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The Cadets 2019


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6 minutes ago, Poppycock said:

I’ve got a few minutes. Please explain the idea of this production because I’m not getting it. 

 

 

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6 minutes ago, Poppycock said:

Just because she said so doesn’t make it so. I don’t get any of that and I’ve seen it several times now. 

OK.  But it's what you asked for 🙂

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6 minutes ago, Poppycock said:

Do you think they’re conveying that story without explanation? I don’t! 

OK, that's a different question. You talked about whether the artistic director could articulate the show in a few minutes. I demonstrated that she did. Now you want the show to stand without any explanation.

 

45 minutes ago, Poppycock said:

I have a simple philosophy when it comes to understanding theme productions. If it takes the artistic director more than a few minutes to articulate what the show is about, then there is the likelihood that it will be a colossal failure. I’m waiting for a WOW moment in this Cadet production to appear. Hope it comes soon! 

 

38 minutes ago, Poppycock said:

I’ve got a few minutes. Please explain the idea of this production because I’m not getting it. 

 

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46 minutes ago, chris ncsu said:

OK, that's a different question. You talked about whether the artistic director could articulate the show in a few minutes. I demonstrated that she did. Now you want the show to stand without any explanation.

 

 

 

Whatever! I don’t get it and I don’t believe I’m the only one. 

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2 minutes ago, Poppycock said:

Whatever! I don’t get and I don’t believe I’m the only one. 

That's fair. I have a huge list of shows I don't get, and some of them won, so whatever who am I?

The last video I saw, I mostly did "get it" until the closer.

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53 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

I think they are consumed with other matters and lawyers right now

I really don't know what you know about the Cadets, nor do I care. However, your statement about lawyers is totally insensitive and possibly damaging to the Cadets organization. If a parent of a member reads your statement there may be some serious concerns about what their child is involved with. You really need to think before you type!

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1 minute ago, dans said:

If a parent of a member reads your statement there may be some serious concerns about what their child is involved with. You really need to think before you type!

Get real will you dans!

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So my major issue with the show is actually structural, not thematic. Don’t get me wrong, the whole theme was a poor choice (just a little TOO on the nose) and it’s not even being realized particularly clearly. But the poorly-constructed architecture of the show is what I believe to be unfixable at this point. The music book in particular reads far below the level of the corps’ performing abilities: six or seven unrelated, disparate pieces of music that don’t portray any of the ideas they’re intended to and frankly just don’t fit together well, and, in the case of the Maslanka, even go the opposite direction of clarity and inject confusion (more on that later). It’s Crown 2017’s problem —- terrific but unrelated pieces of music that the staff spends the whole summer trying to make fit together, ignoring the issue that the music secretions weren’t a cohesive choice to begin with. There’s nothing to tie it all together, either; no melodies return despite a plethora of them in the show, no melodies overlap, we just move quickly from piece to piece and the music book feels so segmented and choppy. Before anyone even tries to say it, no, that is absolutely not the style today.

I think my biggest grievance is Maslanka 4, in a) the way it’s used as a closer and b) the arranging of it. It’s one of my favorite concert band pieces, and should not be utilized lightly, which seems to be the case here: a heroic-sounding closet slapped on without much thought. But Maslanka built much of the piece off of the traditional Christian Doxology...so...do they all find Jesus at the end and we’re all good? Or...what? I mean, *I* know that Maslanka wasn’t invoking any specific religious idea with the symphony, and that the designers were probably just trying to use a cool piece of concert band music, but what is the average Joe Schmo’s reaction when their closer is a standard church song with very specific ties? It just seems poorly chosen in that the sudden use of the Doxology melody most likely injects further confusion as to the theme. Also, that piece is some of the best writing in the wind band canon, and whoever arranged it for The Cadets butchered it to hell. It’s a shadow of the original. I can understand why Maslanka was so hesitant to allow his works to be arranged while he was alive —- this is truly not a wonderful representation of what he wrote. At all.

That all sounded quite harsh. I respect the hell out of this corps and I’m beyond thrilled they’re thriving and existing despite a massive sea change of leadership. They’re on the right path as an organization now and that’s whats important. I understand this is all a growing process. I’ll also note again that the corps this year is full of incredible performers. Tons of talent. I’m also fairly confident calling this design the flop of the year.

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