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2025 WGI Circuit Symposium Roundtable: Judge Pipeline, Safety & Boutique Circuits — OAWB With Circuit Leaders
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Your All-Access Pass to the Marching Arts.
Host Ricardo Robinson‑Shinall (IG @ricardorrobinson) sits down with leaders from WGASC, NTCA, Pacific Performing Arts, MWCGC, and MAIN to unpack takeaways from the WGI Circuit Symposium: judge recruiting & pipelines, safety (PPP), the strengths of boutique circuits, facility-access myths, and growing the next generation of educators.
Panel
Ricardo Robinson‑Shinall (host) • Brian Nunez (WGASC) • Arthur “Art” Grossman (NTCA) • Jonathan J. Brown (Pacific Performing Arts) • Kïrsten Miller (MWCGC) • Lauren Moffatt Burns (MAIN)
Segments
• 32‑Count Life Stories — meet Brian, Art, Jonathan, Kïrsten & Lauren
• 60‑Second Tech Block — What Boutique Circuits Do Better (Jonathan)
• Water We Doing?! — technique > tricks (no sickled feet), gym‑floor myths, educator pipeline
• Gush & Go — circuit wins + personal hype
Official Links
• WGI — Winter Guard International: https://www.wgi.org
• WGASC: https://wgasc.org
• NTCA (North Texas Colorguard Association): https://www.ntca-online.com
• MWCGC (Midwest Color Guard Circuit): https://midwestcolorguard.org
• MAIN — Mid‑Atlantic Indoor Network: https://mainguards.com
• Pacific Performing Arts: https://www.pacificperformingarts.org
Related
• Quick Sip with WGI’s Bart Woodley (playlist): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL600p0k2IuT408fWr_3N-lt6eq7MkWwnL
Sponsors
Peak Group Travel — @peak.group.travel
Guard Closet — @guardcloset
Listen Everywhere: Apple • Spotify • YouTube • Amazon Music (link in bio)
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to 'On a Water Break' Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
Hey everyone, and welcome back to On a Water Break, the podcast where we talk about everything you and your friends are talking about at rehearsal on a water break. This week, we are all about Winter Guard circuits across the country.
00:00:14
Speaker
We'll find out what made Brian say... and i always made it my mission to learn their camp dance. And so that was the year that I felt most comfortable, so I i made my attempt.
00:00:25
Speaker
And why Kirsten said... and Or the choreo before and after. It's all about throw, throw, throw, throw. All this and more on this week's episode of On a Water Break.
Focus on Circuit Leadership and Innovation
00:00:39
Speaker
Adolph the Met and go. Welcome to On a Water Break.
00:00:43
Speaker
The podcast where talk everything marching arts. Everyone singing. It's time for water break.
00:00:56
Speaker
Hey, everyone. It's Ricardo Robinson-Chanel, and we have a great episode this week. We have a great panel, and it's all about circuit leadership and regional innovation and our Winter Guard systems across the country.
Engagement and Community Involvement
00:01:10
Speaker
But before we see who's on the sidelines this week, go and subscribe on your favorite listening app, write us a review, share this with a friend. And if you have a good question or good topic to talk about, email us pass at ask at gmail.com.
00:01:24
Speaker
or find on social media and DM us if you want to be on the show. We even have a form now to fill out if you want to be a
Excitement for WGS Circuit Symposium
00:01:31
Speaker
guest. So check out the link in our bio. So I had the wonderful pleasure of meeting some amazing people this past weekend at the WGS Circuit Symposium held at the Marriott Hotel in Dayton, Ohio.
00:01:47
Speaker
And I was so excited about these people that I wanted to bring them on the podcast so we could continue discussing what we were discussing over
Guest Introductions
00:01:55
Speaker
the weekend. So I'm going to start off. Welcome first, Brian Nunez from WGASC, which is the Southern California and Southern Nevada.
00:02:05
Speaker
region. everyone. We're so glad to have you here, Brian. Glad to be here. Thanks for having us. Yeah. And then Arthur Grossman from NTCA, which North Texas. Hi, Art.
00:02:21
Speaker
Hey, how's it going? Good. We are so glad that you are here as well. Thank you for having me. We had a great time this past weekend, so I'm excited to continue the conversation.
00:02:31
Speaker
Absolutely. Jonathan Brown from PPA, which is in the Seattle region. Jonathan, welcome.
32 Count Life Stories
00:02:40
Speaker
Hey, thanks for having me.
00:02:43
Speaker
Yeah, thank you for being here. We have Kirsten Miller from MWCGC, which is the Midwest Color Guard Circuit. Kirsten, welcome.
00:02:54
Speaker
beside to go Hey, girl, I wish that this was not a listening podcast and it was a visual one because those glasses are so adorable. Thank you.
00:03:06
Speaker
And last and definitely not least is Lauren Moffitt from main guard, which is the mid Atlantic region. Lauren, what's going on girlfriend? It's good to see everybody. Thanks for having me.
00:03:19
Speaker
Yeah, we're so glad that all of you are here today. And just, we had such a great time over the weekend being at meetings. And I think the real fun happened outside of the meetings when we all just kind of let our hair down and sat around on the couch and just chatted for hours.
00:03:33
Speaker
So I want to continue some of that. But I want our guests to know a little bit about each one of you. So since you're all new, this is going to be a whole segment of 32 Count Life Stories.
00:03:46
Speaker
For those of you who have not listened to our podcast before, we do this thing. It's called a 32 Count Life Story. You're going to get eight counts off the Met. You're going to tell us everything about your life from birth all the way up to today.
00:04:01
Speaker
But you got to get it done in 32 counts or you know your timing is going to be off. so I am going to start with my friend, Brian. Brian, are you ready for your 32 counts? I hope so.
00:04:12
Speaker
All right, here we go. Eight off the mat and go. All right. I was born in Southern California, moved shortly after to the Bay Area where I grew up. I started my band life um as a musician. I was a brass player, went all the way through high school, became the drum major, was in the Blue Devils A-Guard, Blue Devils Open Guard, moved to Southern California, was in a color guard called Fantasia.
00:04:36
Speaker
I taught drum major clinic. I went to La Cordon Bleu, so I'm a trained chef. And now I'm on the Advent team with WBA, which is the California State Marching Circuit, and WGASC. but Okay.
00:04:50
Speaker
So my favorite thing about doing these 32 count life stories is because we find out that like our guests are onions and we like unpeel all of these layers that happen. So, okay. The color guard connections and like where you marched, that was one thing I was excited about that. But like you are a trained chef from Cordon Bleu.
00:05:07
Speaker
Yes. Yes. Okay. So in a side text conversation, I'm just coming to visit so you can cook for me. I would love, I love cooking for people. It's one of my, one of my love languages.
00:05:19
Speaker
Okay. Well, I love to eat. So therefore our friendship just got even deeper. Perfect. I also saw, this is so funny, Brian, because know we saw each other in the airport as we were leaving, but then I was on Facebook and this video popped up of you dancing, doing choreography.
00:05:36
Speaker
Yeah, I taught for ah about 10 years. I taught leadership and drum major camps. And these camps were held alongside um cheer and dance camps. And I always made it my mission to learn their... um to learn their camp dance.
00:05:49
Speaker
And so that was the year that I felt most comfortable. So I i made my attempt. Oh my God. It was so good. was so good. like If our listeners follow you on social media after this, I hope they get to see it because it was fantastic.
00:06:03
Speaker
ah thing All right. Art, you know the rules. Are you ready for your 32 count life story? I'm ready. All right, here we go. Jeremy, give me eight off the mat, please, sir.
00:06:16
Speaker
Alrighty. I was born and raised West Michigan. Awkward, that stressed me out like I needed to initiate on count one. Born and raised in West Michigan, I went to a teeny little town, high school here in West Michigan, where I did marching band and some cool people. I marched the tiny little Virgin Three drum corps out of Wisconsin called the Americanos, which is kind of what launched me into the world of drum corps and Wintergard and marching band. I'm After that, shortly I moved to Texas and I've been in Texas ever since.
