[Callers] Organizing open calling

[Richard Hart via Callers]

I would depend on whether this were for experienced callers or new
callers trying it out for the first (or second...) time.

With experienced callers you can ask them to call an easy introductory
dance at the beginning, an energetic dance midterm, or a slower dance
for a wind down at the end. With the newest callers, that seldom
works, as they just want to call a dance that they though as fun when
they danced it. They seldom have any idea how to chose a dance for the
crowd, or for the time during the evening.

Beginners will need a coach to help them pick a dance to call, and
then prompts to assure that the walk through and calling is
successful, and that they end the dance in a reasonable time, too.

Cary Ravits Notes on Calling Contra Dances, can be a very good source
for beginning callers: http://www.dance.ravitz.us/call.php#n


On Mon, May 23, 2016 at 2:04 PM, Chet Gray via Callers
<callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Hello, all,
>
> After losing monthly open-calling evenings to venue schedule conflicts last
> year, the local contra group where I live (Louisville, KY) are
> re-implementing them on 5th-week dances (so, about four or so times a year).
> I am "organizing caller" for the first of these, next Monday, and I'm
> wondering if any of y'all have advice on coordinating an evening of
> open-calling.
>
> The extent of organization for our previous open-calling dances had been,
> essentially, callers put their name on a list and everyone hopes it works
> out, and, while this was usually serendipitous fun, it often led to
> long-running dances (both individually and for the evening overall) and
> less-than-enjoyable experiences for newer dancers. When our board was
> discussing re-starting open calling, I had recently been at the Jan Jam
> (Champaign/Urbana, IL) after party, where Lauren Peckman had coordinated
> open calling, and where I'd had the best open-calling experience—as both a
> dancer and a caller—I'd ever encountered. I suggested to our board that,
> this time around, the evenings each have an "organizing caller" to help
> ensure overall program flow, coordinate callers/dances with an eye to
> complexity/energy/time, incorporate and assist novice callers, wrangle
> callers if need be for time limits, fill in gaps in the program, have
> back-pocket dances at the ready, etc.
>
> Lo, they asked me to take a go at coordinating. Suggest a change, be the
> change, I suppose. ^_^
>
> The open calling has been announced at our weekly dances leading up, and
> tonight (a week before) I'll be asking (but not requiring) prospective
> callers to talk to me to help me get an idea for how I can best help the
> evening flow.
>
> Any suggestions/anecdotes/warnings from my more-experienced fellows would be
> greatly appreciated.
>
> — Chet Gray
>
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