Mandarins take on Nina Simone classic in 2023 show, “Sinnerman”

“Where are you going to run to?”

Nina Simone croons in her 1965 release, “Sinnerman,” detailing a story about a person who can’t escape the wrath of God.

But who is the Sinnerman? What is their story? Those are the questions Mandarins explore with the corps’ 2023 production of the same name.

Simone’s nearly 11-minute jazz epic, one of the most heavily-utilized songs in media and film history, provides the foundation of the Sacramento-based corps’ 2023 production. The jazz standard — which has been used by artists like Timbaland and in the 1999 film, “The Thomas Crown Affair” — makes its debut drum corps appearance on the 2023 DCI Tour.

According the Mandarins’ design staff, the show concept is a simple idea: exploring what makes the Sinnerman who they are. However, the nature of what’s good or evil is up to the individual viewer’s perspective.

With the show’s theme, the Mandarins aren’t aiming to convey a particular message about sin, but rather display all aspects of what makes something or someone truly sinful.

“There are just so many different aspects and elements to the idea of sin, and the idea that it’s completely subjective, in a way,” sound coordinator Bryan Harmsen said.

Based on the second book of the Bible, Exodus, Simone’s song follows a man trying to run away from his judgment day. Often referred to as “the Lamb” by Simone, the Sinnerman ultimately finds God’s wrath inescapable.

The song was the finale on Simone’s “Pastel Blues” project and in many of her performances in New York’s Greenwich Village. Simone’s reasoning for the song’s placement was simple: to keep the audience thinking well after her set was done.

“I want to shake people up so bad that when they leave the nightclub where I’ve performed, I want them to be in pieces,” Simone said in the 1970 documentary, “Nina: A Historical Perspective.”

Ultimately, Simone’s rendition calls for an inward reflection of sinful actions and that the only way to combat sin is with changed behavior.

Mandarins, however, will use the corps’ 2023 program to explore the morally ambiguous aspects of sin. For the Sacramento corps, “Sinnerman” takes a deep dive into the various effects sin can have on people. Drum corps fans will see the Sinnerman’s personality developed throughout the show.

And in the end, audiences will be left to come up with their own conclusion of who the Sinnerman truly is.

“Is it somebody who is actually good?” creative director Becca Anderson said. “Is it somebody who is actually not bad at all? And in the end, maybe we’ll get to that question.”

Adorned in a vibrant red costume, the performer playing the Sinnerman is initially portrayed as a direct contrast to the rest of the corps, who start the show dressed in a “very pure white coat,” according to Anderson.

As the show progresses, the Sinnerman serves as what Anderson described as a “magnet that starts to pull other people in.” Over time, through the use of gradual uniform color changes, the full corps begins to embody the Sinnerman character, leaving little distinction between true good and evil.

In addition to the corps’ costuming, Mandarins use various props to visually represent the seven deadly sins. These props are used throughout the show in various ways — including trapping the Sinnerman at the top of the show.

To match the various stories they tell and questions they pose throughout the production, Mandarins’ repertoire covers an array of musical genres. A point of pride for its design team, Mandarins’ production includes several musical selections that bring a new flavor in comparison to the corps’ recent history.

“I think the music and visual team here has done such an exceptional job with variety that I think it’s going to be surprising to people,” Anderson said. “Our sound is different this year and that’s super exciting.”

The repertoire — which includes popular works like “Take Me to Church” by Hozier and the fourth movement of “Swing Symphony” by Wynton Marsalis — were chosen to add depth to the Sinnerman’s personality.

“One of the things that I think the music team did such a good job of, since the inception of the idea, is maintaining true to our personality of who the Sinnerman is,” Harmsen said.

 

At first, the Sinnerman character is alone in his sin. The show’s first movement is a retelling of the character’s roots and motives. When the production reaches its halfway point, the entire corps is portrayed visually as having been affected by the Sinnerman’s magnetic pull.

The corps embraces the playfully sarcastic personality of its Sinnerman character in the third movement of the show, referred to as the “Joker’ section by the corps’ staff in reference to the character often seen in Batman comics and films.

“It’s really interesting, as a villain or a bad guy, to have that kind of playfulness to it,” Harmsen said. “It makes it a little more unique.”

The full production — much like Simone’s original work — hinges on the tension between what is truly good and evil.

There are commonly accepted moral standards, but where does that line begin and end? That’s the question Mandarins will leave audiences to answer.

“One person’s sin is another person’s life,” Harmsen said.

See Mandarins' "Sinnerman" on the 2023 DCI Tour