00:06:49
Speaker
I always find it interesting. So you moved from Michigan where it's perpetually cold to Texas where it's blazing hot all the time. Unbearably hot. Yes. Yes.
00:07:00
Speaker
hey So I'm going to ask this question because I know that Brian does in his circuit because California sort of mimics Florida. Is Texas famous for doing like outdoor color guard warmups?
00:07:11
Speaker
Oh, no. No, Texas is 100% indoor. Like, if we don't offer indoor warm-up, like, people will not go to the show. Oh, okay. See, that's one of the things, like, when I was growing up in my circuit, I'll talk about myself later, but we didn't have that, and then I moved to Florida, and it's, like, the thing.
00:07:29
Speaker
But then our guards get used to it here, and when we go to WGI, it's always raining, snowing, or five degrees outside. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, well, North Texas has winter. We get snow and ice. We have yeah weekends with ice and everything. So we are... Good to know.
00:07:46
Speaker
Good to know. Jonathan Brown, sir, it is your turn in the hot seat. Are you ready? ah Okay, here we go.
00:07:58
Speaker
um I was actually born in Alaska, and I've only lived on the West Coast states, so I'm incredibly Pacific Northwest. I don't if you can tell that by the way I sound. I didn't do marching band or color guard or dance in high school. I was a choir and theater kid.
00:08:12
Speaker
um My brother had done drum corps. I really wanted to do it, and I was like, I can play piano. I can go audition for the front ensemble. Promptly got cut. I went to the College Guard director and wanted to join, and he put a rifle and a flag in my hand and told a girl at my high school to teach me.
00:08:26
Speaker
um I was awful that first summer. i did three summers of Cascades, two summers with Blue Devils, I marched one winter with Northern Lights, taught Rhapsody from Seattle, started we won two gold medals. I'm going way over time.
00:08:40
Speaker
I helped start off the Cascadia in Portland, and I've been the circuit president up here quite a few years ago for a decade, and now I'm the new treasurer for a new circuit up here. And I'm a new WGI judge.
00:08:53
Speaker
Yes!
00:08:56
Speaker
Again, here we go with the onion of the podcast, peeling back these layers, theater and choir kid. Hi, fellow theater and choir kid. Hello. Right here. Yeah. Former theater teacher. Yeah, love telling that story like, I only started color guard because I got cut from the pit.
00:09:10
Speaker
And people always ask, were you a Madison Scout?
00:09:16
Speaker
We do love the Madison Scouts, though. Shout out to the boys. I was taught by many them. Back then, they were boys. But you marched with all those people, too, at Northern Lights. like Yeah, that yeah. Like, everybody that taught there, or like, half of the people that marched there were all Scouts and Cavaliers. There were just a few of us West Coast kids.
00:09:33
Speaker
Half were Madison Scouts, half were Cavaliers, and the two or three of you that were from somewhere else.
00:09:39
Speaker
Good times. All right, Kirsten. okay Are you ready for this? Listen, so but as we were prepping and getting into the show, Kirsten said that the metronome gave her PTSD.
00:09:53
Speaker
So, you know, we're just going to, we're going to give her thoughts and prayers right now. So she gets through this out without having those flashbacks from Marching Day. Kirsten, you ready? yeah Here we go.
00:10:06
Speaker
was born in outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I was there until I was 13, moved to Florida, went to Lake Howe High School, started in band there just by somebody coming over to eighth grade to the middle school saying, hey, listen, do you want to try band? Here's this thing called Color Guard with a flag. Come on over.
00:10:26
Speaker
My mother didn't want me to, but I went anyway. And then my parents turned into big band boosters. I then went in March, imagination winter guard and then sun coast out.
00:10:38
Speaker
Moved up here 15 years ago to Chicago. There goes my time. Told you. And, um, and I moved up here to Chicago because of love and I married a Cavalier.
00:10:52
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah.
00:10:56
Speaker
So we got a lot of connections with the Florida thing, which is what part of our conversation and how we started bonding the other day. But I love the fact that you just kind of picked up Color Guard and just jumped in and went in it. That's just, that's phenomenal.
00:11:12
Speaker
My mom did not want me to go and I got in trouble, but they turned out, which is funny because my mom was in band in high school. Yeah. yeah Well,
00:11:24
Speaker
That's all right. They got sucked in. It seems like it worked out for the best. It did.
00:11:30
Speaker
Kirsten, you also told me this is another fun thing about you as you, with our connections, is that you were one of the original members when the FFCC first started.
00:11:42
Speaker
Yeah. So I was there when it all started with the Kirstens, right? With the whole circuit. So I was right at the beginning of that whole thing. It's interesting to watch how big it's grown. It's great.
00:11:55
Speaker
It's a huge circuit now. So I'm glad to be a part of it. And look, there's another connection for us right there. Yeah. All right, Lauren, my friend, you got the gist of it. Are you ready to tell us your 32 count life story?
00:12:10
Speaker
Sure, I'm ready. All right, let's do this. Here we go. Okay, so I was born in southeastern Pennsylvania outside of Philly. I still live in the suburbs of Philly. Go birds. um I've basically been around the marching arts my entire life because of my dad's job.
00:12:25
Speaker
So I kind of was raised in it. He was the Zildjian rep forever. And then um I started doing high color guard in high school and just basically never stopped. I just went and marched Golden Sabres Winter Guard, Crossman and Magic of Orlando and then started teaching.
00:12:42
Speaker
Graduated with an degree in elementary education, but true story, I don't use it. I own two Hallmark gold crown stores instead. And then I currently am teaching at Council Rock South High School in southeastern PA.
00:12:54
Speaker
I co-founded a winter garden called Impact in Northern Virginia, taught that for a bunch of years. And then I also teach Madison Scouts in the summer for the last five years. I married a Cavalier also.
00:13:05
Speaker
And I've been on the board for Maine, the Mid-Atlantic Indoor Network, since 2014. Yeah.
Circuit Discussions Across the Country
00:13:10
Speaker
yeah I am in love with the fact that you married a Cavalier.
00:13:18
Speaker
and that you teach the Madison Scouts. Like, that's so much fun for me. It's a lot of fun. So we're going to get into a whole big conversation about circuits across the country, but first we want to shout out some of our amazing episodes.
00:13:33
Speaker
We have On a Water Break with Matt Harloff, Carolina Crown Brass Leader and Star of Indiana Roots on sound, leadership and culture. You can find that on YouTube. We have On a Water Break with Alta Maria with Brandy Keaton and Alta Maria and the University of Alabama Color Guard Co-Director and Show Building, Identity and Developing Performers.
00:13:54
Speaker
We also have our water break with Piper Click and Max Marr, two standout performers competing at the highest level while growing social presence across our circuits. And I'll be back with my fabulous guest right after this commercial break.
00:14:19
Speaker
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Speaker
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00:15:42
Speaker
And we are back to On a Water Break. This is Ricardo here. And i had the pleasure of being at the WGI Circuit Symposium this past weekend in Dayton.
Highlights from WGI Circuit Symposium
00:15:53
Speaker
And what the Circuit Symposium is for you listeners is it's where all of the circuit partners are invited to come and have a meeting with WGI so that WGI can discuss initiatives and work.
00:16:04
Speaker
what it truly means to be a circuit partner. um If you want to get a quick gist of what the meeting was about, pop over and look at our my quick sip with Bart Woodley, who is the Director of Operations for WGI.
00:16:18
Speaker
But now that I have my friends here who are chatting with me, let's let's jump into it, guys. First of all, like what were your overall takeaways from the meeting? I loved just hearing what other circuits did. um It was validating, right, to to hear that some circuits we shared kind of action items and how we did things.
00:16:38
Speaker
And it was also interesting to hear what other circuits did that maybe we don't do back here at home and in Nevada and in California and it sparked ideas. So I just I loved that camaraderie in the conversation ah with people that kind of we all love just supporting our circuits at home.
00:16:55
Speaker
I like that when we were discussing any kind of topic, the it seems to be across the board all over the country. Some of the the main issues that are happening is happening across all and that we were able to talk it through and say, hey, what what are you doing? How are you doing that?
