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Will DCA be around in 5 years?


Will DCA be around in 5 years?  

99 members have voted

  1. 1. Will DCA be around in 5 years?

    • Yes
      33
    • No
      66


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6 hours ago, Fran Haring said:

Maybe if free vaping is included???  :tongue:

Not now that they linked that to death 

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42 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

Not now that they linked that to death 

Heck... drum corps have killed various people on the field, like Phantom's DM. :tongue:

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2 hours ago, Fran Haring said:

Heck... drum corps have killed various people on the field, like Phantom's DM. :tongue:

true. But in all my years attending I&E....the average age was....older.  

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Say what you will.  

Youtube search  Renegades 2007 Minicorps at DCA and let me know if that looked like a good time.  

Not everything is for kids.   The 24-35 set  ripped everyone's faces off (and they are some of the best players ever in the activity...look it up)  and the 35-54 set that threw babies at the end didnt need to babysit high school marchers that day in order to claim the event as "theirs."   DCA has never been for kids, but not everyone in that convention hall showed up in a wheelchair or with a walker or cane, either. 

That said, if the 9000 people (and there were 9000) that cheered for the Westshoremen in 1996 or the full houses from Allentown and Rochester are just old farts that deserve derision, I'd say that's a pretty cynical way to treat fans and comrades.   Not only doesn't it help, but knowing they are treated that way is part and parcel why people run from the activity.  Bringing them back after the damage has been done falls on those who care enough to do so.  

Joe Cav

  • DCA Contest Staff 2007-2010
  • DCA Sponsor Liaison 2008-2009
  • WGI Regional Contest Staff 2013-present
  • FFCC Contest Staff 2011-present
  • FMBC Contest Staff 2012-present
  • CSJA Visual Judge 2009-present
  • UCF Pegasus World Guard Staff 2013
  • Jackson Heights Winter Guard Show Coordinator 2016-2017
  • Pegasus Cadets Director 2018
  • Rochester Patriots 84-91, Rochester Crusaders 90, Empire Statesmen 92-96.
  • Hilton Cadets, Williamsport Millionaires Visual Staff with Mr B
Edited by wishbonecav
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14 minutes ago, wishbonecav said:

Say what you will.  

Youtube search  Renegades 2007 Minicorps at DCA and let me know if that looked like a good time.  

Not everything is for kids.   The 24-35 set  ripped everyone's faces off (and they are some of the best players ever in the activity...look it up)  and the 35-54 set that threw babies at the end didnt need to babysit high school marchers that day in order to claim the event as "theirs."   DCA has never been for kids, but not everyone in that convention hall showed up in a wheelchair or with a walker or cane, either. 

That said, if the 9000 people (and there were 9000) that cheered for the Westshoremen in 1996 or the full houses from Allentown and Rochester are just old farts that deserve derision, I'd say that's a pretty cynical way to treat fans and comrades.   Not only doesn't it help, but knowing they are treated that way is part and parcel why people run from the activity.  Bringing them back after the damage has been done falls on those who care enough to do so.  

Joe Cav

  • DCA Contest Staff 2007-2010
  • DCA Sponsor Liaison 2008-2009
  • WGI Regional Contest Staff 2013-present
  • FFCC Contest Staff 2011-present
  • FMBC Contest Staff 2012-present
  • CSJA Visual Judge 2009-present
  • UCF Pegasus World Guard Staff 2013
  • Jackson Heights Winter Guard Show Coordinator 2016-2017
  • Pegasus Cadets Director 2018
  • Rochester Patriots 84-91, Rochester Crusaders 90, Empire Statesmen 92-96.
  • Hilton Cadets, Williamsport Millionaires Visual Staff with Mr B

the kids are the future, and outside of the corps themselves, DCA is doing nothing to get them engaged. And there's not enough of them that will stick as fans once they are done to replace the aging audience base. DCI learned to stop going after the so called legacy fan, and go after the kids and their parents, and hope to retain who they can as they go along. DCA hasn't.  It's that easy. At 50, I felt young in that crowd at finals last year.

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20 minutes ago, wishbonecav said:

Say what you will.  

Youtube search  Renegades 2007 Minicorps at DCA and let me know if that looked like a good time.  

Not everything is for kids.   The 24-35 set  ripped everyone's faces off (and they are some of the best players ever in the activity...look it up)  and the 35-54 set that threw babies at the end didnt need to babysit high school marchers that day in order to claim the event as "theirs."   DCA has never been for kids, but not everyone in that convention hall showed up in a wheelchair or with a walker or cane, either. 

That said, if the 9000 people (and there were 9000) that cheered for the Westshoremen in 1996 or the full houses from Allentown and Rochester are just old farts that deserve derision, I'd say that's a pretty cynical way to treat fans and comrades.   Not only doesn't it help, but knowing they are treated that way is part and parcel why people run from the activity.  Bringing them back after the damage has been done falls on those who care enough to do so.  

