I will third (or fourth?) the Ralph Page Dance Legacy Weekend endorsement.
As a former committee member, I know the work and thoughtfulness that goes
into producing this weekend. I've heard top class performers say that it's
the only dance weekend that they would actually pay to attend even if they
weren't performing (and I guess the percentage of callers and musicians
among the regular attendees speaks to that.)
If you are the sort of dancer (or caller) who doesn't particularly enjoy
participating in well-connected dancing, visiting with community spirited
attendees, basking in the style and grace of lifelong dancers, laughing as
Bob McQuillen shamelessly interrupts a walkthrough to shout out some
humorous yet relevant anecdote, and celebrating the roots and branches of
our collective dance family tree, well... it may not be for you. But, wow,
if any of those things seem appealing, it's really really really fun.
And, about lunch. NOTE: You don't have to be on the meal plan to join the
lunch gatherings. (The Saturday banquet is a different matter, as it's in a
different dining hall) But I never buy the meal plan (too choosy about what
good foods I eat!), and happily enjoy bringing my feast to the table of
lunch chatters.
Will look forward to seeing many of you there!
Chrissy Fowler
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Lisa Sieverts wrote:
>
>I'll second David's endorsement. This will be my 4th year attending
>the Ralph Page weekend -- I consider it a "can't miss" opportunity.
>Nowhere else do I get so much fertilizer for the little plant that is
>my love of calling.
>
And here's a third. On top of what David and Lisa wrote, and beyond the
opportunity to connect with other callers, I find that Ralph Page
consistently has the most supportive dance community of any dance series or
weekend I attend. I'm amazed every year by how much care and courtesy the RP
dancers have for each other and for the tradition itself. It's the epitome
of unselfish dancing.
Jeremy Korr
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Dear caller friends,
Apologies if you've received this already. I'm trying to get the word out to
many folks.
I'm hoping that some members of this list might be enticed to join us in New
Hampshire on January 12-14, 2007, for the 20th annual Ralph Page Dance Legacy
Weekend. Here's the website with details:
http://www.neffa.org/rplw.html
The two callers most associated with traditional New England dancing are Dudley
Laufman and Ralph Page, so it is particularly apt that Dudley's accomplishments
are being celebrated this year at the Ralph Page weekend. Ralph preserved the
traditional dances of the Monadnock region and shared them with a new audience
especially in the post-WWII years, and Dudley extended that audience
dramatically in the late 1960s and 1970s. Indeed, "Dudley dancers" from that era
were responsible for spreading interest in traditional New England dancing to
all parts of the United States, from San Diego to St. Louis to Seattle, from
Knoxville and Bloomington to Houston and Lansing. The list goes on and on...
>From his first calling experiences in the late 1940s, through the heyday of his
years as leader of the Canterbury Country Dance Orchestra, from performances at
the 1965 Newport Folk Festival and the National Folk Festival at Wolf Trap, from
his rigorous schedule of dances throughout New England, from Boston area high
society weddings to countless New Hampshire schoolrooms, from his influential
recordings to his current busy schedule (250 gigs a year) with Two Fiddles-- for
fifty years, Dudley Laufman has been an influential dancing master and musician.
Given the number of dance communities that were inspired by Dudley dances, a
case can be made that Dudley is the single individual most responsible for the
fact that folks in America enjoy dancing contras today.
He has been recognized for his contributions in many ways, including the 2001
New Hampshire Governor's Award in the Arts for Folk Heritage and a nomination
for the 2006 National Heritage Fellowship.
Folks on this trad-dance-callers list certainly have enjoyed his strong
opinions, his perspectives, his stories, his dances, and his poems. Now it's
time for the dance community to honor him. The Friday night dance at the Ralph
Page weekend will feature music of Dudley's Canterbury Orchestra. Saturday's
program includes the world premiere of a new documentary about Dudley by David
Millstone, and a Retrospective dance session focused on Dudley's long career.
Staff callers for the weekend include Tony Parkes and Carol Ormand, with stellar
music being provided Friday by the Canterbury Orchestra and on Saturday and
Sunday by two bands: The Old Grey Goose, a Maine band with long connections to
Dudley, and a trio comprising Bob McQuillen on piano, Laurie Andres on
accordion, and Vince O'Donnell on fiddle. The weekend includes opportunities for
musical jams, there are calling and music workshops, there's an open mic for
callers, and there's plenty of good dancing to be had. Of all the dance weekends
I know, this one does more than any other to pay tribute to our rich dancing
heritage while also celebrating the lively contemporary dance scene. It's also
the only dance event I know of where dancers expect a generous number of duple
proper and triple minor dances in the program, and where you can count on
dancing Money Musk at least once, as well as numerous other chestnts.
Over the years, this dance weekend has attracted a particularly large number of
callers, both old hands and relative beginners, who come to share in the dancing
and to talk shop. It's a great time, and I hope you can join us. Please spread
the word!