00:17:15
Speaker
And really um come together a team. Yeah, yeah, for sure. I think the networking portion of that was probably the biggest thing. Now, don't get me wrong. We'll talk about some of the topics discussed on the agenda, but I think things really started going well in the meeting when we were having those roundtable discussions and people were just straight up asking questions.
00:17:37
Speaker
um And we got a new phrase coined for boutique circuits because we have some small circuits like Jonathan's that have a small number of people in them. And our friend Leah Rupert from South Florida, she said, you know, I teach that I run a boutique circuit as well.
00:17:54
Speaker
And that was the phrase for the weekend. So, all right. What do you have to say, friend? Oh, no, was just go say, I thought the the biggest takeaway for me was putting faces with the circuits, you know, because like we live in our little cohort of North Texas, you know, and then we all go to WGI and we see people.
00:18:13
Speaker
But like, Maine, we always hear, oh, Maine, but now we have Lauren as a face. And it was cool to see that there are connections and like real people behind the guards and they're behind the percussion ensembles. And it was just a cool thing to have that, you know, camaraderie of like coming together but super cool.
00:18:31
Speaker
Yeah. um I really appreciate the transparency. I come from a small circuit, a boutique circuit. And so I had like a lot of questions and I'm the treasurer. So like, I'm really concerned with like the budget, the bottom line. um And I was a little afraid that I would ask these questions and people would like keep everything close to their chest and not be willing to share. And I didn't encounter that at all.
00:18:52
Speaker
Everyone was very, very open. And I thought that was really remarkable. Yeah, definitely the the the feeling of camaraderie between the circuits, like that was that was super apparent. No one has secrets. that there' There's no gatekeeping happening with anybody. Everybody was just like, hey, here's how we do it. And I love the fact that, Jonathan, you took the initiative at the meeting to like create a Slack group for all of the circuit leaders to like jump in and be able to share documents and stuff like that.
00:19:21
Speaker
Yeah. that That type of initiative and and leadership and just foresight, I mean, none of the rest of us would have thought of that. And it was like, okay, now we can actually communicate with each other a little bit more free and like with quick answers as opposed to like trying to go through all these long channels. So kudos to you, friend.
00:19:40
Speaker
but Thanks. I love a mechanism and a process, and I am incredibly impatient and would rather just do things now.
00:19:48
Speaker
It's called Color Guard.
Judging Challenges and Strategies
00:19:53
Speaker
So some of the topics on our agenda for the weekend, we started off talking about judge recruitment. And Jonathan, you are a WGI judge.
00:20:06
Speaker
And, you know, we talked about like the the process of like trying to have local judges versus WGI judges. One of the biggest things that that was said, and I'm going to, I guess, probably call out just a little bit, but like anytime you have a local judge that gets really good, then they get snatched up by WGI.
00:20:27
Speaker
So let's hear some thoughts on that whole conversation.
00:20:34
Speaker
I actually was just talking about this with someone this week, someone else in the Northwest, actually the um one of the staff for the Oregon Circuit, NWAPA. um And I was talking about this topic and that you know we can't rely on WGI judges as much for our local circuits.
00:20:48
Speaker
um And that problem of like, you know you're building people, you're building people. um But I was saying, was this... I don't feel like it would have been as much of a problem 20 or 30 years ago because there was enough judges everywhere. There was way more judges on the WGI roster and things like that, and it wouldn't have been an issue.
00:21:06
Speaker
The pipeline has just sort of like thinned and dried up to like create the the like you know pyramid of getting people to judge and like fill it out the right way. So it's sort of... We shot ourselves in the foot sort of in the last 20 years by not cultivating more local judges so that they can grow and become a WGI judge.
00:21:24
Speaker
And it wouldn't have been a problem if we had plenty of WGI judges and plenty of local judges with the right experience and skills. Yeah, I think it's crazy because WGI has grown so much. And now with, are they calling it WGI plus?
00:21:38
Speaker
where it's like every regional is two days and has double panels. So it's just like a flood of like, give us the best people to judge, which is great because it's the best units and we want the best people judging the best units.
00:21:50
Speaker
But at the local level, it's like... we're dry, you know, there's nothing there, you know, and then in North Texas, we have kind of a stigma, like are so our circuit, our circuit doesn't want local people judging them because we're so big and the pool of people teaching is kind of small.
00:22:06
Speaker
So everybody teaches everywhere. So there's a, you know, I don't want to say a conspiracy theory, but there's people that are worried that, you know, this person works with this group, they're going to score this other group low so they can be higher in the rankings to try to get, you know, to the championships that are seated place, which is a legit thought, you know, but it's, it's created kind of a, um, difficulty to find people who want to judge, you know, our judges coordinator had a conversation with her. She was saying that, you know,
00:22:36
Speaker
just the perception people don't want to do it sometimes because they lose friendships over numbers that they give to groups, you know, and people are upset because, you know, they gave somebody, you know, a 65 and last week they got 66, know, so.
00:22:53
Speaker
you know yeah Yeah, I've been there 20 years ago when I was judging, when I first came out and first started judging. um That happened to me with a very dear friend.
00:23:07
Speaker
um the the I was judging downstairs and I was judging equipment and my friend had a varsity guard and a JV guard and the kids are all trained the exact same way.
00:23:18
Speaker
So the JV guard had a better show. It was a little bit better written for them. And my friend got mad at me because the JV guard had a better equipment score than the varsity guard. And was like, calling it a how I see it, friend.
00:23:32
Speaker
We're still friends today, but I totally get that. It sounds like WGI has some things coming down the pipeline, right? They'd mentioned some things happening in the future, hopefully happening in the future that will help, um,
00:23:45
Speaker
help them partner with local circuits to kind of create a larger judging pool. And I think like to Jonathan's point, there are less judges available. And, but I think the the number of events locally and nationally has expanded so greatly that it's difficult. So hopefully as WGI rolls out some of these new um plans to kind of help support I guess the judging pool will see a balance kind of happening.
00:24:11
Speaker
Yeah. Laura, what about you? like I heard you have like a lot of people who think that they're judges. um what What's up? ah Well, I mean, locally, i think actually we're doing a really great job in sourcing judges for our for our local community, for our circuit.
00:24:28
Speaker
um I think that and think that sometimes people get a little bit stuck on they're not WGI, you know, and I think we also talked about the importance of cultivating those local judges. I know, um Art, you said you have a problem in Texas, but, you know,
00:24:42
Speaker
the w We talked about this at the meeting. The WGI judge is not always going to be the best person to adjudicate the regional A's and the novices and even sometimes the A-class units that are still developing, you know, and those local circuit judges ah might be the best people for them because maybe they're a little bit more empathetic.
00:24:59
Speaker
Maybe they know them a little bit better so they can meet them where they are when they say, oh, well, we've never rehearsed in a gym ever. We just perform in a gym on a Saturday, you know. um where sometimes some of the upper level WGI judges um don't have that personal connection that those local judges can have. So I think that's really important. But no, honestly, I think our judge coordinator has done an amazing job in in trying to get us great local judges, even people.
00:25:25
Speaker
Another thing is, you know, reaching out to circuits around the country and saying, okay, I'll send you two people if you send me two people. I know he had great success with that. So you're not getting a WGI judge necessarily, but you're getting two of the best and brightest that are maybe up and coming from another circuit. And that helps with the national exposure, but still gives a little bit of local flair. And it also helps those developing judges in your circuit to get some experience and with ah perspective on a national level, not just seeing the guards that you're always used to seeing.
00:25:55
Speaker
Yeah, that perspective plate thing plays a huge gamble in what's happening because you get so stuck in being in your own area, you know, getting outside of that and seeing what's happening in other states. I mean, it's eye-opening a lot of the times.
