Sideways Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 After dumping the successful Tour Premiere in Detroit I’m likely not to attend a DCI show again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 41 minutes ago, Sideways said: After dumping the successful Tour Premiere in Detroit I’m likely not to attend a DCI show again. I’m surprised there is no Tour Premiere. I’m not surprised it is not being broadcast at movie theaters. Each year it seemed like fewer theaters were participating and attendance was down last year though that could have been Covid related. Movie theaters are still struggling. Last night was the first time I can remember not having to wait in line to see a movie on Thanksgiving weekend and it had nothing to do with electronic tickets. The theaters were empty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terri Schehr Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 Well, anyway….. I’m not going to Atlanta if it’s outside and it looks like that’s the case. Lots of incurred costs for a possible rainout. And if the San Antonio venue is under construction, I’ll pass on that, too. I guess the show in Cincinnati and Indy again. And Flo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boss Anova Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 20 hours ago, mingusmonk said: I think if we take a step back and look at the gutted 2023 touring model in context of a lot of other recent issues we have complained about here in our community, it seems more and more obvious that DCI (the org) did not bounce back from the pandemic the way we had hoped. We keep lighting up customer service complaints here but I'm left wondering what the activity looks like if DCI is forced to fold and how satisfied we'll be with a brand new "whatever" that fills the void. 😕 This 2023 DCI schedule was put together knowing that transportation costs, ie fuel, food, etc are soaring due to inflationary pressures, energy costs. DCI was supposed to fold during the pandemic we often read here and on other social media, but actually rebounded about as well as could have reasonably expected, imo. Its far more likely that the soaring costs of fuel alone that followed the Pandemic likely made DCI go conservative with their shows for 2023, imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boss Anova Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 (edited) 19 hours ago, Phantom56 said: I think the future of drum corps may be with Blast style theatre shows/contests. An eight week summer tour. Small corps (75 performers), 35 brass, 20 percussion/other instruments, 20 guard. Costs would be cut considerably, as only two coach buses would be needed for touring. Renting a theatre for a day would be considerably less than leasing a stadium. No more rain-outs, or rain delays. Great acoustics. No more need for stadium practice fields. Star of Indiana, and Bill Cook led the way, and perhaps predicted the future. WGI already does this format though. Small units... brass, percussion, guard, indoors. There will always be a need for summer competition of units, imo. DCI will not vote to do " theatre stage " shows in the summer , as the visual/ guard folks in DCI will nix any such proposal to do so , imo. Edited November 26, 2022 by Boss Anova Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slingerland Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 (edited) 2 hours ago, Tim K said: I’m surprised there is no Tour Premiere. Take a trash can filled with money and set it on fire, and that's how the economics of the Tour Premiere event was likely shaping up. The activity is in belt-tightening and critical mission mode these days, which explains the more focused schedule: I'd imagine the future of things will look pretty much like this year with a 5 to 6 week season for most corps. But the member costs of $5k per (with the corps having to find another $6 to 8k per kid to get them on the field) are clearly not sustainable. and something is going to have to give. Edited November 26, 2022 by Slingerland 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IllianaLancerContra Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 10 hours ago, Jeff Ream said: I see both sides and there’s some truth on both sides. There’s also blindness to other costs still incurred I would hope that each Corps has figured out what it costs to stay in place for a day, as well as what it costs (per mile, per hour, or per something) to move from one location to another. They should also know revenues coming in from appearance fees, and work that into the equation. Then, they could plan a tour that leaves the Corps as close to breaking even as possible. They could even work this backwards - figure out what the costs are for the tour, the money coming in from the tour, sponsorships, bingo, creative bookkeeping, etc. And then the difference is what is paid by members as tuition/fees/dues or whatever you want to call it. The problem comes when fees are based on 160 members, but only 135 sign a contract. So, do they offer reduced tuition to fill the Corps (leading to potential conflicts within the Corps (see Academy 2022), or do they go with 135 and try to make up for the reduced revenue elsewhere (see Jersey Surf 2022)? Granted fewer mouths to feed, but it still costs same amount to haul the food truck, busses (unless you can shave off a bus) and equipment. And, how do you accurately forecast the cost of diesel fuel in summer 2023? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boss Anova Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 (edited) DCI lost a lot of member Corps in the 1970's when unanticipated soaring costs of fuel, food, housing, insurance, and borrowing costs with interest rates on loans soared to double digit levels, and other revenue crushing factors took hold. DCI has changed considerably since the 1970's. DCI will likely continue to evolve and adapt both on and off the field in the coming years and decades, imo. So long as thousands of schools and colleges close down for classes in the summers, and thousands of marching band instruction rooms/ halls/ gyms are closed for 10-16 weeks in the summers, there will likely always be summer offerings by DCI, imo Edited November 26, 2022 by Boss Anova Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 10 hours ago, Jeff Ream said: Cause corps didn’t want to go…..like Florida. Too much distance for too little return No, it is not like Florida. In Florida, it is unlikely that a full event can be conducted safely in summer weather. The near-daily rains, even if brief, will cause many subsequent corps to cancel the whole visual show. Props and tarps become definite hazards when wet. Now explain to me how the home base of one of their own member corps could be "too much distance"? DCI requires their member corps to tour from wherever they are based to San Antonio, Atlanta, Allentown and Indy. Certainly, out of basic fairness if nothing else, DCI is obligated to reciprocate by sending the tour to the home area of each member corps. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craiga Posted November 26, 2022 Share Posted November 26, 2022 Regarding the Detroit Tour Premiere, last summer in order to support this show, Boston left the east coast, traveled 2 full days each way, had to pay for housing two nights on the way out and two nights on the back, and whole lot of transportation costs out and back for one performance. It was the single most expensive show of the year for the organization and I for one am glad it won't be a factor this year. 5 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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