I should addend my previous response to say I approach a dance preparation as I do a horse show. That's  how my mind works. There is a plan and steps to it.

Mary

On Mar 13, 2018 6:15 PM, "Mary Collins" <nativedae@gmail.com> wrote:
I usually start thinking about the program as soon as I book. Then as far out as two weeks I pull and practice dances, determine suitable music, refine a day or two before and then once at the dance change the whole program. Lol.  Not really but once I get there I end up changing order or some dances. I've been pulling my similar yet substituting dances itn advance lately too.

On Mar 13, 2018 6:04 PM, "Bob Peterson via Callers" <callers@lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
As a new caller I spend way too many hours preparing. I used to start weeks in advance, just so I could read all the choreography books I have. Now I’m down to 1 or 2 weeks. LOL. Where I’m spending most of my time nowadays is developing a sense of “story” and “biorhythm” to the program, and not just a logical progression of complexity. I look forward to getting it down to an hour! 

By now I have been through my library enough and called enough that I have a couple special folders of fallback easy/fun/low-turnout dances to rely on when I need them. Having fallbacks makes programming simpler (thus faster) so I don’t need an absurd flowchart. (Yes, I tried that once.)

On Mar 13, 2018, at 17:28, Jean Gibson-Gorrindo via Callers <callers@lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:

My calling took a big leap forward when I started paying more attention to what I would say during the walk-thru, and practicing saying it out loud as concisely as possible (Lisa Greenleaf influence!).

I do this as well. Saying the teaching aloud, alone, helps me test and pare the words down. Walking a couple positions as well helps me aware of the dancer perspectives as well.

\Bob Peterson

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