Re: [Callers] Putting out fires

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(Greg McKenzie) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2010 20:04:18 -0700 (PDT) From: Dan Pearl &lt;daniel_pearl(a)yahoo.com&gt; To: callers(a)sharedweight.net Subject: Re: [Callers] Putting Out Fires Message-ID: &lt;975135.90434.qm(a)web65706.mail.ac4.yahoo.com&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Until very recently, I thought "it is always the caller's fault". The problem with absolutes like "always" is that a counterexample jumps up and hits you in the face. I like (and use) the tactics for putting out fires that others recommended: Beef up the calling (earlier, more directional, more complete), NOT calling to the late group, etc.  Not mentioned here yet is the old "manual intervention".  I use a wireless mic, and that allows me to move around, hopefully addressing issues before they erupt in flames, but also providing an in-your-face hard-to-ignore knowledgeable guide post. If you ever read Asimov's Foundation Trilogy, you'll remember that the science of psychohistory which allowed practitioners to essentially predict the future of civilizations was compromised by a random mutation ("The Mule").  I was thinking of that a few Saturdays ago when I was calling for a challenging dance.  I don't mean challenging to the dancers: I mean challenging to me to call!  It was a regular dance series, and the "regulars" weren't there, and there were lots of new dancers.  That's OK with me; I do that all the time.  I found myself presenting pretty easy stuff, and astonishingly, I needed to make it easier as the evening went on. I was running out of easier-than-dead-easy material.  That's also OK -- I know how to write dances on the fly. What I was not prepared for was a concentration of dancers that needed special handling. One dancer, an older fellow who had been dancing for some time, was literally moving in slow motion, and in a time delay so that the people around him were sucked into his rift in the time-space continuum.  Another dancer, a newcomer who seemed to "get it" initially, began careening in random directions at high speed, with a great big smile on her face.  Another new gentleman, also after seemingly "getting it", started to regress to periods of non-movement. I moved right next to him and said "right hand star", putting my own hand out to model the action. He just stood there and repeated "right hand star". This made me think about, and question, the assumption that the caller is always at fault. Perhaps that is a fine mental state to be in (that is, not blaming the dancers), but you know, the conduct of the evening is not, and cannot be entirely one person's responsibility.  A dance is like a machine with many moving parts, and they need to be functioning in expected ways for a smooth experience.  Mistakes? They are part of what the machine does.  I have more trouble when communication that has worked before begins to fail, when lessons learned are forgotten, and when other unexpected behaviors arise. So this was one of the least fun, least rewarding gigs in my 30 years of calling. I chalk it up to an unfortunate confluence of factors likely not to be repeated for another 30 years. ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2010 20:36:55 -0700 From: "Leda Shapiro" &lt;ledas(a)pacbell.net&gt; To: "'Caller's discussion list'" &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Putting Out Fires Message-ID: <F067F11434C849D4A789A63A630B55EA@LEDAXP> Content-Type: text/plain;    charset="us-ascii" Thank you for reminding us that we, after all, are human...and sometimes those  there does seem to be a random mutation in one evening...and yes, have read Asimov's Trilogy -in fact I read all three more than once. Thankfully there are all those other nights to remember! One every 30 years ain't bad.. Leda -----Original Message----- From: callers-bounces(a)sharedweight.net [mailto:callers-bounces@sharedweight.net] On Behalf Of Dan Pearl Sent: Tuesday, April 13, 2010 8:04 PM To: callers(a)sharedweight.net Subject: Re: [Callers] Putting Out Fires If you ever read Asimov's Foundation Trilogy, you'll remember that the science of psychohistory which allowed practitioners to essentially predict the future of civilizations was compromised by a random mutation ("The Mule").  I was thinking of that a few Saturdays ago when I was calling for a challenging dance.  I don't mean challenging to the dancers: I mean challenging to me to call!  It was a regular dance series, and the "regulars" weren't there, and there were lots of new dancers.  That's OK with me; I do that all the time.  I found myself presenting pretty easy stuff, and astonishingly, I needed to make it easier as the evening went on. I was running out of easier-than-dead-easy material.  That's also OK -- I know how to write dances on the fly. What I was not prepared for was a concentration of dancers that needed special handling. One dancer, an older fellow who had been dancing for some time, was literally moving in slow motion, and in a time delay so that the people around him were sucked into his rift in the time-space continuum.  Another dancer, a newcomer who seemed to "get it" initially, began careening in random directions at high speed, with a great big smile on her face. Another new gentleman, also after seemingly "getting it", started to regress to periods of non-movement. I moved right next to him and said "right hand star", putting my own hand out to model the action. He just stood there and repeated "right hand star". This made me think about, and question, the assumption that the caller is always at fault. Perhaps that is a fine mental state to be in (that is, not blaming the dancers), but you know, the conduct of the evening is not, and cannot be entirely one person's responsibility.  