Re: [Callers] Implied Messages in First-Timer's Orientation

Hmm...lots of comments about teaching. I must say that I don't agree with all of them :-) First, about implied comments in a workshop. While I agree that nonverbal speech is important, we shouldn't promote it over the content of what is said. If we really go down that path, we might as well consider what clothes you wear, whether you speak with an accent, and what side you part your hair (anybody else remember some people mentioning that was why Al Gore lost the election in 2000?). Should your nonverbal speech overpower the things you say -- it's just as likely it's because of the things you're saying as it is your nonverbal impressions. Furthermore, if a dance is setting aside time for an introductory workshop and organizers advertise it in promotional material, then having new dancers go through figures is absolutely positively not a "waste of time." Honestly, as a dancer -- if I'm going to bother to cut my dinner short so I get to the dance early, I'm not expecting to sit around and listen to a pep talk of how wonderful the dance is going to be. I want to know what I'll be doing and how I'll be doing it. If I wanted to learn on the fly, I would have showed up at the start time at the dance. There is an implicit understanding that if people show up early they want some value added...someone to show them the ropes in a low-pressure situation. While we understand all contra dancing to be low pressure, first-time dancers (especially those who have never danced anything but the Macarena) are petrified...as testified by many of my friends and colleagues I've tried to drag to dances. We owe them a physical heads up on what to expect just as much as we ought to build up their confidence. Second, I'm surprised at all the suggestions about weight, buzzstep, and eye contact. Personally, when I do introductory workshops, I want to equip new dancers with the tools that will make them more likely to succeed. I don't think giving weight and eye contact are necessarily a part of that. And having them go through the motions of "buzzstep" can be an instant turnoff for many people who feel as though they "can't dance." As experienced dancers, those are the things WE value in a great dance or great dance partner...the smoothness, the connection -- it's exciting TO US. But I think by and large, beginner dancers want to just be at the right place at the right time. We can all remember countless movie scenes, where the incompetent dancer leads his partner into every nearby couple, who proceed to glare disapprovingly. That's every non-dancer's nightmare. So my vote is to get them to face the right direction during a swing, walk with their feet facing the right direction, and where to end up when it's over. All the bells and whistles of contra can come later. That's not to say I wouldn't mention the concepts of weight, buzzstep, or eye contact, but they are not central to a beginner's learning and doesn't make them more or less able to do a dance. Alert them to the existence of such things, but then leave it to them to pick it up instinctively throughout the night. They'll be dancing with dozens of partners who can impart the suggestions for more eye contact, weight, or other enhancements to the dance. It behooves other dancers to coax them along with those details, but from the get-go, I think those topics are about as useful as telling them that it's customary in circles for the gent's hand to be on the bottom and the lady's on top --- they'll figure it out! For my part, I try to use as many "location" type verbal cues especially early on in my calling: up/down/across. Get newbies cued in to how to find where they are and where the calls suggest they go. I try to remind them about how to locate themselves, where to stand, gents left/ladies right -- basically giving them the tools so that even if they're lost in the *figure* of the dance, they're not lost on where they are on the floor. The "contra grid" is so etched in our minds, I think it's often hard to realize there was a time we didn't understand it :-D Anyway, enough of my diatribe...just had to comment on this thread! -Sargon