Sousa believed “the chief aim of the composer is to produce color, dynamics, nuances and to emphasize the story-telling quality” of his music as theatrical entertainment. While most individuals today associate the march form with the movement of troops and music ensembles across parade fields, the march was not limited to parades. In fact, nineteenth- and early twentieth-century marches, particularly those composed by Sousa, were more often performed in middle-class parlors, theater pits, and ballrooms both grand and modest. This exhibit explores the many dramatic facets of Sousa’s marches and their performance under the baton of America’s “March King.”