The 2008 summer drum corps season is at the mid-way point and proving to be quite a thriller! The entire Stanbury family is on the edge of their seats cheering on our 13 “Stanbury” corps. The competition this year is keen, and Stanbury corps are in the thick at each competitive level.
It has been quite a summer already. Stanbury hosted the Madison Scouts at our Brookfield, Missouri facility in early July, giving the corps a catered meal and a great housing stop while the men from Madison gave the employee-owners of Stanbury (and the whole town of Brookfield!) a special performance.
We’ve also just debuted a new 30-second commercial to be aired on the jumbo-tron screen at all major DCI events, and many of Stanbury’s employees and representatives have been at shows across the country, cheering on these amazing young people as they make their way to Indiana for the World Championships. We’ll be there with a booth at the DCI Marketplace and in the stands cheering loudly for all these great young people!
Here’s take a quick review of the “Stanbury corps” on the field this summer:
Santa Clara Vanguard is our newest partner, having debuted bright new Stanbury uniforms on July 5 at Stanford University. A collaborative effort between the Vanguard team and Stanbury’s renown artist Brent Becker, the corps quite simply sparkles underneath those stadium lights! Performing an action-packed show called “3hree”, SCV has once again married cutting-edge design with a classic presentation that has the corps pushing to the top of the pack. With six world championships under their belt, this team knows how to thrill, and they know how to play when the pressure is on!
In 2003 Phantom Regiment resurrected an all-white look with all-new Stanbury Uniforms. This year the corps resurrects a fan-favorite production titled “Spartacus.” Regiment’s 1981 and 1982 productions were based on the music of Kachaturian, while this year’s version takes artistic license and brings in elements of the 1960 movie version and outside source music. With role-playing action that includes murder and war, this is a show that is on the top of everyone’s “must see” list. The 2008 Phantom Regiment is still in white Stanbury Uniforms and still move the bleachers back a few feet each time they enter the field.
Ohio’s Bluecoats have been in Stanbury Uniforms since 2005. In 2007 the corps brought to Stanbury one of the most creative designs in DCI’s history. With an “out of the box” take on a modernistic police uniform, the ‘Coats bravely redefined the basics of uniform construction and prove that a pant leg stripe doesn’t have to be a liability. This summer they take that special look and use it in a production called “Knockout”. Bluecoats have always stood up to any challenge, and if “Knockout” is to be seen as an allegory, it is certainly apt. Having firmly entrenched themselves as one of DCI’s top-echelon corps, it’s looking like they will once again go all 10 rounds!
For the first eight years of DCI’s existence, only two corps could claim having made the Top 12 every year – Vanguard and the La Crosse, Wisconsin Blue Stars. In fact, the Blue Stars came within tenths of being crowned the first-ever DCI Champion in 1972. Today, after a 29-year absence from that hallowed Top-12, this corps is enroute to once again earning a coveted Saturday night slot. Having joined the Stanbury family in 2005, the 2008 Blue Stars take the field in two-toned tunics and their trademark helmet. Performing a show called “Le Tour,” the corps embodies the stamina and rigor that the Tour De France demands, complete with a bicycle-costumed guard. Stanbury is proud to have been partners with the Blue Stars when the corps was only beginning to plot their return to World Class and we are equally honored to share in today’s successes. As in any well run race, and in keeping with the Blue Star’s motto, we have no doubt the end will crown the work.
The legendary Madison Scouts take the field in what many describe as the coolest look on the tour. Stanbury’s Brent Becker teamed with renowned show designer Ramiro Barrera and created a look that personifies the “cool” that is the “Men from Madison.” On their way back from several rebuilding seasons, the Scouts are working hard to move up the ranks. Never turning their back on the fan in the stand, this year’s show “La Noche de Iguana” is delivering on a long-held Madison promise to always entertain. Never count these guys out, and never worry about not getting your ticket’s worth from a Madison Scout performance!
Arizona has never had a world-class DCI corps, but they do now, and is it ever world-class! In striking red and black Stanbury uniforms, The Academy is on the tour with what may be one of the most sophisticated music ensembles on the field. To say they fill the field with sound is an under-statement. No doubt they are making new fans at each stop along the tour. Performing a show called “Vienna Nights” the Academy is setting itself up as a serious presence in the activity.
The Troopers are a charter member of Drum Corps International (as are the Vanguard, Scouts and Blue Stars). After taking 2006 season off to re-group, the Troopers came back in 2007 with renewed vigor and in Stanbury Uniforms. With one of the largest corps in their storied history, the 2008 Troopers show “Iron Horse” is the vehicle of choice that has them on track to becoming a competitive power once again. A corps currently young in membership but rich in tradition, Stanbury is excited to be on board as they steam into the 21st century!
Drum Corps International’s Open Class division is a seriously competitive - and entertaining! – component of the summer tour. Stanbury is thrilled to partner with these four Open Class corps:
Teal Sound from Florida defies the myth that Open Class corps are small, fielding over 60 brass plus a full guard and percussion section. Wearing an eye-catching teal and black Stanbury Uniform, this corps has a level of sophistication and power that makes people ask “I thought this was the smaller division?” An Open Class bronze medalist in 2007, Teal is now making a serious run for the gold.
The Santa Clara Vanguard Cadets is our second newest Stanbury corps, having debuted their Brent Becker-inspired uniform two weeks before their namesake Santa Clara Vanguard. Conveying all the class that the Vanguard organization personifies, the Vanguard Cadets also strive to be innovative, as their name suggests. The Vanguard Cadets always set the bar for success in Open Class, and this year is no exception. We at Stanbury highly recommend you take in the Open Class championship event. We’ll be there -- and so will the Vanguard Cadets, you can be sure of that!
Reasonably new to the DCI scene and from an area that historically has had limited drum corps participation, the Oregon Crusaders have been taking the field in a striking green and gold Stanbury Uniform since their inception. Having already topped a field of west-coast based Open Class corps in early July, the Oregon Crusaders are set to play with the pack at the Open Class Championships this August.
Blue Saints from Sudbury, Ontario, Canada personify community-based drum corps, and Stanbury is proud to be a partner to this fine organization. Exposing youth to the camaraderie and excellence of drum corps is what this corps is about and we could not be more supportive of that mission. Though not always a participant at championship events, the Blue Saints make a positive and important impact on the young people they serve.
The drum corps activity has a thriving “all ages” scene, and Stanbury is proud to be the chosen uniform provider for one of the oldest and most successful all-age corps and one of the newest and most promising.
The Reading Buccaneers won the first ever Drum Corps Associates (DCA) championship in 1965 and have gone on to win 6 more since, including these last three consecutive seasons. In stunning deep blue sequined Stanbury Uniforms, the Buc’s are currently undefeated and are the odds-on favorite to capture an amazing 8th DCA title. This corps is a not only a “must-see” group but a “must-hear” corps too, as they bring to the field one of the finest musical books in all of drum corps pageantry.
Florida’s Sun Devils step onto the field this year as a first-year all-ages corps, bringing with them a future as bright as the Florida sun. In brand new maroon and gold Stanbury Uniforms the brand new Sun Devils have already proven to be competitive in DCA’s Class A division. Stanbury welcomes the Sun Devil’s to the field for their inaugural season!
Stanbury Uniforms has been a proud Corporate Partner to Drum Corps International since 2003 and is honored that these 13 organizations have chosen Stanbury Uniforms for the 2008 season. We wish them all safe travels and much success!
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