A Deep Dive Into the 2024 DCI Schedule
It’s hard to believe, but we’re already in the final weeks of 2023. With the conclusion of the Bands of America season and championships for most state or local competitive marching band circuits, we can begin to look forward to 2024 for all three marching arts activities. The 2024 WGI season is next in line, but it’s also time to already start thinking towards the 2024 DCI season following the schedule released earlier today.
With 91 events scheduled in 38 states over a period of 45 days, there will be a number of shows to look forward to. The same can be said competitively. How far can Blue Devils stretch their undefeated streak that dates back to the 2019 World Championships? Can Mandarins further their climb up the competitive ranks after their first ever top 6 finish in? Will Blue Knights maintain finalist status after their return to the top 12 in 2023? How will Santa Clara Vanguard fare in their return after a season of inactivity?
So many questions remain, but for now, let’s dive into the schedule and see what we can look forward to.
Starting with the End
To no one’s surprise, the season will end just as it always has for the past 14 years - at World Championships in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium. There was never a doubt that the 2024 World Championships would be in Indianapolis, but a contract extension announced earlier this year solidified DCI’s relationship with the city for the next 10 years through 2033.
Open Class Championships will precede World Championships at Indiana Wesleyan University yet again on August 5th & 6th - the fourth time that Open Class finals will be held in Marion since the move away from Michigan City in 2019. 12 corps are slated to compete, one more than this past summer. The list doesn't include Southwind following their announcement earlier this fall that they are sadly suspending operations permanently. However, all other corps that participated in 2023 are returning, including Columbians who made the trip to Open Class Championships for the first time ever in corps history this past summer and finished fourth. Also joining will be Blue Devils B who last made the trip to Open Class finals in 2022. Lastly, Eclipse is named a competitor though they haven't officially been granted Open Class status yet.
Later in the week, the Open Class corps will continue to Indianapolis and join all 21 active World Class corps for World Championships on August 8-10. The list of World Class corps includes the aforementioned Santa Clara Vanguard but omits The Cadets who will be inactive in 2024 for similar financial stability purposes. It also includes Jersey Surf who will be embarking on a longer tour compared to their 2022 and 2023 seasons with a stop in San Antonio for the first time since 2019.
The biggest addition to World Championships this year will be the addition of All-Age Class after the merger between DCI and DCA. The move adds two separate rounds of competition for the 12 all-age and former member corps of DCA. The addition also means Lucas Oil Stadium will host competitive drum corps on the Saturday morning and afternoon of finals for the first time since Open Class finals were held in the stadium in 2010.
The Best of the Rest
For anyone who has followed DCI for even only the past few years, it should be no surprise to see the return of the three weeks of regional events that precede World Championships in the same exact order - the Southwestern Championship in San Antonio on July 20th; the Southeastern Championship in Atlanta on July 27th; NightBEAT in Winston-Salem on July 28th; and the Eastern Classic in Allentown on August 2nd & 3rd. 2024 will be the third straight year that the Southeastern Championship is held outdoors at Center Parc Stadium as well as the third year that DCI will split the corps between that event and NightBEAT (with Blue Devils, Bluecoats, and Crown performing at both). The split also means that, for the third straight year, the 21 World Class corps will compete together only once before World Championships (in San Antonio) at the same venue on the same day under the same judging panel.
“Texas Tour” is always a popular week on the schedule in the days leading up to and following San Antonio. Eight shows are scheduled in the state at the following cities: Canyon, Abilene, Austin, Denton, Houston, San Antonio, Mesquite, and McKinney. This is on par with the same eight Texas shows DCI produced in 2023.
Returning to the tour schedule for the first time in 2022 is a swing to the Pacific Northwest. Four events will be held in the region from July 5-9; one in Portland, Oregon; two in Washington state; and one in Boise, Idaho. The events will be important recruiting tools for Seattle Cascades and Columbians who remain as the only two active DCI corps in the region. Joining them for the four shows will be Blue Knights and Troopers
A number of other key events return in 2023. These include:
Tour Premiere in Rockford, Michigan on June 26
DCI Central Indiana in Muncie, IN on June 28 at Ball State University
Show of Shows in Rockford, IL on July 5
Whitewater, WI on July 6 at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater (site of the first two ever DCI World Championship events)
DCI West in Stanford, CA on July 6 at Stanford University
Drums Along the Rockies in Fort Collins, CO on July 13 at Colorado State University
DCI Broken Arrow in Broken Arrow, OK on July 16
The Masters of the Summer Music Games in Murfressboro, TN on July 26 at Middle Tennessee State University
Innovations In Brass in Canton, OH on August 5
Key Matchups
One of the first things that fans take note of when reviewing a new season schedule is when the 2023 competitive groupings go head-to-head for the first time in the season. Here are some early season matchups to take note that may set the tone for how the season will unfold competitively:
Carolina Crown vs Boston Crusaders - DCI Central Indiana, June 28
Bluecoats vs Carolina Crown vs Boston Crusaders - Summer Music Games in Cincinnati, July 2
Blue Knights vs Pacific Crest - Corps Encore, July 10
Colts vs Troopers - Brass Impact, July 15
All 2023 top 4 corps - Blue Devils, Bluecoats, Carolina Crown, Boston Crusaders - DCI Broken Arrow, July 16
Coming up next in the news cycle
This time of year is arguably the most important point of the offseason for DCI corps. Now that the 2024 schedule is in place, they will begin to plan logistically and financially how to operate their summer tour. Audition season is also in full swing and corps will face the difficult task of contracting their 165 members from a pool of hundreds of auditionees. Educational staffs continue to be finalize and announced, and if they haven't already, design teams will solidify show concepts and major elements for their 2024 productions.
The 2023 DCI World Championships ended only three months ago and the 2024 season still seems like a lifetime away. Fortunately this schedule release can give us a taste of things to come and help get us excited for a new season of drum corps.
Madison Scouts performing at the 2023 DCI Southwestern Championship in San Antonio. Photo credit: Drum Corps International, July 2023 - Link