Question about Guard vs. Dance

[Horn of Gabriel]

Not sure where this belongs, so I chose the "everything" forum...newbie here.

This question comes from a place of genuine curiosity, not animosity, although my kid's band does compete with bands that do this.  I also realize that BOA and UIL judge these things differently so context matters, but: what is the deal with "dance" teams vs. guard?

For example, Vandegrift HS doesn't have a traditional guard, they have their "Vision Dance Company."  Reagan HS has a dance team and colorguard although separate.  In the case of Vandy, while they use silks they do not toss flags, rifles, or sabres.  Questions:

• Is this an advantage?  (or conversely how is it not?) ...after all if you never toss you never drop.  Or is it not and no one cares?
• If it's an advantage, why would anyone continue to toss anything and risk dropping?  Especially if...
• My understanding is that degree of difficulty is not factored?

I did do a search before starting this thread, if there's an existing discussion I missed, please point me that way.

[lizzard2027]

  On 11/13/2024 at 6:50 PM, Horn of Gabriel said:

 

• Is this an advantage?  (or conversely how is it not?) ...after all if you never toss you never drop.  Or is it not and no one cares?
• If it's an advantage, why would anyone continue to toss anything and risk dropping?  Especially if...
• My understanding is that degree of difficulty is not factored?

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As a gaurd kid, I'll toss in my 2 cents:

I think it's neither an advantage nor a disadvantage, as UIL doesn't grade gaurd as a separate category. We're lumped under visual ensemble (I think), so we basically just add to the effect of the show. I've heard some people say its "marching BAND" not "marching band and gaurd" or "band and dance team", so I think to some people we just really are like another set of props. For example, in Around the Fire (my schools 2023 show), the gaurd was the fire, and we helped to tie the whole thing together.

As for dance vs gaurd, there are advantages to having a dance team (such as dance having generally better timing, more likely to have kids who have been doing it for a long time, little to no wind interference, better dance technique) and advantages to have a gaurd (clear vision of the show through silks (think of it like a mini picture of the show), more variety in movement on the field, can sometimes highlight musicality more, traditional part of marching band). Personally, I like bands who have both a guard and a dance team, as they get the best of both worlds  

Also, sometimes there are dance teams on the field due to little interest in gaurd/not enough members, so some schools may be doing it out of necessity. There are also some schools that can't have a gaurd or a dance team on the field, so it's not really fair if they miss out on points due to their circumstances. As for the continuing to toss with the risk of dropping, I think marching season typically has tosses that are either easy to do (think basics, like a pop toss or a J toss) or slightly harder tosses for more experienced members (think 4-6 for seniors, who are really good at catching those)

Since guard isn't factored as our own section, difficulty can't really be factored into the equation, so it dosen't matter to the judges whether you have a dance team with skirts or a gaurd with sabres; at the end of the day, 99% of the comments will be about music/marching technique, so...

TLDR: No advantage/disadvantage on guard/dance team/lack of them

[LeanderMomma]

  On 11/13/2024 at 6:50 PM, Horn of Gabriel said:

I did do a search before starting this thread, if there's an existing discussion I missed, please point me that way.

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I feel like it’s been discussed to death over the years but maybe those discussions are happening more on HornRank than here. 

[lost]

  On 11/18/2024 at 5:02 PM, LeanderMomma said:

I feel like it’s been discussed to death over the years but maybe those discussions are happening more on HornRank than here. 

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It’s one of those things without a specific thread but that inevitably pops up any time Vandegrift does really well or Reagan does really well. Interchangeably.