Westminster Review

[justafan]

Beautiful night for drumcorps. My husband and I saw the show tonight, so we'll do a quick...he said, she said....type review. We are long-time drumcorps fans and have been very active volunteers since 1999. We didn't have a horse in this race, so take it for what it's worth. Neither of us consider ourselves experts in any particular area of drum corps, so we're just going to make general impression type comments for those of you who didn't get to see the show. Please keep in mind that this is a first read for all the shows.

Didn't arrive until Magic, so that's where we'll start. So sorry to the earlier corps, but we went after work and got there as soon as we could.

MAGIC

He said: They looked young, but are working hard.

She said: They'll have to really make some changes and improve in all areas to make semis this year. Appreciate how hard they are working

SPIRIT

He said: Clearly a step up from Magic, but surprised they scored as high as they did a few nights ago. Their score tonight was more realistic.

She said: Enjoyed their show. Guard better than year's past. Drill is uninspired. Agree that the score tonight was more realistic.

CROSSMEN

He said: Good to see Crossmen finally come out this season. Enjoyed seeing their first show. Very fun, entertaining show and perphaps the best use of voice I've seen. Possibly the most entertaining show of the evening. Still, it was their first show and it showed.

She said: Best use of amped voice since amplification. Very creative and enjoyable show. The members seemed to be having a lot of fun. The crowd really enjoyed their performance. I think they will eventually pass Spirit. Definitely a top 12 show. Had some really cool flags with city and state references to compliment the "Changing Lanes" theme. I really loved this show.

BOSTON

He said: Have grown to expect a solid show from Boston and they didn't disappoint me tonight. Brass was a bit ragged, guard not too bad. No real wow moments. Liked their attitude.

She said: So glad to see Boston finally take a step away from all the "signature" moves, as I felt they were becoming too cliche. Guard was very good. Hornline a little sloppy at times, but overall enjoyable. Generally a good and entertaining show, though didn't see too much demand in the drill which will probably hurt their efforts to move up more that a place or two this year.

CROWN

He said: Someone must have had a sale on purple! Don't really care for Crown's uniform. LOVED their sound. They would benefit from more demand, but I found them enjoyable.

She said: Beautiful sound, but they did seem to suffer from some fatigue toward the last third of their show. Beautiful guard. Drill is uninspired. Lots of bad feet...going to have to get a LOT cleaner for them to move up this year. Lucky for them, it's only June. Generally enjoyed their show.

PHANTOM

He said: Clearly a step above Boston and Crown. Much more demand in drill and music. Good solid Phantom sound, but they seem to be struggling to execute the music and drill. I can see why they're behind the top scoring corps. There is enough demand in their show, however, that if they master the demand, they should be able to move up.

She said: I agree, a step above Boston and Crown, but not the Phantom that I am accustomed to seeing. However, I am usually a skeptic of Phantom early in the season, and their biggest fan by finals week. That being said, I'm not sure that the talent matches the ambition this year. Many more marching and fatigue issues than I am used to seeing out of this corps. Still the same fantastic hornline though...just perhaps not the same level of endurance. Also, the drill design seems to be a little weak. BUT, Phantom is typically a genuis at working out these issues, so perhaps they'll surprise me again!

CADETS

He said: Their scores indicate that they must be doing a pretty good job of playing and marching, but honestly, the stupid rabbit, the Red Queen of the night and the overrated lounge singer totally distracted me from drum corps. I think I remember a good trumpet feature and the percussion seemed solid, but this show doesn't do it for me at all.

She said: Let me preface my comments by saying that I LOVED last year's show. 2000 Cadets is still my all-time favorite drum corps show. Okay. If I had to sum this show up in one word, it would be embarrassing . I don't want to be cruel, but I thought that the "characters" were ridiculous. The Red Queen would more appropriately be called the Red Prostitute...that costume has got to go. And the rabbit...well, you couldn't get me into that ridiculous getup for a billion dollars. Then there's the singer...nothing personal, I'm sure she's a lovely person, but she adds absolutely nothing to the show and looks very out of place on the field. You could barely hear most of what she was singing. I saw no drill, I remember no music. I didn't even watch what is typically my favorite guard because I couldn't take my eyes off of the spectacle on the field. Not to mention the plethora of props!. The "flowery" addition to the back of the uniform is distracting and sloppy, and the baby blue silk pajamas that the guard is wearing are not my favorites either. I'm quite sure that the corps sounded wonderful as usual, but I just couldn't pay attention. Sorry, I really wanted to love The Cadets this year too. Maybe next year.

