Popular Post Jim Schehr Posted July 22, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted July 22, 2018 59 minutes ago, SFZFAN said: It's simple really. Drum Corps has become far less entertaining than it used to be. Many of these productions don't translate or communicate well to the audience. It is unfortunate that the activity has become monkey see monkey do. Very few come up with a creative, original idea. My heart goes out to marching members - they're only a reflection of what was put in front of and/or on them. Truth be told, if I never see some of these productions again this season, I won't feel like I missed anything. For me it's about the music and marching and the quality of performance. I miss the high velocity intricate marching drills which are now replaced with jumping, hopping, skipping, running, posing, twirling, laying down, ballet, dancing, and now gymnastic tumbling, not to mention the pushing, pulling, dragging, lifting, climbing, standing and riding of props. Only a few corps have the prop thingie down - most props are horribly made and grossly underutilzed. My polite applause at the end of a performance is not always for the production but instead for the marching members trying to do the best with what they were given, and a reason to stretch my legs. 13 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terri Schehr Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 1 hour ago, George Dixon said: or maybe they are watching finals videos? I know last year at finals there were tons of standing Os And I was leading the way from the front row. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SFZFAN Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 13 minutes ago, Jim Schehr said: Many of these productions don't translate or communicate well to the audience. It is unfortunate that the activity has become monkey see monkey do. Very few come up with a creative, original idea. My heart goes out to marching members - they're only a reflection of what was put in front of and/or on them. Truth be told, if I never see some of these productions again this season, I won't feel like I missed anything. For me it's about the music and marching and the quality of performance. I miss the high velocity intricate marching drills which are now replaced with jumping, hopping, skipping, running, posing, twirling, laying down, ballet, dancing, and now gymnastic tumbling, not to mention the pushing, pulling, dragging, lifting, climbing, standing and riding of props. Only a few corps have the prop thingie down - most props are horribly made and grossly underutilzed. My polite applause at the end of a performance is not always for the production but instead for the marching members trying to do the best with what they were given, and a reason to stretch my legs. Well said. Pretty much exactly how I feel. Not even wasting $$ to watch online anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 (edited) Finals Night, you've got the rabid fans, and as such its a genuinely more energized crowd. Its the last performance of the season for these finalists. Its THIS audience, we see and hear on all the DVD's usually. Not the early season shows usually. Show venues too have their own " culture " in terms of levels of audience engagement and their response to shows. Some are just more vocal to begin with. Others more laid back. We see this ( for example ) in MLB games, locales, fanbases. Equally good teams will have fans distinctly different during the games. Some laid back and mostly quiet.. others, in other locales, on the edge of their seat on every pitch, and found standing up in the 5th inning when there are 2 outs, 2 strikes on the batter.. and its just the 5th inning. Also, if Corps design shows meant to reach audiences on an emotional basis, then they naturally will respond emotionally. And that typically invites louder, more visible, audible resonses. Case in point, look at the 95 Madison Scouts show. ( its on Youtube, for the young, or the unfamiliar ). The show is designed to pop an emotional reaction from audiences. There really is nothing " intellectual " about the show, at all. By Madison Scouts choice that season. The brass line plays loud.. very loud.. So its gets a loud response from the audience. On the other hand, if a Corps.. by choice... decides to make their show an " intellectual " and unemotional show, they will tend to get an unemotional response from most audiences,. Again, we are not surprised with such. Do Corps tend to design more shows today that involve highly complex, nuanced themes requiring more understanding of the theme, background and familiarity with the theme's inspiration ? Yes. although we still have Corps staffs who intend to reach audiences at a gut level, an emotional tug with their shows and their show designs. Finally, do Corps and show sponsors still put out program books that audiences can read a little bit about what the year's show theme is, and what its supposed to convey ? Oh heavens no. Programs books that are handed out to ticket purchasers so that they can read what the themes for that season is is a rarity these days now. Ironically, as Corps move toward what they would like to be considered as Art and Theatre Productions, they have surprisingly seemed to have forgotten that most Theatre productions, and Art Museums have program books that explain the storyline of the Production or the thought process behind the Art Piece. How many in today's DCI audiences understand the intellectual constructs behind the intellectual approached shows ? I think most of us here know the answer to this :. Its few. So knowing this, if audiences seem a bit tepid with the themes conveyed in Corps shows that are more geared for intellectual stimulation, is this not to be expected when so little attention has been given to them via show program books or other means to engage them intellecually prior, in the first place ? Edited July 22, 2018 by BRASSO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheClutch Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 (edited) It's harder to wow audiences when they can watch anything that has ever been created on their portable computer from any location. It's also harder to 1 up last year each year because it's harder to find something that hasn't been done. Watch any individual member and they're moving more than almost any other year. We just become numb to it. What used to be a halt is now choreography. What used to be marching is now running. If your only answer is "because drum corps has gotten worse," delete your account. Why are you still here? Edited July 22, 2018 by TheClutch 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alphabetmonkey Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 Was watching old YouTube videos from early 1990s concerts I attended (Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails) and in the comments people are awestruck at how much fun people seem to be having at concerts then compared to now. Dancing, mosh pits, etc. Someone commented on how now, everyone stands in the audience with their phones up recording the thing rather than enjoying the event. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terri Schehr Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 1 minute ago, alphabetmonkey said: Was watching old YouTube videos from early 1990s concerts I attended (Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails) and in the comments people are awestruck at how much fun people seem to be having at concerts then compared to now. Dancing, mosh pits, etc. Someone commented on how now, everyone stands in the audience with their phones up recording the thing rather than enjoying the event. That is so sad. I saw a young woman at a show this year who barely looked up from her phone to enjoy the great entertainment right in front of her. It was really sad. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms.L Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said: That is so sad. I saw a young woman at a show this year who barely looked up from her phone to enjoy the great entertainment right in front of her. It was really sad. Edited July 22, 2018 by Ms.L Wrong url Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
year1buick Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 I was a little self aware about this last night. I enthusiastically applauded the corps and even stood with those around me when ovations occurred but, honestly, I kinda felt sometimes like I was just going through the motions. I just wasn’t feeling it, I guess. It’s not really something I can help, though. I’m either really excited by a performance, or I’m not. Most of the time, I guess I wasn’t. That’s not to say I wasn’t impressed— I was thoroughly impressed almost all night long. More so than I’ve probably ever been. But I guess I just wasn’t having an emotional response or connection to the shows like I used to but that’s not to say others didn’t. I’m not sure what to think about it. I still had a ton of fun, though. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms.L Posted July 22, 2018 Share Posted July 22, 2018 This is what I tried to reply on Terri's post. https://mashable.com/2015/10/05/viral-red-carpet-photo/#dNVIH2YbMaqKhttps://mashable.com/2015/10/05/viral-red-carpet-photo/#dNVIH2YbMaqK 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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