Joe Cav

  • DCA Contest Staff 2007-2010
  • DCA Sponsor Liaison 2008-2009
  • WGI Regional Contest Staff 2013-present
  • FFCC Contest Staff 2011-present
  • FMBC Contest Staff 2012-present
  • CSJA Visual Judge 2009-present
  • UCF Pegasus World Guard Staff 2013
  • Jackson Heights Winter Guard Show Coordinator 2016-2017
  • Pegasus Cadets Director 2018
  • Rochester Patriots 84-91, Rochester Crusaders 90, Empire Statesmen 92-96.
  • Hilton Cadets, Williamsport Millionaires Visual Staff with Mr B

I don't think it's about isolating the older fans at all. When any of us performed in DCI or DCA it was for any and all. But without reaching out and getting people involved and coming to the show, you can't expect the crowds we once saw. DCI has done a far better job at getting butts in seats. That's simply the truth. When I came back to marching in 2004 I didn't even KNOW there was a DCA. I had to be told that it existed. How would a potential fan know? I remember 2007 very well. The real question is why would we expect to fill a stadium for a show that no one knows about except those already involved? I don't think the fans are being treated badly and running. IMHO, DCA simply isn't doing much to invest in the sustainability of the activity. At least from the outside looking in. If they have some master plan to fill the seats from this point forward, then they should unleash said beast. They've only got 4 days after all. Just my .02

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How was regular season attendance?  That might be a barometer of sustainability and a measure of the relationships the local organizers have with their community.  You dont always need headliners to have a full house (see Rome, NY as an example)

That said, its hard to host a show in a region where there are no more corps (Western NY) and the other member corps in the circuit are  unwilling to bear the expense of travel.   Appearance fees make the Buffalo, Rome and Erie DCI shows viable for all parties.  Would the DCA down-staters go upstate for an appearance fee to have a show in Syracuse or Rochester?  You cant reach fans if you dont reach out  and meet them where they are.    Central and Western NY and Canada are historically strong areas for drum corps.  A mid season Saturday-Sunday slate in Rochester and Syracuse could be a cool happening for members and fans, alike. 

Vince subsidized the corps to get them to Rochester.  Maybe that kind of shared risk / shared gate is a window to opportunity.  I'd pay to see the Bucs and Cabs with 3 or 4 others.  I might not travel very far to do it, but if the corps made an impression on that visit, I'd have good reason to consider making the trip to Champs to see them a second time. 

 

Edited by wishbonecav
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Wow!  Such a great discussion.  Thanks everyone for voting and sharing your thoughts.

I think DCA will have a very hard path to survival/viability if it remains a strictly NE activity.  

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6 hours ago, wishbonecav said:

How was regular season attendance?  That might be a barometer of sustainability and a measure of the relationships the local organizers have with their community.  You dont always need headliners to have a full house (see Rome, NY as an example)

That said, its hard to host a show in a region where there are no more corps (Western NY) and the other member corps in the circuit are  unwilling to bear the expense of travel.   Appearance fees make the Buffalo, Rome and Erie DCI shows viable for all parties.  Would the DCA down-staters go upstate for an appearance fee to have a show in Syracuse or Rochester?  You cant reach fans if you dont reach out  and meet them where they are.    Central and Western NY and Canada are historically strong areas for drum corps.  A mid season Saturday-Sunday slate in Rochester and Syracuse could be a cool happening for members and fans, alike. 

Vince subsidized the corps to get them to Rochester.  Maybe that kind of shared risk / shared gate is a window to opportunity.  I'd pay to see the Bucs and Cabs with 3 or 4 others.  I might not travel very far to do it, but if the corps made an impression on that visit, I'd have good reason to consider making the trip to Champs to see them a second time. 

 

I can absolutely ser your point. The burden of travel had been, at least in my DCA time, was / is placed on the southern corps. CV survived and grew because they had a good financial model and had some great leadership in place. That being said, we traveled VERY little. The other southern corps weren't really getting much exposure except maybe Alliance. 

The Atlanta area is good for draw. The fans here (at least within a few hours) know about DCA because they've seen CV at DCI Regionals. I don't know if the NE corps are taking part in DCI contests. Maybe not getting a score seems a waste of time in some aspects but it gets eyes on you. I would love to see some corps from the North taking the risk and traveling down for DCI. 

The traveling risk should not be the southern corps only to take IMHO.

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8 hours ago, wishbonecav said:

How was regular season attendance?  That might be a barometer of sustainability and a measure of the relationships the local organizers have with their community.

 

it's good to very good at several shows... not great to "are you kidding me"  at others.

The "good to very good" ones are obviously doing something right from the marketing/PR end.

Edited by Fran Haring
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