's show, there are 2 trumpet (screamer) soloists.  The young man is someone I've known since he was a youngster.  He's a great guy as are his musical family.  This is his 3rd year with 'Coats and I think he is only a Freshman in college.  I really hope he sticks with Bloo until he ages out.  Sadly, the mic cut out during his solo, but there will be other opportunities to hear him play.

I got a running commentary from The Daughter about:  Oh, I marched with him or she goes to my school.  Small world is DCI.

Crown vocalist:  I didn't have any problems with her performance and enjoyed it a lot.  As she entered the field, a group behind me must have known her because they shouted her name and cheered.

$20 for 2 small bottled waters, small soft drink, and small bag of Skittles.  Ugh!

I know I'm forgetting something, but that's about all for now.

 

OK, I remember.  Two items:

French horn soloist -- Sorry I forgot which Corps, but REALLY great and didn't give up on that last note!

Close-up Gremlin:  Was somewhat evident, but has decided to add to his bag of tricks.  When I saw the close-up of the Blue Stars keyboardist, I was thinking "Uh oh!  She's toast!"  But then it ricocheted to her next door neighbor who didn't have any sounds.  Luckily, after a few anxious seconds, all was well.  I'd have been a nervous wreck -- from many past experiences with live electronic concerts.

[Narrow]

My thoughts.

Crossmen - It was okay. The props are an interesting way to show a caged or maze-like feel, but not sure how it fits the production most of the time. It had some nice music moments, but overall I kind of liked last years a bit more. I think this show is good enough to keep them in finals, but it'll take some good cleaning and fixes.

Blue Stars - Great music, probably my favorite of the night. Ending Gatsby section is still weak, and the vocal stuff just doesn't fit at all. Pretty strong vehicle for them to progress with though. Could see them pushing a rank or 2 throughout the season, depending on what happens around them.

Cadets - I actually thought the choir worked for a lot of the show, just need to fix some balance issues towards the second half where I could barely hear the brass at points. It has potential, but it's definitely not a strong opening for what I expect from the Cadets. I liked the first 2 uniforms a lot, and absolutely despise the last one. I don't think the show's quite good enough to get them a medal but I could see them improving from last year.

Cavaliers - It kind of works, but I'm just not in love with it like I was with 2014, 2016. The electronic tuba just sounds raunchy but fits the sneering tone. I think the show needs more time and more watches before I can appreciate it. 

Crown - Great. Not as emotionally impactful as past shows for me, but the ballad is really nice. Vocalist does need to be cut here and there imo to let the brass take the center stage more often. I think they'll be in medal territory, not sure it'll be a gold though.

Bluecoats - Ballad is probably one of their weakest in years. With that said it's still a strong show and I could see them fighting for gold. It's nothing I didn't expect though, which has it's pros and cons. I think the show will be everything people want by the end. 

[mingusmonk]

10 hours ago, mingusmonk said:

 

Bluecoats

We watched some rehearsal yesterday before final ensemble got rained out. Talked to a few folks and learned some details that definitely affected my interpretation of the opening performance. They are behind where they were during opening day last year (my words). Which is fascinating. There was much more last minute work going on. Discussions after the rainout revealed they had only had 4 full run-throughs before last night. And the 1 full dress run through they had did not included the closer because they weren't done learning it yet. Last night's performance was the first "complete" full dress run. Not sure what the theater was showing at the end, but the battery hype ... shouting, screaming, tears ... was legit celebration of a true accomplishment. There is a lot on these kids' shoulders and they went for it hard. I'll let everyone else break this show down because obviously I'm biased. But one thing I mentioned in the official Bluecoats thread that I should repeat: The ballad will only work live. I just don't see how the DCI/Flomarching production crew has the capability to capture and share what is really going on there musically. 

 

And here is a snapshot of that very moment.

 

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Photo Credit. Jon Braude Photography