At a meeting last month, the Bluecoats board of directors approved a comprehensive new strategic plan that will lead the organization into our 50th year. The plan, which covers a variety of goals, includes expansions of our Stark County programming, a focus on developing our Bluecoats-operated DCI shows, and the creation of a 10-year improvement plan for the Champion Event Center property. The plan also outlines the framework for the organization’s 2022 50th anniversary celebrations.

“Strategic planning is always an important driver of the mission of an organization like ours,” said CEO Mike Scott. “But as we near our fiftieth year, this strategic plan is a particularly important guide for how our organization will close this first 50-year chapter and begin another.”

The plan’s objectives are divided into four pillars:

Yesterday Bluecoats announced the dates and locations for our four nationwide Audition Experience Camps. Following a magical season in 2018, thousands of Bluecoat-hopefuls have already signed up to learn more about the launch of our 2020 audition season.

Following a magical 2019 drum corps season, the Bluecoats organization has begun preparations for another whirlwind summer of drum corps. Fans can expect a lot of the same - another 10,000+ mile tour across the US, about thirty incredible performances, and a production designed and instructed by the same team we’ve come to love so much.

Today, the Bluecoats organization is announcing that it will not operate Bluecoats Indoor for the 2020 WGI season. We are always steadfastly focused on operating programs that create a "Bluecoats Experience" that we can be proud of, therefore a decision like this one is never taken lightly.

Bluecoats Indoor has been a huge success since its creation in late 2017. The program has created productions beloved by the activity, drawn support from the entire Bluecoats community, and provided a space to explore for young performers from all across the United States and Canada.

10,000 miles, 32 performances, and nearly 300,000 audience members later, the final performance of “The BLUECOATS” left a Lucas Oil crowd of more than 20,000 on their feet.

In a whirlwind of a season that included record breaking crowds, scores, and even a performance as the headliner of the NFL Hall of Fame Game halftime, “The BLUECOATS” swept the nation and the drum corps world as a much-celebrated “concert celebrating the forward-thinking spirit of love, collaboration, innovation, and inclusion that The Beatles embodied.”