Coming off of a busy fundraising and exhibition Season, the Druids Drum & Bugle Corps announce plans to march in the circuit contests again for Season 20.

"We're proud to say, after a few Seasons here and there of un-Druid-like, and unpopular shows, the corps is happy to have some repertoire more their own style," says director Douglas Olmstead.

" 'the walking dead' will be a show to go down in the Druids' history, this I promise you."

The corps Season 20 show repertoire is detailed in full below. In other news, the corps will return to Croke Park in Dublin again to host their show, the FMA Dublin contest, on September 19th. Any corps interested may apply, but preference will be given to corps from Europe.

Stay tuned for more announcements, like the corps division placing, as information arrives, or check out www.thedruidsdrumcorps.webs.com


The Druid’s return to dark, story based programs for Season 20, taking the audience on a heart-pumping thrill ride you can only get in the darkest, quietest of theatres… bringing to you all the chills, suspense, and terror of a good horror film. With only one goal in mind—to send the people in the stands home to nightmares unimaginable, the premiere corps from Dublin allows their emerald uniforms to turn to rot green, orange to brown…

Introduction- Main Title from The Walking Dead, by Bear McCreary (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6w_DHkkhcY)

As the corps walks on, we hear car horns, sirens, chatting, the normal ambience of a busy city life (all created with authentic horns and percussion instruments). The guard, dressed as businessmen, doctors, tourists, and street vendors, walk about, role playing a city at its peak rush hour. The announcement for the corps is made, and suddenly there is a scream. They start in with their introduction, as one member after another of normal people is dragged off behind tarps in the backfield which shows a city-scape. Anyone clever enough to watch might see the monster that one by one begins to peck off the guard.

Opener – Clutch Regulator from The Walking Dead/Thriller by Michael Jackson (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frNLYB6dUb4), (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIx_HbmRnQY)

It isn’t long before the residents of the city begin to panic. The doctors rush out from behind the cityscape tarps, as the opening motif is played by a baritone and contra duet. The rest of the corps joins in as the guard rushes behind the tarps, following the doctors. The hornline suddenly rushes the pit with a scream, pounding the stands with the main chorus from the tune Clutch Regulator, mojoing as the guard comes screaming from behind the tarps, ordinary citizens chased by a few of the terrifying walking dead… and as each person falls, another of… them… raises to join the masses. The corps retreats into full run, fighting off the dead as they do. They come back together to form a massive “hazardous material” form (which is mixed with a shamrock, of course), letting loose the opening to the tune Thriller. Through the course of the tune, guard members fall, and are dragged off to be devoured by their undead predators while the hornline, playing the role of the military, fights diligently. The corps ends downfield with the guard completely hidden behind the cityscape.

Ballad—Sophia’s Return from The Walking Dead (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXa1bH3_mbg)

Days turn to weeks, weeks to months, and months to years. Time passes and the horde seems to never stop growing, the infection spreading worldwide. The corps role-plays people trying to assume some sort of normalcy in a world so badly flipped, while the pit opens with violins and marimbas. The corps comes together, one at a time, the populace of a shattered world finding hope and strength in numbers. The beautiful melody comes as a surprise to all, as hope and faith do to those in such deep despair and hopelessness. The ballad ends with a soprano solo facing back field, the corps holding a low chord… and they watch as the army of the dead begins to pour fourth, not a single guard member left unturned.

Closer – It’s the End of the World as We Know It by REM (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVmB3lRjCmc&feature=fvwrel), Kanada’s Death from The Walking Dead (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2ZnKU6JEJs)

As the masses of the dead approach, the percussion goes into a break, the corps proper at war. The music is surprisingly light, a faint glimmer of hope under approaching minor chords over a popular REM tune. Slowly the progression of chords from Kanada’s Death settle in, the corps drill moves them farther and farther downfield… chased by the horde… for every one of the dead that fall, so does two members of the corps, only the be raised again… but suddenly a hope arises, as the numbers begin to turn. The drill folds back up, heading backfield, the tarps topple, revealing another that shows the cityscape in ruin. As the chords build and the movement comes to a close, there is only one person left standing… will they be a beacon of human survivability, or a member of the zombie army?

Find out, as the Druids Drum & Bugle Corps present their epic Season 20 program…

the walking dead