00:26:08
Speaker
And you don't know who's who. Like, there's no... There's no loyalties. I've never heard of this high school. Yeah. Now I will say I i love having um some of our judges that are just local that are judging because they tend to, especially with with the regional A and our lower A classes, because we have in our circuit, we have triple A and double A before you get to national A. um And just the feedback is more geared towards the kids,
00:26:38
Speaker
which i I personally as an instructor love because you know we can sit here and we can analyze and you know what's wrong with your show. You know what's wrong with it most of the time. And you have told the kids what's wrong with it a million times, but they tend to only want to listen to somebody else other than you and they'll say the same things. And I love i love sometimes the personal messages from judges that go, now I know Ricardo told you this already, but...
00:27:05
Speaker
and they'll say something. So that's a great, great relationship to have with those judges. i I hope that we do get to cultivate more local judges. Still keep that WGI pool big, but cultivate more judges.
00:27:18
Speaker
Kirsten, what are you guys doing in the Midwest to build your judges and find more judges? So that's a good question. here honestly I haven't heard anybody um talk about judge recruiting here in the Midwest, but I know it's needed.
00:27:38
Speaker
So it's interesting. I do love Lauren, when you were talking about having local judges switch within circuits, right? I think that's fantastic.
00:27:50
Speaker
I think not only is that good for um exposure, but also our circuit has such a small pool of judges that we just keep seeing the same judges every weekend.
00:28:03
Speaker
And we're not getting a whole lot of WGI judges. And that is one of our biggest complaint is we don't hardly see any. I think we saw one last year.
00:28:15
Speaker
They busy keeping up with the WGI schedule. I think having a WGI judge every once in a while on, especially the ones that are going to WGI, just to get some feedback of like, Hey, you know, like, how's it looking against what, you know, but when it comes to recruitment, I can't say that it's,
00:28:41
Speaker
it's been pushed a lot because I don't, I haven't heard, you know, at shows or within other directors and staff members. Unfortunately, I think that's an opportunity for growth.
Safety and Security in Marching Arts
00:28:55
Speaker
Yeah, definitely. I think that's an opportunity for growth for everyone. Sorry, random. Can I ask, is Kyle Miller your judge coordinator? ki Yes. I literally emailed him about a gig in your circuit during the symposium.
00:29:10
Speaker
Well, he still has this early January date. And I was like, want to go to Chicago. Yeah. And Kyle Miller has just been called out on the podcast for not returning calls.
00:29:22
Speaker
Hi, Miller. I just emailed him. I just emailed him.
00:29:27
Speaker
Oh, so one of the biggest topics that we did discuss over the weekend, and this was sensitive for some people, but it was our safety and security at shows. I know that everyone remembers we did have an incident last year ah where um the mass shooting epidemic in America happened on our turf in a color guard gym.
00:29:52
Speaker
but And so WGI wanted to make it very clear that their job is to help circuits and help show hosts protect spectators and performers and all of that stuff.
00:30:05
Speaker
um And so we did a little bit of active shooter training. We're not going to discuss the details with you on here, but we'll say for myself personally, it was eye opening.
00:30:18
Speaker
The style in which we did the training, it started off a little rough. I was like, okay, this is a little wild. And then we got into the nitty gritty of it and it was amazing. And I went back and I told my boss at work, I was like, we need to hire these people to come down and do this training for all of our school district administrators. Cause I don't know if all of you are like educators, I i school district administrator now, but I've been in the classroom forever.
00:30:44
Speaker
And we have to do those active shooter drills and lockdown procedures and all of that stuff. And whereas I know that that's not something I would want to do with kids specifically, as an adult, this type of training really, really, really got me. And it was a different perspective on that.
00:31:04
Speaker
What were you guys' thoughts on that? I think he he wasn't like going by a script, right? He just made it real. He said, this is what happens and you got to know and you got to protect yourself.
00:31:18
Speaker
And so do what you need to do. i just really found it was unlike any other training that I've had in the past. where it's, you know, you went by that, even though he had a PowerPoint, he didn't go by that PowerPoint. He went and told life stories and real ish, real stories of what happened um in our country and around the world with the shooters with, you know, it was, it was eyeopening.
00:31:48
Speaker
Sometimes I was stunned sometimes. Stunned, stunned several times, just stunned, but not in a freak out way, stunned, just like, oh, you know, I don't know. I don't know how to explain it without telling everyone like what really went down.
00:32:07
Speaker
It's like a reality check. That's it. That's the best way to put that. It was a reality check. I think too, just the situational awareness that we talked about a lot, I think that was really, really helpful. Like, okay, here's a pop quiz. Like, do you know where all the exits are right now? And I think all of us got that wrong, right?
00:32:25
Speaker
and We all thought we knew. had it. And I also said that the doors opened to the outside. That part I knew. Yes. We were more vulnerable in that room.
00:32:36
Speaker
and I think you can apply that. I think that where he had us close our eyes and kind of put ourself in a place, I think that was really helpful. um And that's something we can use in our own venues when we run events. It's like, okay, go into this venue and let's look around and let's walk the venue and talk about where our vulnerable points are and how can we best protect them. So I think that was really invaluable, I think.
00:32:57
Speaker
for our events and quite frankly, our everyday life, even though we did miss Dave Chappelle when he was 20 feet away from us in the restaurant. We're all bragging about how situationally aware we were and then found out Dave Chappelle was 20 feet away from us. So there you go.
00:33:11
Speaker
Awesome. So another big initiative from WGI this year is the rollout of the participant protection plan. in We had a lot of conversation with Dr. Will Frankenberger over the weekend about how that's rolling out.
00:33:26
Speaker
For those of you who are not in the WGI world, but you've probably heard the term safe sport before, SafeSport has been the platform that all of the pageantry arts have used to educate the members and the staff members on abuse and best practices and many different aspects of the activity.
00:33:51
Speaker
This past year, both DCI and WGI decided that they were going to roll out their own versions of those that were more geared specifically towards the pageantry arts.
00:34:02
Speaker
I had to take the DCI one at the beginning of the summer before I went on tour, and I'm about to get ready to take the WGI version so that I can be prepared for my independent color guards that I teach.
00:34:15
Speaker
What were some takeaways that you guys grabbed from those conversations with Will? I want to jump in because I have sort of a bridge, a segue from the previous one to this one. I do learning design or instructional design for work at Amazon.
00:34:29
Speaker
And but the training that we went through, was a great presenter, but the slides were killing me. Like so many different serif fonts and just like the look of it. I was like, what is going on?
00:34:41
Speaker
Like just a alignment on things. I'm like, you need a details person. I also would say an area of opportunity for him would have been, and felt like the training was about our safety. I really would have liked more like organizational safety thinking.
00:34:56
Speaker
Like, how do we as an organization create that plan and give us those tools? I thought that would have been more helpful. In contrast, I thought Will's you know content that he's created that like for the participant training and for the ah best practices guides...
00:35:13
Speaker
So much better, so clear, very easy to understand. And I've done the 3P participant protection program training already. And it's it's great. It's much shorter, but makes so much more sense for our activity.
00:35:30
Speaker
yeah ah Yeah. Following Jonathan, I loved the guides that they offer. And also even when they were talking about, you know, if you have a guard mom who's helping with costumes, that person has to also go through those trainings. And I think having kind of those guidelines is going to help us offer those guidelines to our, you know, members our own circuits. And I think...
00:35:50
Speaker
It's going to just make everyone a lot safer and more aligned with you know how we need to set up things for our kids, for sure. Yeah, I think it's crazy. I was chatting with one of my friends. I feel like our generation is kind of the in-between generation.
00:36:02
Speaker
like When we marched, it was like, beat people down and you know rough and tough and crazy and no water breaks. and you know It was that. And then kind of...
00:36:13
Speaker
took that with how we taught kids, but then we've now transitioned into it's safe and we need to provide an educational environment and make kids feel valued and all of those things. So it's cool to see the curve that it has taken. You know, had been teaching for 20 years now and students that I taught 20 years ago, we'll come back to shows and they'll talk to kids that I teach now. And they're like, Oh, this is a different person. And I am, you know, it's like,
00:36:42
Speaker
I've learned a lot.
