Spirit of Atlanta set to make 2023 return with “Up, Down, and All Around”

Spirit of Atlanta program coordinator Sal Salas was searching for an analogy.

His goal was to encapsulate, by way of a comparison, the corps’ 2023 production, “Up, Down and All Around.”

It’s not a “Cirque du Soleil” show, he concluded. But it’s like a “Cirque du Soleil” show.

“When you watch a ‘Cirque’ show, there's always something different going on that doesn't necessarily tell the storyline,” he said. “It's about how all those elements tie in. And that's what we'll do — we'll be able to take what we're doing and tie it all in, so it does become a concept. ”

Salas, a 2020 DCI Hall of Fame inductee, could describe the Atlanta corps’ program in many ways but when push came to shove, the key takeaway was simple: in 2023, Spirit of Atlanta will have something for everyone.

“I​t's a variety show,” Salas added. “It’s more a concept, or a premise. We will show different aspects of those words — ‘Up, Down and All Around’ — throughout the program. It can be complex at times, and then it can just be that you're sitting there and just having a good time. I think that the program offers a variety of emotions.”

“Up, Down and All Around” is an open-ended concept that, Salas said, will have plenty of room for interpretation.

 

That’s intentional. On one hand, it allows the corps’ designers the freedom to work with somewhat of a blank canvas, and be flexible with various ideas.

“It doesn't force us into direction,” Salas said. “But it gives us ideas about which path to follow.”

But further, such a production allows members to put their own stamp on their performance.

“We want to be able to leave it up to the membership to add their little piece to the puzzle,” he said. “I think that it's really important for the membership to be able to have a program that they can relate to.”

Throughout Spirit of Atlanta’s preparations for the 2023 season, the corps has had open conversations with its members about their own understanding of and connection to the production.

That kind of performer input and involvement in design, according to Salas, isn’t necessarily new for the Atlanta corps, but it’s certainly been heightened for 2023.

“During each movement, we'll talk about what it means,” he said. “We’ll say, ‘How does this affect you?’ As opposed to telling them, we’re letting them be part of the process, and letting them add their input with regards to how they're feeling. That (member involvement) has been part of the program in the past, but I think that we're taking it to the next level.”

While the program is quite open-ended, Salas did share plenty of specifics as to the corps’ programming plans.

For one, there will be props to set the stage. As Salas described, they’re an important piece of the 2023 production’s puzzle, but they’re not there just to be there.

“I think that it adds to the program,” he said. “They help the program come to light. We’ve come up with some really innovative ideas.”

 

Further, many of the specifics Salas offered had to do with music.

The corps released its 2023 repertoire just a few days after revealing the title of its production, and will bring the likes of Thomas Newman’s “Route 12” (from the 2008 film “Revolutionary Road), “My Human Heart” (as recorded by Coldplay, We Are King and Jacob Collier), and “Stuff We Did” (from the 2009 Disney Pixar film “Up”) to the football field.

Salas and corps director Chris Moore also expressed excitement for one of the corps’ more upbeat music selections for 2023, “Metroliner,” a big band piece by Eric Andrew Hirsch.

“It's got a lot of technical aspects to it, it's got a great hook, it's got some great orchestration that (Spirit’s arrangers) put together to really bring that to life with some smaller groups, and then the full ensemble,” Moore said. “So, I think that's one that's going to really pull people in.”

Spirit’s repertoire is intended to embody one of the corps’ main points of pride both historically and recently. According to Salas and Moore alike, Spirit makes — and has often made, through its long history — a concerted effort to leave memorable melodies in the ears of audience members.

“Spirit has been a very approachable music ensemble,” Moore added. “Ear worms are a big thing — what’s the thing that we can get stuck in people’s ears, so when they leave the venue, they’re still humming that?”

And according to Salas and Moore, those selections are among the many things about which members have most notably expressed their own delight.

Moore mentioned that, when members first had the chance to listen to audio files of the corps’ arrangements, and came across music from “Up,” their immediate reaction displayed a palpable excitement.

“The first time we played the MIDI track, and they heard the ‘Up’ theme, they all started going crazy,” he said.

 

Corps member excitement as a whole, according to Moore, is at an all-around high, both for the corps’ production and for the opportunity to hit the ground running with spring training rehearsals in June.

Spirit’s April rehearsal camp began to get the wheels turning on that anticipation, and has set the table for a highly-anticipated 2023 summer tour.

“It's just a ton of excitement to be back doing this again,” Moore said. “They can't wait to move in in a few weeks and get going. And I know the staff is super, super excited as well to get ready, and get the students ready.”

View Spirit of Atlanta's 2023 DCI Tour Schedule