George Dixon Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 1 minute ago, Cappybara said: Clearly GH's mind was far too advanced for me to comprehend that's one way to put it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terri Schehr Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 5 minutes ago, George Dixon said: that's when I unfriend someone I did. Poof. Off into internet space. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FTNK Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 (edited) 7 hours ago, Jake W. said: I still can't help but feel it's "lipstick on a pig" (the show the show the show! Not at all this wonderfully talented corps). The pacing and overall outline of the show is still fairly bizarre and unclear, and, to me, the feeling still bleeds through that this skilled group of performers was given a poorly-designed and amateur program to clean all season while the staff works hard on the fly to turn it into something worthy of the performers. Amateur is the word that keeps coming up in my head too. A show about female empowerment and a Queen (I guess? based on videos); let’s put Marie Antoinette on the field! Let’s put... male and female symbols on the rifles! Get it? It just seems like their are so many more artistic ways to portray this (literalism is a plague in drum corps generally, but The Cadets usually manage to be the worst). No offense, but what are Darcie Aungst’s show design credentials? Edited June 30, 2019 by FTNK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 (edited) 2 minutes ago, FTNK said: Amateur is the word that keeps coming up in my head too. A show about female empowerment and a Queen (I guess? based on videos); let’s put Marie Antoinette on the field! Let’s put... male and female symbols on the rifles! Get it? It just seems like their are so many more artistic ways to portray this (literalism is a plague in drum corps generally, but The Cadets usually manage to be the worst). No offense, but what are Darcie Aungst’s show design credentials? It has gotten to the point where I just associate literalism In drum corps with the Cadets I've been running my soap box about this corps being too literal for years Edited June 30, 2019 by Cappybara 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skevinp Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 22 minutes ago, Cappybara said: Clearly GH's mind was far too advanced for me to comprehend Or for most anyone, apparently. Don't know how they will find 12 other such people to comprise a jury of his peers. 1 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Dixon Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 13 minutes ago, FTNK said: Amateur is the word that keeps coming up in my head too. A show about female empowerment and a Queen (I guess? based on videos); let’s put Marie Antoinette on the field! Let’s put... male and female symbols on the rifles! Get it? It just seems like their are so many more artistic ways to portray this (literalism is a plague in drum corps generally, but The Cadets usually manage to be the worst). No offense, but what are Darcie Aungst’s show design credentials? I also agree with the design observations. I guess they've heard the feedback and realized some of the errors. Hopefully we'll see additions and changes in the coming weeks. As others have said - the members are improving rapidly so it's the show issues... As a fan I offer my support and patience - they aren't the ones guilty of the past "literal shows" but they must work to improve this one. It's also typically the case that when design teams are formed there are bound to be some personality issues and growing pains. That seems to be the case in the program conception as well as the ousting of the original drill guy. Not a perfect situation but this is where things are. Cadets (IMO) have always been about teaching the value of choosing one's attitude and working hard. I trust they will: She has an impressive resume (I got this from YEA.org): Bachelor of Science, Education - Rhode Island College Master of Arts, Education - Cambridge College Darcie Aungst joins the 2019 Cadets as the first female Artistic Director in the corps history! For the past 25 years, Darcie has been the Show Designer, Show Coordinator, Choreographer, and Costume & Set Designer for the five-time Scholastic World Champion Dartmouth High School Indoor Percussion. Through her design, leadership, and teamwork the group has medaled an amazing 17 times and has always ranked in the top five in the World Class Division. Darcie toured for 11 years with the Marauders Drum and Bugle Corps as a member, instructor, choreographer, and designer. She has choreographed several musicals on both the West and East Coasts. Her educational background includes Health Education, Dance, and Educational Leadership; she also studied classical piano for 11 years in her home state of Washington. During her day job, Darcie is the Principal of two separate urban elementary schools in New Bedford, Massachusetts where she lives with her son Noah who marches in the Dartmouth High School Percussion Ensemble. Her eldest son, Alan, marched with the Spartans, Carolina Crown, for three years with the Blue Devils, and four years with RCC Indoor Percussion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwillis35 Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 9 hours ago, Cappybara said: Yup. More shows like 2013 and 2015 please Overall I agree with you here. Both 2013 and 2015 were concept-based shows. Cadets design team still managed to screw things up (or someone did) and both shows had a lack of clarity, GE, and a big element of "cheeseyness" to them. But overall I do prefer the concept show to a more literal-based theme show. Unless you're really good at story telling and know how to stage something like that, I say avoid it. The Cadets in 2013 and 2015 had killer brass, percussion, they were fantastic marchers (incredible body control and technique) and they marched their buns off. The music to both shows was fun and exciting and very demanding. I actually believe they were intending on this show being more a concept about empowering and celebrating women. They've likely gone too far with the intro, but I actually do think the bulk of this show is workable. If they completely strip the Queen and character acting from the onset and find another way to sell the idea at the intro of the show, I do believe they can turn this into an exciting production. The music is really good for the most part. I would personally re-work some of the ballad (Bridge over...) and work for more emotion and lift. Otherwise I am very much enjoying the music and the great brass and percussion performance they are bringing to the field. They sound terrific. Talented corps!!! I think come August this group will be marching their tail-ends off, sounding fantastic, and will have some truly excellent GE music moments to share with the fans. Let's see if the visual catches up by season's end. I hope it does. The closer has a chance to be big standing ovation stuff come Finals! Go Cadets! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwillis35 Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 14 minutes ago, George Dixon said: She has an impressive resume (I got this from YEA.org): I agree with your take, George. I did not quote everything for brevity, but I also wanted to point out that I also do not think Darcie is the problem. I actually like some of the conceptual things they are doing visually. Darcie worked with BD and RCC for years and I like that the Cadets are incorporating some BD-like staging, transition, and body ideas into this program. There are moments that the show is very BD like. I am fine with that because it is another way to develop a show, and even if the Cadets don't use this style all the time, I do believe they need to learn the process and development stages necessary to make such design work. It takes time. Not everything about the visual program is bad. Some of it is simply unfinished. BD is in the same boat right now. Much stronger show, of course, and a more experience corps; but they are not yet the BD that many are expecting to see come late July, early August. My enthusiasm is growing for the Cadets as I continue to see updated video showing the quality of the members and the great music book. I do believe this show will come together and be great FUN for fans at Finals. Can't wait to see them live. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 Interesting comments. Just a few thoughts after seeing Cadets live: I saw the show last evening in Lawrence. I was far less troubled by what I saw last night than what I saw in the movie theater. I’m not sure it was tweaked a bit or whether it was the camera angle. The reason I say this is a Cadets staff person who sat in front of me said what some people claimed was the Queen’s dress being torn off was actually people helping her lose the dress quickly. I’m not sure I buy it, but last night it did not appear as problematic. It still does look a bit too Disney Princess to me. Still the show is reasonably solid. Last night the audience responded well to the show. The drill is fast paced, there were great brass moments, and as others have mentioned the percussion is excellent and adds a certain bravado to the show. I know many with Cadets want to see an instant return to glory. That’s not how it always happens. Most of what has plagued the corps is due to a too long tenure of a director and his rubber stamp board. Removing the cause of the problem does not make the residue and aftermath go away instantly. Last year was a let’s show them we can do this year, and they did. This is the beginning of the real rebuilding. The staff needs to gel and come together and things need to continue to happen in a positive way. 6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corps8294 Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 "That is what he said..." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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