00:36:45
Speaker
So it's kind of cool. It's cool that the activity is growing. My staff has always been former students. And it's so funny to me because they say, oh my God, you baby these kids now. You used to abuse us. And I was like, gosh, you can't say that i abused her. They're like, you abused us. Like mentally we were abused. We all, they said, we have this bond because we all trauma bonded over being in rehearsal. And I was like, see, that makes me feel awful. And I'm glad that I know better so that I can do better.
00:37:17
Speaker
I think we all, we've all grown, right? i mean, what you did when you first started teaching would not go for what today is with these kids these days, right? So you have to be able to bend and mold and shift gears all the time and learn from your past and learn from others.
00:37:41
Speaker
And I think that's the biggest thing too. listen to how other instructors are teaching because no matter how long you've been teaching, you could pick up great nuggets of information and techniques.
00:37:55
Speaker
Yep, absolutely. I will say this, Dr. Will Frankenberger was talking about how people can submit their grievances, I guess you could say, or situations or whatever into to WGI.
00:38:12
Speaker
One of the things that they're doing now is they took out the anonymity from everyone. So you can't just post and say, you know, this person is bad and they did this or this person is terrible. But you don't name yourself so they can follow up because they are actually doing the work to research these things and check in and they're investigating and doing all this stuff.
00:38:34
Speaker
But I laughed so hard because he talked about it cut back on the number of people who were sending in messages like, this instructor's terrible because they cut me from the saber solo.
00:38:46
Speaker
just thought that was the funniest thing in the world. And I was like, I'm sure he probably had hundreds of kids that were mad because they did not get to finish their show on the 50 and they were in a back corner or behind a prop because they got cut because they couldn't do the toss. I'm like...
00:39:06
Speaker
Yeah, it's funny how kids will, you know, think they can use that. and But I also think it's our responsibility as instructors, directors, leadership to explain to them what the lines, ah just like at work, what is, you know, when you have a problem with this, when you go to this person to go to this person and sit in.
00:39:29
Speaker
Because a lot of them think that WGI ah regulates every circuit and every guard. Don't. so Right. They don't.
00:39:41
Speaker
So I think that that's also like a misperception of members, perhaps, but lines of, um you know, communication who they need to go needs to be stressed as well. Yeah.
Outcomes and Reflections from WGI Meeting
00:39:57
Speaker
All right. So before we end this part of the discussion, is there anything? Let's just go round table something, your greatest takeaways from the meeting, something that you would have liked to have talked, something you would liked to spoken on at the meeting, anything wrapping this up, Jonathan, I'll start with you.
00:40:16
Speaker
um I think it was just the, I mean, sort of like what Art said earlier, like putting faces to names and having, feeling like there's a network and communication is now open. I've posted some things in the Slack. Nobody has responded or looked at it yet. So I'm hoping they'll start using it a bit more soon.
00:40:32
Speaker
But just that, like, it feels like now I know people to reach out to. Yeah, absolutely. We also have our friend group text now too. So yeah, there's that.
00:40:43
Speaker
Lauren, what about you? I think that's the most invaluable part is just being able to talk to each other. and like Jonathan said, just getting that contact information. And also it helps to hear. You know, you always hear rumors about WGI is going to do this, WGI is going to do that. And hearing that from the horse's mouth, as it were, and then being able to ask questions and everybody is getting the same information at the same time. You know, so there's no rumors. There's no, we're all on the same page. And if we want to challenge them or ask additional questions, we are there in that moment to do so. So that's part of also why I think it's really so invaluable that they do this.
00:41:17
Speaker
Yeah, literally in the room where it happens. That was kind of my takeaway from the whole thing is like being here and being able to voice opinions and not be judged by anything. But, you know, sometimes they don't know. Like WGI is responsible for the thing that WGI is.
00:41:32
Speaker
We are the grassroots movements in each area of the country that's kind of developing and pushing those groups into WGI. But our problems are different than WGI problems. And WGI doesn't know what our problems are if we don't get to tell them our problem.
00:41:46
Speaker
So I thought that the meeting was valuable for that. Kirsten, your takeaways? I think that we should have more of the round table. That was the best part of it all for me was, and maybe do like some mini groups and they have different topics and then come together, but don't have it in tables, but maybe in a round or, know, like in clubs.
00:42:13
Speaker
Right. Literally. I think that's the best way because can go talk to Brian or Art or Lauren or Jonathan and say, Hey, this is going on in our circuit. Do you have it in your circuit?
00:42:25
Speaker
And just having that round table of, and threw we threw off so many different topics. It was great. It was, I was like writing like crazy. I loved it.
00:42:36
Speaker
My notes were going crazy too. Brian? I'm going echo what everyone has said about the networking. I loved it. I love that we were able to network and kind of do the larger round table, but I also hope in the next time that we are fortunate enough to do this meeting, that we can also include, like Kirsten was saying, those smaller round tables, where we can be a little bit more intimate and maybe even feel a little bit more comfortable talking and asking questions bringing up topics.
00:43:01
Speaker
um I'm also really excited about the potential expansion and support that's going to be offered by the WGI um circuit membership as opposed to the partnership.
00:43:13
Speaker
I think there's a lot of potential opportunity for the circuits to be able to support WGI from our local geography, but also for WGI to hopefully support the local circuits as well. So I'm excited about the potential for that for sure.
00:43:28
Speaker
Absolutely. It's definitely going hopefully, a place of growth for our entire activity. Yeah, yeah. Art, I think my biggest or my favorite part of the whole thing, is we didn't have to debate policy, you know, because so many times...
00:43:42
Speaker
Like so many times we get in these meetings, it's like, well, I think that the open class should have X, Y, you know, we didn't have to do that. Like it was just healthy conversations with intelligent people who are passionate about the activity on how we can make our circuits stronger, how we can make our circuits grow, how we can make the community better to better serve the entire country, which was really cool. You know,
00:44:08
Speaker
And I didn't have to be the bad guy and you know run a circuit meeting and you know tell people they couldn't vote on certain things and all that stuff. So that was that was probably my favorite takeaway. so yeah you You said community. And when I was talking to my boss and giving her like a little rundown on Monday about...
00:44:28
Speaker
what went on, I said, you know, as someone who is now working in school district leadership, and my focus has stopped being on, I need to do everything I can to make my one program better.
00:44:38
Speaker
I now have to think about what's making the entire organization better. And I think that this meeting was one of those situations where no one was in the room for personal gain or to lobby for their circuit or anything. It was literally, how can we collectively as a community come together for the greater good of the activity? So,
00:44:58
Speaker
It was a top notch weekend. got to meet cool new people and they're on this podcast with me, but we are going to go to a commercial break and we'll be right back in a few minutes with on a water break.
Ensemble Tours and Travel Planning
00:45:12
Speaker
Hi everyone. It's time for your travel tip of the week with me. I'm Beth with Peak Group Travel. Performance tours are a great way to showcase your ensemble in new cities and for new audiences.
00:45:24
Speaker
But be sure to also include local attractions and sightseeing tours or cruises to give your group a full cultural experience while they're on the road. Don't forget to like and follow Peak Group Travel on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
00:45:39
Speaker
And be sure to email info at peakgrouptravel.com when you're ready to start planning your next performance tour. This is your travel tip of the week with me, Beth, from Peak Group Travel.
00:46:04
Speaker
Ready to elevate your travel game? Welcome to Peak Group Travel, the ultimate adventure creators. Whether you're planning an unforgettable class trip, a once in a lifetime parade experience for your marching band, or a choir tour full of memorable performance venues, Peak Group Travel handles it all so you can focus on making memories.
00:46:22
Speaker
From breathtaking international destinations to amazing adventures right here at home, Peak Group Travel customizes every journey to your vision. We're not just planners, we're your partners for the trip you want for your students.
00:46:34
Speaker
Our online registration portal makes managing your pre-trip experience smooth and convenient. We even collect your payments if you'd like. Picture it, effortless planning, unmatched experiences, and smiles that last long after the journey ends.
