2001 Show - The Pirates of Lake Mendota

This Year's show is The Pirates of Lake Mendota, the Madison Scouts show from 1997. The following description comes from the Madison Scouts' website…

"The 1997 production, dubbed The Pirates of Lake Mendota, is based on swashbuckling, nautical-flavored musical selections and concepts. After a mood-setting warm-up and introduction, the show explodes with The Adventure Begins, a powerful original composition by staff member Scott Boerma. One of the many visual highlights of this piece will be the ten-man front-staged rifle line. This is followed by the spirited A Day In Port, based on a Goff Richards arrangement of traditional British melodies entitled Songs of the Quay. Portraying a relaxing, yet raucous day off for the ship's crew, this piece combines beauty, excitement, and humor in its musical and visual presentation. Moods of the Sea, our next segment, paints a picture of a violent storm, followed by a deadly calm, and finishes with a triumphant statement of survival and perseverance by the men who have survived this ordeal of nature. Huge, white flags, reminiscent of ships' sails, will accent the feel of this portion of the show, which was inspired by the Tall Ships Suite, a dramatic work by Dave Roylance and Robert Galvin. Confrontation and Finale, another original composition, this time by staff member Taras Nahirniak, closes the show. This "blood and guts" production features the pirate-garbed color guard in a simulated battle which at its climax coordinates their weapon handling with the choreographed effects of the percussion section. The finale incorporates a dramatic company front, followed by quickly evolving visual surprises, giant, ornate fluer-de-lis adorned flags, and driving musical ideas which combine to create all the fire and impact you have come to expect from the Madison Scouts."