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Reply Percussion/Guard
Making a Statement, Not Performing. *UPDATED*

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Apasionada

PostPosted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 8:53 pm


This past season, even last year, has been on a constant downhill roll. Issues with guard have gotten worse and worse, and well, the other captain and I have had it.

Our coach named my friend and I as captains over the summer. I was a captain last year. She told our director her decision on leadership.
Since then, she has told us to step down and let her take care of things. Meaning we can no longer tell the other girls to stop talking on field, stop spinning when someone is talking, etc. She would take care of that.
One problem is is that she is not there. Our coach is constantly late or doesn't show up.
Another problem is that her best friend is a girl on guard.

And since telling the captains to take a break, she has given the captain duties to her best friend. This was also happening (but to a smaller degree) before.

Also, we worked our butts off over the summer to raise over $1000 for new uniforms. Our director wanted her to order them through the school to ensure that they would be here.
Guess what? She put her best friend's mother in charge of money and ordering uniforms. Tomorrow night is our last game of the season (and being seniors, it is our last game) and we don't ahve uniforms. They won't be in for at least another two weeks, so we won't be able to wear them for parades, either. Right now we are wearing black jazz pants and black leotards with silver sashes. A make-shift, temporary uniform.

Basically, the other captain and I decided that tomorrow morning we would discuss not performing tomorrow night as well as at the parade on Sunday as a statement with our band director who fully knows our position and views. It is obvious that our work and input as captains and seniors is not valued. We have decided that it is not fair for her best friend to get away with blatantly breaking rules and being able to scream at us, for her to be constantly late and not let us do anything about it, and that she utterly ignores our director and thus we are paying for it by not having uniforms.
So, as a statement, the captains are not performing tomorrow night.

My question is, though, is that since we aren't performing tomorrow night or on Sunday, should we still perform at the two parades after?
I say no, because I feel as though it is hypocrtical and falling back, but my mom tells me that it would be rubbing it in and that we should.
Opinions?
PostPosted: Sun Oct 15, 2006 7:19 pm


If it's not too late to put my two cents in... i say don't do the parades... or at least... don't do both.
I hope you'll come back and announce the outcome of your boycott.

Cisum


Apasionada

PostPosted: Sun Oct 15, 2006 8:22 pm


UPDATE.

So Friday morning Erika (the other captain) and I talked to our BD about how things are going and how we feel about things.
He made iot clear that he is very disappointed and rather upset about how the coach is running things, he feels let down.
Before we even said, "Sir, I'm sorry, but we're done, we can't do this anymore," he said straight out:
"If you don't come to the game tonight, I completely understand. Go to Starbucks, Borders, have a sandwich and coffee, have a good time tonight. If anyone asks where you are, it's been cleared through me."

The three of us talked for a half hour Friday morning. The outcome was very good, I am far happier now.

It came down to Erika and I quitting guard. Our BD understood and said he didn't really blame us, he sees how much emotional and mental stress it has been.
HOWEVER. We did not quit marching band. I play bass/soprano clarinet, she plays flute, so we are each marching our respective instruments in parades.
We also went to the game on Friday, but sat two sections over with two friends and mass amounts of blankets (it was freezing!). The field show looked really good, it was really fun to watch. Strange, but fun.
Yesterday was district band auditions, my BD was talking to my mom about the situation (he brought it up, she didn't) while I was auditioning. He told her how happy he was that the two of us we marching instruments, he preferred us in marching band and not guard.

But I'm so happy that he was very understanding and knew where we were coming from. It was scary, but we did what we needed to. I'm going to miss performing with the guard, but that's the only part of guard I'm going to miss.
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Percussion/Guard

 
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