The Cadets | #DCI2023 | Atlas Rising

Allentown, Pennsylvania's The Cadets perform a segment from the corps' #DCI2023 production, "Atlas Rising," during the 2023 DCI World Championships hosted August 10-12 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Allentown, PA | 5th Place | 94.313

🎧 Download the "Atlas Rising" audio recording:

Marching Music Downloads

Amazon

iTunes

We may earn a commission when you shop through the Amazon affiliate links above.

-------------

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel to be the first to see new content!

[evan-t-s]

This is such a sad day for DCI. The Cadets have announced they are officially filling for bankruptcy. They're gone for good. I will never ever forget all the opportunities I had to watch them live and the impact they had for the activity. This hurts so bad. Cadets, you will forever live in our hearts. FHNSAB. George Hopkins, may you rot in hell.

[j.s.]

Rest in peace cadets. FHNSAB. I’ll hear the sound of Rocky Point Holiday in the lots on the day that I pass.

[fioletovium]

My favourite show this year and no one could tell me otherwise. I loved this so much

[dominicwillismusic]

Great playing and great drill in this closer!

[stephenliptak]

They should have never left NJ.
I remember seeing them at the Garfield High School field back in the late 60s. How M&M has evolved is amazing. Hope they find the funding to return.

[GooseAl]

Missing you today, Cadets❤️💛 love you always

[metarenegade]

Such amazing soundscapes in this show. Completely nailed the atmosphere.

[georgedixon]

DCI is something else, they moved from Allentown about two years ago.

[steveanderson]

"Allentown, Pennsylvania's The Cadets..."

The video description is incorrect. The Cadets were from Erie, PA in 2023 (Brandt Crocker even says so at the end of the video!).

[definitelynotcainan]

Probably the single most "Cadets" show since 2011... too bad it was likely their last.

[Drums-yzss]

Whatever financial problems they have, it wasn’t because they spent too much on costumes (“uniforms”).

[jesuspectre]

What incredible performers. Now, let's talk about the show design.

BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL
"Together, we rise." Did Atlas say that? No, he didn't. That's the Cadets' corps motto. And with that, the designers broke what little fourth wall the show had in place. As a primer, "fourth wall" is a term that refers to the theatrical device of an imaginary wall between dramatic characters and audience, where the characters do not know they are being observed. When characters "break the fourth wall", it means that the performers drop any pretense of playing characters in a scripted scenario, and instead address the audience directly, as performers, and as if there is no wall separating the two.

"Breaking the fourth wall" is usually a sign of an amateurish show where performers must speak directly to the audience to clarify a point, or to convey (awkwardly) the theme of the piece. Some productions use soliloquies or narrators who talk directly to the audience throughout a production. As long as the device is used consistently and with thematic purpose, it's generally considered acceptable in opera, television, film and stage productions. Often the device is used clumsily to add emotion, to explain a missing narrative component, or to beg sympathy from the audience.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE
Another example of breaking the fourth wall this season was the Colts' Where the Heart is, where they shouted a pre-recorded messages of their home addresses, directly to the audience. They were no longer portraying home town characters, but suddenly portraying themselves as performers, upending the device of the fictional, old fashioned telephone poles and home town steps. This caused some confusion in the audience who wanted to understand the fictional "home town" premise.

To experienced professional producers and designers, these are amateurish errors in the writing of the production.

WEAKNESSES IN "ATLAS RISING"
Another weakness in this production was that the performers were portraying feats of physical strength, much like the famed mythical figure Atlas. But we all know the performers are faking it. These aren't real tests of strength. Certainly Cadets's drill requires strength and endurance, much like their other productions, and similar to their competitors in any given year. But this drill wasn't any more demanding, nor was it demonstrative of any real strength beyond what's expected by the corps, every year.

MISSING VISUAL DEVICE
The show lacked a recurring visual device that grows and builds to the end-- a thematically aligned visual device that allows the audience to invest in what happens next.