00:46:48
Speaker
That's the Peak Group Travel difference. And if you choose to partner with Peak on your next tour, and you mentioned that you heard about us on the On a Water Break podcast, you'll earn a $100 trip credit. Discover why groups everywhere trust Peak Group Travel.
00:47:01
Speaker
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, and be sure to visit peakgrouptravel.com
60 Second Tech Block Challenge
00:47:05
Speaker
today. You pick the date, and we'll make it great.
00:47:19
Speaker
Okay, everyone, we are back and it is time for 60 Second Tech Block. 60 Second Tech Block.
00:47:34
Speaker
It never gets old. ah This is a segment where one of our host or guest clinicians is put on the spot to deliver a nonstop 60 Second Tech session on a topic that needs some serious ah attention after the last run.
00:47:48
Speaker
Our special tech this week has come prepared with three topics that they think they can talk about for a full 60 seconds straight. No hesitation, no pauses, just pure technical gold. And this week, let's see, I think we're going to throw it over to Jonathan. Amazing. We'll see how it goes. Jonathan, that you said that your best topics were what boutique circuits need to know, the difference between sickling and winging your feet, what boutique circuits do better than everyone else. Okay. So everybody like give me your thoughts. What do you think that Jonathan should talk on today?
00:48:32
Speaker
What boutique circuits do really well. ah Okay. Okay. Bougie boutiques. Yeah. I want to know what they do better than everybody else. Yeah.
00:48:42
Speaker
What makes them better? I personally know about the difference between sickling and winging feet because sickled feet yeah literally make me throw up. But I am so on this boutique circuit situation right now because we have coined this phrase this week and we need to shout out Leah Rupert for this because she trademarked that term.
00:49:04
Speaker
So Jonathan, I think that I'm going to vote on what do boutique circuits do better than everyone else? Is everyone else in agreement with me on that?
00:49:15
Speaker
Oh, my gosh. Absolutely. Yeah. Okay. All right. So this is how we're going to do this. Brian, will you do me a favor and pull up a 60-second timer on your phone and let me know when you are ready?
00:49:28
Speaker
How about a stopwatch? Perfection. All right. Okay. Jonathan, you ready? Sure. We'll see how it goes. Here we go. 60-second tech block and...
00:49:39
Speaker
yeah Alright, what boot street circuits do better, because we have such a smaller scale, there is more of a sense of… I mean, Color Guard, everyone knows everyone.
00:49:50
Speaker
But when there's only 18 teams at circuit championships, it's less about everyone knows everyone, and more that everyone has marched with everyone. Everyone has known people for a decade. like there's Our community is very tight-knit.
00:50:03
Speaker
I think that we do a good job, or we have done a good job in different times at really supporting our teams individually with education. Like, yeah, we've done clinics and things like that, and we have performer tracks and instructor tracks, and judge training is going on at the same time. But one thing that I really enjoyed that we did that really helped...
00:50:23
Speaker
turn the corner for some units was doing something we called pre-critique. So during that day that we would do a clinic with everybody, we would set a chunk of time for instructors to come in, crap, to come in talk to the judges about what their show was going to be and show us whatever. 60 second tech block.
00:50:44
Speaker
I don't know if I got everything. 60 second tech block! That was great though. I feel like I understand now what boutique c circuits do better.
00:50:57
Speaker
Completely agree with that. Thank you. I didn't get to finish my thought, but the pre-critique thing that we did was a way for us to, like in December, help steer perhaps the 19-year-old first-time designer doing Firebird with their regional A-guard.
00:51:13
Speaker
um So that was this just a way for us to help point people in the right direction. Yeah, agree with that. And I think more people need to get on that bandwagon with the pre-critique because I have seen in the message boards, people asking for show ideas or they put out their show idea in the group and it's like, girl, don't do that.
00:51:38
Speaker
but Do not do that. Yeah. They need to look at what's on the floor. Who what who do you have? Yeah. Yeah. I feel like in a boutique circuit, you can just go up to your friend and be like, hey, girl, I know you thought that was going to be cute, but it was not.
00:51:54
Speaker
It was not. That's very, very true.
00:51:58
Speaker
So that was a solid 60-second tech block. Hopefully someone out there just got the tech advice that they didn't know they
Challenges in Marching Arts
00:52:05
Speaker
needed. I know I did. But now it's time to switch things up. It's time for everyone's favorite, What Are We Doing?
00:52:12
Speaker
What Are We Doing?
00:52:21
Speaker
what are we doing? Yeah, this is the part of the show where we let loose just a little bit or Maybe a lot. This is your chance to rant about something in the marching arts that just doesn't make sense.
00:52:36
Speaker
Maybe it's a tradition that needs to go. Maybe it's a habit that performers can't seem to break. Maybe it's something that makes you think, why are we even doing this? Or why haven't we started doing this yet?
00:52:47
Speaker
Whatever it is, this is your moment to call it out. So who's got something they need to get off their chest? Lauren? Lauren? What are we doing? So I have something that's a what are we doing? It's a little bit different.
00:53:00
Speaker
My question is, what are we doing to encourage our current performers to become future Color Guard educators? Because I feel like, I feel like even personally, I feel like there's not enough that we're doing. And I think that all feeds into that whole judge recruitment problem that we're talking about because there's actually an instructor shortage also. So I think that coming out of this weekend too, I've been thinking about like, how can we try to think about encouraging our current performers to want to be an instructor and to give them some more tools.
00:53:32
Speaker
You know, I know personally when I teach, i will talk to the kids about, Hey, like, this is why we do this. And, It's not, I don't think I'm doing enough. I don't think that anybody's doing enough. And so what are we doing to make that better?
00:53:44
Speaker
Amen. I've said this before. When I started teaching at the school that I was at for a very long time, there was no, and there were no other instructors around. It was hard for me to bring in texts. And so I just decided one day, I was like, you know what? I have to teach my kids to be teachers because I need to breed my own staff.
00:54:04
Speaker
And so the easiest way for anyone who's ever doing, thinking about doing that is one, letting them teach each other the basics, let the older classmen teach the younger ones. And if you have a JV guard, let those kids that are in the varsity guard be your tech staff. So your tech staff can take the varsity, your varsity kids can take the JV.
00:54:22
Speaker
And we even had a cadet guard that was elementary kids. And so we let those kids who were second year members in that JV guard go teach the cadet kids. And so there is a pipeline a coming that's going last for years where kids will come out of the program and they will come back and teach again or go teach somewhere else.
00:54:39
Speaker
Everybody needs to be doing that. Everybody. All right, Brian, it's your turn to tell what are we doing? What are we doing with our wonderful, hardworking team still working and fighting so hard to get rehearsal space that is safe for their bodies, that allows them to practice their productions in a way where they're not fighting the wind and not getting kicked out because it's other athletic team or whatever else is happening on campus.
00:55:07
Speaker
We don't want more space. We just want equal space. letter As good as we can by working in safe, productive areas.
00:55:19
Speaker
So we have this like panel, this round panel from across the country. What are other circus doing? Because I know in Florida, most of our color guards rehearse outside. Like we are outside in the wind, the rain, the mosquitoes after the sun goes down, the dark.
00:55:35
Speaker
Usually my run throughs were always after the sun went down. So there was no tossing that could happen. Like what are y'all doing in other places to make up for this like lack of space? Like relationship with other schools, Scholastic have a little bit more easier up here because they can get into their gyms. And a lot of our schools up here have multiple gyms.
00:55:55
Speaker
So sometimes they're in a little multi-use place, a space that could have been a cafeteria that is also, ah they can use, but it's harder for independent groups to find schools that perhaps don't have a color guard or gym big enough. Or if there's a couple of them that have a couple guards, you know, they want them in one space, but also the cost is huge.
00:56:27
Speaker
Lauren, what are you guys doing in the mid Atlantic? Yeah, we just all have to fight for space and there's not enough of it. And so it's a real challenge.
00:56:38
Speaker
There's a few teams in our circuit that like have dedicated rehearsal space that they get, you know, maybe in the gym once or twice a week and everybody else is really, really, really fighting. It's not uncommon for color guards in our area to have to rehearse in the cafeteria and maybe the ceiling isn't even tall enough.