Anyway, that's it. We apologize if we hurt anybody's feelings. We certainly don't mean to do that. We truly appreciate the corps and recognize that the members put their hearts and souls into performing for all of us.

[jwillis35]

Thanks for taking the time to do a review. I enjoyed it.

[BMBob]

I think I agree with your review of the Cadets. There's just too much going on. Everything seems to distract from everything else, to the point where I couldn't enjoy the performance. Here's hoping there is some tweaking done later in the season.

[momoblooo]

CADETS

He said: Their scores indicate that they must be doing a pretty good job of playing and marching, but honestly, the stupid rabbit, the Red Queen of the night and the overrated lounge singer totally distracted me from drum corps. I think I remember a good trumpet feature and the percussion seemed solid, but this show doesn't do it for me at all.

She said: Let me preface my comments by saying that I LOVED last year's show. 2000 Cadets is still my all-time favorite drum corps show. Okay. If I had to sum this show up in one word, it would be embarrassing . I don't want to be cruel, but I thought that the "characters" were ridiculous. The Red Queen would more appropriately be called the Red Prostitute...that costume has got to go. And the rabbit...well, you couldn't get me into that ridiculous getup for a billion dollars. Then there's the singer...nothing personal, I'm sure she's a lovely person, but she adds absolutely nothing to the show and looks very out of place on the field. You could barely hear most of what she was singing. I saw no drill, I remember no music. I didn't even watch what is typically my favorite guard because I couldn't take my eyes off of the spectacle on the field. Not to mention the plethora of props!. The "flowery" addition to the back of the uniform is distracting and sloppy, and the baby blue silk pajamas that the guard is wearing are not my favorites either. I'm quite sure that the corps sounded wonderful as usual, but I just couldn't pay attention. Sorry, I really wanted to love The Cadets this year too. Maybe next year.

Wow, great review!! I like the he said/she said thing. I think you're on to something there, keep it up! Please review any more shows you go to.

I saw the Cadets in Evansville Tuesday night, and you said everything I couldn't put into words when I wrote briefly about it the next day. You hit the nail on the head on every point (and your husband did too). The Queen's and Rabbit's costumes are totally embarrassing; if you're going to have the singer, at least put her in something other than that plain black dress; the back of the uniforms are horrendous (note to designers: baby blue and maroon don't work!);, and I also couldn't take my eyes off the characters enough to have a clue as to what was going on around them. The judges must be very focused on what they're doing to be able to see past the spectacle...

Cadets 2005 was my favorite show to date, even (barely) passing the Cavaliers' Niagara Falls. I wanted this show to top that one, and to be a really terrific continuation of the "story" from last year. Instead, it looks like a low-budget local playhouse's idea of a psychedlic musical -- I kept thinking of "Waiting for Guffman" while I was watching it, for some odd reason. Clean it up, change the focus, do something the kids marching behind the "stars" can be proud of when they watch their corps videos with their own kids 20 years from now. This show isn't it.

[BMBob]

I kept thinking of "Waiting for Guffman" while I was watching it, for some odd reason.

Funny, the backdrops and uniform backs reminded me a lot of some of the props that were used in my high school's production of Godspell from my sophomore year.

[CrusaderMom]

I saw the Cadet's show in Powder Springs and have to admit that I was totally distracted by all of the antics on the field. I thought the "Red Queen" was going to pop out of the top of her outfit any minute.

[JMS0527]

That certainly would've directed the attention at her

[X DM]

Thanks for that review........ Man, are the Cadets show getting a lot of bad reviews lately. But the judges sure look at this Corps differently than a lot of reviewers.

Edited July 1, 2006 by X DM

[xbones7480]

Great Reviews!

I'm going to Allentown tonight. Can't wait to see what everyone's been talking about.

Thanks

[JustABandMom]

... if you're going to have the singer, at least put her in something other than that plain black dress;

I wondered about the black dress too. I looked up the song and I think there's some symbolism going on here, as the name of the song is Sanvean (I am your Shadow), so I'm thinking that she is the shadow (of Alice.)

Edited July 1, 2006 by JustABandMom