David Millstone
Hello all,
I am planning to attend the RPDLW this year as well (relunctantly had to
miss last year, but have benefited hugely from attendance the previous
three years - not to mention the just plain fun of it)! And the lunch
gathering would be great (I'm not planning to buy the meal plan, but
could change that if everyone else was).
-cynthia
I realized last night that I had let the deadlines pass for the
performer applications for Down East and NEFFA this year. I also
realized that part of the reason that I let them pass was because I
wasn't sure what was expected on the forms. Here are the questions I
should have asked weeks ago:
Generally the festivals provide 1 hour slots. Do you put a theme with a
short description onto the application, or can you just request a slot
and figure out the theme later? How much do callers try and do something
totally original or do they pick a theme that hasn't been done in a
while? Do you work out something with a band before, or does the
festival scheduler pair you up?
I would enjoy hearing how some of the callers with festival experience
approach the application process.
Thanks!
Chris
Hi!
I'm searching for a contra dance I vaguely remember from my pre-calling
days. (I would have danced this in Philadelphia at Glenside around 2002.)
The distinctive figure was:
The very top couple and very bottom couple of the set sashay towards the
center for 8 beats.
Those two couples sashay back to place for 8 beats.
It was probably preceeded by long lines forward and back.
Any ideas based on that scanty recollection?
Thanks,
-Chris Page
San Diego
Yes I have seen those boards, which at the moment are sitting in the bed of my pickup truck. As I wrote, I was thinking about computer checking of the draft schedule so that, for example, you could look at the fifty-four individual members of the Animaterra Womens' Chorus, see which members have other NEFFA commitments besides Animaterra, and thus do everything possible to avoid scheduling conflicts and ensure a happy, creative festival experience for each performer. Didn't mean to imply that software does the scheduling, only that it is a necessary tool. And even computerization is the work of skilled human volunteers; in this case Dan Pearl, I believe. For any applicant to any festival, "talk to the people making the decisions" is surely good advice. ... Bob
--
Robert Jon Golder
164 Maxfield St
New Bedford, MA 02740
(508) 999-2486
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: "Beth Parkes" <ebay(a)hands4.com>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <robertgolder(a)comcast.net>
> To: "Caller's discussion list" <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Sent: Wednesday, October 18, 2006 4:47 PM
> Subject: Re: [Callers] Festival Applications
>
>
> > If you're wondering why performer applications are required so far in
> > advance of a festival, note that NEFFA may have 1700 performers, many of
> > whom perform in multiple sessions (perhaps performing alone, and with a
> > participatory dance group, and also with a concert performance group!).
> > You can't doublebook a performer (or larger groups to which she may
> > belong), you have to give her time to move from one venue to another, plus
> > a bunch of other scheduling etceteras that would drive me loony to
> > contemplate further. How scheduling was done in the days before computers
> > is beyond me.
>
> You've seen the boards, Robert. You know how the scheduling for NEFFA is
> done: the same as before computers, cards thumbtacked in a time slot for
> each event. (Just like the schedule board in the TV show Studio 60, if any
> of you watch it.) It is a very manual process. The computers have helped
> with printing the cards, gathering the information and preparing the program
> book and schedule but the process of actual scheduling is manual.
>
> To respond to the original post: each festival is different and the
> absolutely best thing you can do talk to the people making the decisions.
> Just ask! "What are their criteria?" "Do they prefer bands and callers to
> apply together or separately." "What is the date?" "If I missed the
> deadline, should I submit an application anyway?" (no, for NEFFA, btw.) "Do
> you want catchy names?" "Do you accept people from outside the area?" Etc.,
> Etc., Etc. Festivals are run by real people who care about their events.
> They will answer your questions! And you can't have someone say "yes" if you
> don't ask.
>
> HTH,
> Beth
>
> _______________________________________________
> Callers mailing list
> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
Hi,
I'm doing an ONS on a Sunday afternoon for a church group. There will be 4,
5, 6th graders, with some contra dance experience, and adults, some old,
with none. The room has two ROWS of columns, but there is room at the sides
and between the rows of columns. I am thinking of doing a Grand March to
start, to get everyone involved. I have done this several times with
Dudley, all more that twenty years ago, and don't remember how to start
them. Mostly I remember Dudley pointing alternately left and right, very
cool, as we went from marching in two's to marching in four's, eight's and
so forth. Any ideas for what else to do? I'll probably do a circle mixer
next. It would be fun to somehow end the grand march so everyone was in the
circle. How might you do that? And of course, any great ONS dances would be
great to have.
Thanks,
Rickey Holt.
The Shared Weight callers list is now 2 years old!
We have around 70 callers of different experience levels subscribed to
the list. My, how we have grown! We are pleased and proud to have helped
get this community started. There have been some great discussions and
shared experiences here.
We hope that this list will continue to be a useful tool for everyone
and encourage you to invite other callers, especially new ones, to join!
Happy Dancing (and calling)!
Chris Weiler and Seth Seeger
Thanks All! It's nice to find the origins of this dance. Jeff
commented, in Dover, that this is a fine end
of the evening dance. Indeed it is!
Thanks,
Gale