00:56:53
Speaker
Or, i mean, like my team last year, we had to start at the other end of the building for the first hour and then transition across the building. We were only allowed at the gym for two hours at a time. And, you know, it's disheartening when our students feel like they're less than those that play athletics.
00:57:10
Speaker
That's um I think that that's the message that a lot of our students get. It's not being said overtly, but I think that's it's really difficult across across the whole circuit. You know, not not speaking about my team individually, but across the whole circuit.
00:57:23
Speaker
And what Kirsten said about independent teams, you know, rehearsal space has gotten really expensive. Actually, that was our solution last year. We had to rent gym space because we couldn't get into our own gyms. So wow it's been a real challenge. So fundraising is important.
00:57:37
Speaker
I'll say, ah like, on the scholastic level, I mean, I think in Texas, we're a little bit more blessed than a lot of people because most of our color guard educators are district employees. And the districts have invested in color guard in North Texas, unlike a lot of places in the country. But I guess one really big piece of advice that I would give people and I had a mentor teach me this. And it's as simple as go to the coaches and learn their names and speak to them by their name.
00:58:04
Speaker
You know, like... Yes, like i I knew all of our basketball coaches, you know, I would walk into the gym and say, Hey, Brent, you know, what are you guys done? And oftentimes our basketball coach like, Oh, you know, we're supposed to finish at six, but like, they're just kind of shooting around, I can have a move, you know, into the weight room or something like you guys want to start.
00:58:23
Speaker
So we developed a personal relationship with the coaches. And I think that sometimes color people get afraid to assert themselves and to actually put themselves into the conversation on their campus.
00:58:35
Speaker
yeah like Go to the principal, introduce yourself. you know Don't be afraid of the people that you work with on the campus because they want to know you. And I think that's the biggest thing is they want to know you. The principal wants to know who is in their building. So learn people's names. so That's the biggest thing with my mentors. Call everybody by their name.
00:58:52
Speaker
When you get on the bus, say, hi, my name is Art. What's your name? To the bus driver. you know And then you have a personal relationship with people. Absolutely. All right, since you were just talking, guess what? It's your turn to tell, what are we doing?
00:59:07
Speaker
What are we doing throwing seven sit-roll tosses in a regional A class?
00:59:18
Speaker
yeah um I had to do pushups in the gravel on the hot parking lot when my technique wasn't strong and we've moved away from that and we're protecting our performers now, which I'm supportive of.
00:59:31
Speaker
But I feel like our technique has kind of gone to the back burner in the... the hopes of attempting skill that we think is going to get us more points. So I guess that's what are we doing things that we shouldn't be doing when we need to teach kids how to do thumbs up, thumbs down, taking one from Kirsten earlier.
00:59:54
Speaker
Yes! I am so sick of it. I am so sick of kids that cannot throw a double trying these tosses and it's like the nastiest ugly dip and shoulders all down and then the equipment's looking like flopping fish in the air and they're doing all this stuff and then they're like barely catching with one hand or the floor gets half of the catch for them. And they're like, this is great. I'm like, don't put that in your show. If that's not a skill that you have mastered and you look good doing, girl, don't do it.
01:00:28
Speaker
Don't do it. They can't even do any of the prep into it or the choreo before and after. It's all about throw, throw, throw, throw. Where's the musicality? I don't know. It's fine.
01:00:43
Speaker
It's gone. You just took mine art. I was going on that one. But I have a another one. But yeah, I just, oh, how many tosses can we throw in a show too?
01:00:54
Speaker
That. And it's actually better than it used to be. Do you remember like, it was like close to a decade ago. I swear to God, WGI sent an email saying toss fest shows do not equal more points.
01:01:08
Speaker
Cause it sort of like peaked. It's like, oh i think I think that's gotten away. I mean, there was one show where where I counted. counted. It was 48 tosses.
01:01:20
Speaker
Like ensemble tosses are just out from one kid? Yes. Oh, my God. y'all. now yeah No, no. Write a phrase. Write phrase. Exactly.
Teaching Culture and Future Educators
01:01:31
Speaker
Make phrases great again.
01:01:33
Speaker
i do think, I think one of the challenges with the trick, with the tricks that the kids want to learn is, you know, they see them on social media and they go, Oh, and like, that's what fires them up. and that's what gets them interested in color. But then our job as their staff and their instructors is to say, Oh, you want to do this trick?
01:01:49
Speaker
That's awesome. Here's the steps. that we need to take. I have kids that all the time, you know, I want to do this. And I'm like, great, you want to throw this 45 toss. And this is your second day of color guard, we're going to go through these steps. And once you can do this, show me this and show me this.
01:02:04
Speaker
And then and then they do and they eventually get there. And yes, it takes a lot of hard work. And it takes time. But I think that's our job to guide them and not just go, okay, go and try it. But you can be a backyard buddy and try to learn that trick.
01:02:15
Speaker
You know, and I think that's a safety thing too, with training. Absolutely. And I don't think we talk about that enough. That is one of the ways that I have always tried to approach it with my kids. It's like, I need you to be safe first and understand how the weight and flow of all of this equipment stuff works in order to be able to do that.
01:02:32
Speaker
Because I don't need you getting yourself injured. I'm not trying to fill out all that paperwork. I don't want to do it You know, a way I tell the kids what, especially because I am all about technique. I love teaching technique, cleaning technique, technique.
01:02:48
Speaker
Love it. I always say that your technique is your foundation of your house. You cannot build your house on a weak foundation. And that is your technique you can't do those tosses if you don't know how to just do a regular drop spin and do it correctly you keep your elbows in all that basic stuff that they think is boring is actually developing them to do that yep that big all tricky stuff so i'm like before you can build your house you have to build your foundation and your foundation is your technique absolutely
01:03:26
Speaker
Jonathan, it's your turn, Fran. What are we doing? I mean, speaking of technique, I'm going back to the topic I did get to do. What are we doing not teaching children the difference between a sickle and a wing with your foot? Like, it's just, I mean, I get it. Like, you want them to leap and all of that. And like, yeah, it's fine. But like, not all points are created equal. Not all points are created equal.
01:03:48
Speaker
Like, there's a difference between this... this and that, right? Teach your kids what coup de pied is. like i Make them wrap their foot around their ankle. like You can look it up, there's videos on YouTube.
01:04:00
Speaker
But the most egregious part of it is that I see world-class guards. I'm a movement judge. I see world-class guards. They have fantastic feet most of the time. They roll in and out of the ground.
01:04:11
Speaker
It's like they forgot how to point their feet. I don't know. like I see it from cadet guards up to world guards. It's just like, you look fantastic the rest of the time. Why can't you do it here?
01:04:22
Speaker
yeah anyway Every time I go into some color guards and I'm like, why do you look so pretty doing everything else? And then you look like you have dead fish on the bottom of your legs when you roll in the ground.
01:04:35
Speaker
yeah It makes me, I throw up every time, every time I see it. Once upon a time, I cut i would cut a rep if I saw sickled foot. I'd like, nope, cut. If I see any sickled feet, we going back.
01:04:50
Speaker
They got rid of those sickled feet in one week because they were so sick of resetting. We all need to take that stand. You know what? The rep is done. If you can't point your toes, girl, no, man, we're starting over. It's a new shirt I'll bring to WGI. No sickled feet. that like Old Lady Flag Club.
01:05:09
Speaker
The phrase, not all points are the same. I wish that I had known that one when I was still in a classroom teaching dance every day, because I would have made a t-shirt with that on there. Kirsten, last but not least, tell us, what are we doing?
01:05:23
Speaker
All right. So this one is completely different. What are we doing about... administration saying that color guards are ruining their gym floors.
01:05:33
Speaker
And what are we doing about protecting those floors and the cost of rubber mats and carpet mats? What are we doing? but Like my flagpole is not ruining your gym floor with its rubber. Look at what that basketball people are doing.
01:05:54
Speaker
What are we doing? i I love how basketball coaches and athletic directors are like, look at my imported Venetian hardwood floors that were sourced from a mountain high in the Alps. I'm like, girl, it's a wood floor.
01:06:09
Speaker
And these colors, this color. Now, sabers, baby, baby. I have seen a little saber entry to a floor. ain't gonna lie about that. But you know what? Yeah. Sit down. Child, this stuff is not hurting that floor. That floor is fine. If your floor is so delicate that color guard equipment is damaging it, you need to find better floors.
01:06:28
Speaker
Well, and especially when the girls basketball coach is in heels at the playoff game. Right. Jumping around and shouting and cutting up. I can say that because my best friend was the girls basketball coach. She shared the gym with me, though, so it was all good.
01:06:47
Speaker
great job everyone Set your equipment down. Gush and go.
01:06:52
Speaker
All right. We got that off our chest. So ah let's get to gush and goes. This is your chance to shout out something awesome happening in your life, marching arts related or not.
01:07:04
Speaker
Maybe you're excited about a performance, a student success, circuit success, a big life event, or just something cool you want to brag about. No negativity here. Just pure unfiltered hype. So who's got something to gush about?
Personal Successes and Team Achievements
01:07:18
Speaker
Lauren? so i'm really excited about the high school team that i teach because this year we have nine out of nineteen kids are brand new and we've been working we've been working really hard with them not just on their skills but also in anytime you have that many new kids come in it's hard to keep your culture the same because there's that half of them are so we've been working really hard and we've had some bumps in the road which i anticipated but i feel like we're kind of coming around the corner there And so I'm really proud of them that they're establishing and starting to maintain that culture that we need in order to be successful because we insist on positivity and supporting each other at all times. And they're starting there's some of the freshmen are really starting to get that. And so that's really exciting to see.
01:08:05
Speaker
Fabulous.
01:08:09
Speaker
Brian, what are we gushing and going about? I'm going to gush about the Blue Devil special needs guard that I get to a part of. but We have, I am fortunate enough to be part of one of three special needs color guards that Blue Devils produce.
01:08:25
Speaker
And the one I get to work with, we're getting ready to start our second season in just a few weeks in Westlake Village. And it's been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
01:08:36
Speaker
Food for the soul. It's amazing. So I'm really excited about doing that. Ah, that's fantastic. Yeah. Fantastic. Art? Mine's a little opposite. um ah I'm super fortunate. This is my first year not in the classroom.
01:08:52
Speaker
Yes, I have taught a high school or an independent guard for the last 20 years. And this is my first time ever not teaching. So I didn't do a band camp this year. I didn't, you know, not sweat in a parking lot.
01:09:05
Speaker
Me and my amazing boyfriend, Luis, are getting to live like a normal life, like where we go to the farmer's market and... you know, like sleep in on Saturday and like that type of stuff. But on the flip side of that, I get to actually focus on doing a lot more things for the circuit and, you know, like focus on building a better website and doing cool podcasts with cool people and, you know, being on that side of things. So it feels like the progression, you know, I've come out of the trenches. So super, super fortunate for that.
01:09:37
Speaker
Love that. I'm right there with you, friend. It's been nice, especially as hot as it is in Florida. I have not felt bad about coming home and enjoying my air conditioning every day. Jonathan!
01:09:50
Speaker
I kind of mentioned it in my 32-count life um history, but I'm on the WGI judges roster this next season, and I'm super excited about it. Thank you. And I'm not saying it in a hair-flip kind of way.
01:10:03
Speaker
I'm saying it because and worked really hard for the last decade to try to get better at it because... view my role as a judge as helping color guards. I want everyone to be successful, and it let me you know travel all over, and like I tried to expose myself to lots of different types of color guards around the country.
01:10:20
Speaker
But... It's sort of, to me, judges are the biggest nerds for the activity. Like, we're the ones that are like, sure, I'm done teaching, but I still want to spend every weekend sitting in a gym watching 72 color guards. Like, you guys, leaving for this block.
01:10:39
Speaker
I am here the whole day. Judges the biggest nerds for the activity. So just remember that in a critique sometime, that we're here because we love this activity and are obsessed with it just as much as you are.
01:10:52
Speaker
Amen to that. amen Kirsten, what are you gushing about? Well, I'm kind of like art. I have, I've just stepped down on the executive director of color guard just in may, and I'm trying to find my footing on where I want to be and what I want to do next.
01:11:12
Speaker
with the passion of color guard, um DCI, whatever. So right now, I'm just enjoying sleeping in on Saturdays, not worrying about where the tarp needs to be, you know, social media posts, all that kind of stuff right now. I'm just enjoying that and going on little vacations with my husband.
01:11:33
Speaker
Yeah. I love it. I love it. Congratulations. So I'm going to gush, and I know that this is like terrible and cheesy, but I'm going to gush about the fact that I got to meet all of you just a few days ago. And I feel like now I have new besties that I can...
01:11:53
Speaker
check in with and make sure that everything's going well so i am appreciative that the activity continues to keep giving and giving and giving and introducing wonderful people into my life so yeah that's what i'm gushing about it's called gush go not gushing stay let's go
01:12:16
Speaker
Thanks everyone for a great
Engagement and Online Presence
01:12:18
Speaker
rehearsal this week. And thank you everyone who was spending time with us today. So friends, I want you to tell our listeners where we can find you on social media or your circuit.
01:12:30
Speaker
Lauren? So you can find Maine at Facebook and Insta. It's at MaineColorGuard.com. And you can also email us at maincolorguards at gmail.com. If you have a question, you can find me on Facebook and Insta, Lauren Moffitt Burns on Facebook and at Lauren M78 at... Love it.
01:12:48
Speaker
Brian. WGASC can be found on Facebook at WGASC, Instagram at the WGASC, and our website is WGASC.org.
01:13:01
Speaker
Cool deal. Art? NTCA is on all the platforms. It's ah at NTCA online. Our website is ntca-online.com. um And my personal is Arthur J-U-H-L on Instagram and Facebook.
01:13:17
Speaker
Cool deal. All right. Jonathan. Sorry, the button to unmute myself disappeared. You can find my circuit, uh, Pacific performing arts.org, um, on Instagram, Pacific performing arts, uh, and on Facebook, Pacific performing arts. Uh, I'm on Instagram and Facebook, just my full name, Jonathan J Brown. It's Jonathan with an O. Um, I love how that none of us is saying, um, tick tock because we were all born in the 1900s. All we have is Instagram and Facebook.
01:13:47
Speaker
I have a TikTok, but I don't ever get on there anymore. Except for when Jeremy sends me videos and it's like, look at this. Kirsten, where can we find you? Sure. You can find Midwest Color Guard Circuit at MidwestColorGuardCircuit.org. They're on um Instagram and and Facebook. And then Kirsten Miller, you can find me on Facebook and Instagram.
01:14:10
Speaker
TikTok, I'm the same. I never get on it unless my husband sends me a TikTok. think that's pretty much all of us from the 1900s, but thank you guys again for being here. Listeners, if you've got a question or a good topic to talk about, email us at onawaterbreakpodcast at gmail.com or find us on social media and DM us if you want to be on the show.
01:14:32
Speaker
We even have a form now for you to fill out if you want to be a guest. We love having people on the podcast, like these amazing people that came and joined us today. So check that out at our link in the bio on our social media.
01:14:44
Speaker
You can just take out your phone, make a video and send it to us. And maybe you'll see yourself on the podcast soon. and you can tell us where to find you. One more thing.
01:14:56
Speaker
Don't forget, we have a YouTube channel now. So go and subscribe so you can see us all there. And before you close out your podcast listening app, go subscribe, write us a review and share this with a friend.
01:15:08
Speaker
Follow us on social media at On A Water Break. And we'll see you at the next rehearsal On A Water Break.
01:15:17
Speaker
The On a Water Break podcast was produced by Jeremy Williams and Christine Ream. The intro and outro music was produced by Josh Lida. To learn more, visit LidaMusic.com.
01:15:29
Speaker
And until next time, thanks for tuning
01:15:36
Speaker
super