A dance is like a machine with many moving parts, and they need to be functioning in expected ways for a smooth experience.  Mistakes? They are part of what the machine does.  I have more trouble when communication that has worked before begins to fail, when lessons learned are forgotten, and when other unexpected behaviors arise. So this was one of the least fun, least rewarding gigs in my 30 years of calling. I chalk it up to an unfortunate confluence of factors likely not to be repeated for another 30 years. _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers ------------------------------ Message: 3 Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 01:46:14 -0400 From: J L Korr &lt;jeremykorr(a)hotmail.com&gt; To: &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Not always the caller's fault! Message-ID: &lt;SNT101-W50819A68F3B751180E9C7BC7100(a)phx.gbl&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Sorry, folks, but this conversation is pushing a personal button about not using words like "always" and "never" unless it's truly so. I completely agree with Greg, Martha, and others that in general, the caller does and should bear responsibility for problems on the dance floor. But I can't agree that this is always the case. Consider these two scenarios, among others: 1) In a large dance hall at a festival with 500 dancers, one of ten contra lines begins to break down when pairs of less experienced dancers happen to meet simultaneously in three different minor sets and become confused. The rest of the hall is fine. The caller can't intervene personally by, for example, running out on the floor. 2) During the 12:15 am - 2:00 am set at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, again with hundreds of dancers, the caller calls a relatively easy dance requiring little thought. Some dancers, who are in a range of mental states from alcohol, etc., have trouble staying oriented and coordinated, causing recurring problems in their sets. I'd argue that in these contexts, though the dance floor itself is experiencing a breakdown, the caller hasn't done anything wrong, nor does s/he have the responsibility of fixing the problem. In the first scenario, the caller must select dances for and call to the broadest possible swath of dancers among those present, recognizing that some minor problems are inevitable. In the second scenario, the inebriated dancers are entitled to participate in the dance at that venue, and there's little the caller can do to improve their mental coordination. So I'd say the caller almost always has responsibility for problems that occur in the hall, but in certain scenarios does not, or at least has limited responsibility relative to most situations. --Jeremy                           _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID28326::T:WLMTAGL:ON:… ------------------------------ Message: 4 Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 06:31:29 -0400 From: "Chris Weiler (home)" &lt;chris.weiler(a)weirdtable.org&gt; To: Caller's discussion list &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] Not always the caller's fault! Message-ID: &lt;4BC59981.7070005(a)weirdtable.org&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed I think there needs to be a distinction between what is really happening in the hall and the stance that we take from the microphone. There are hundreds of variables that are all outside of our control at a dance. We pretend to have control, but all we can do is influence. It is our responsibility to use that influence to try and help everyone have a lot of fun. But you're not going to be able to stop some problems from happening. That said, there is a lot of power in taking responsibility from the microphone for problems, even when it's not your fault. Some have been listed here already. It puts people at ease. They can relax and enjoy the next dance without being overly focused on what went wrong. It reinforces your authority when lines falling apart are creating a feeling of chaos. And sometimes, it really is your fault. ;) I had this happen at a recent dance. I called a very simple dance, but it is constructed symmetrically, so sometimes it can be difficult to know if you're in the As or the Bs. The second time through the dance, I called "neighbor" instead of "partner" and half the hall believed me and the other half didn't. Everyone was in a different place very quickly. After seeing that I couldn't get everyone back to the same place to recover after a couple of attempts, I stopped the music and immediately announced "Sorry, folks, my fault completely. Let's try this again." The crowd erupted in applause! They lined up and we started again without any further trouble. People respond to humility and to people who take responsibility for their actions. It humanizes you in their eyes and they'll cut you a lot of slack for it. Chris Weiler Goffstown, NH J L Korr wrote: > Sorry, folks, but this conversation is pushing a personal button about not using words like "always" and "never" unless it's truly so. I completely agree with Greg, Martha, and others that in general, the caller does and should bear responsibility for problems on the dance floor. But I can't agree that this is always the case. Consider these two scenarios, among others: > > 1) In a large dance hall at a festival with 500 dancers, one of ten contra lines begins to break down when pairs of less experienced dancers happen to meet simultaneously in three different minor sets and become confused. The rest of the hall is fine. The caller can't intervene personally by, for example, running out on the floor. > > 2) During the 12:15 am - 2:00 am set at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, again with hundreds of dancers, the caller calls a relatively easy dance requiring little thought. Some dancers, who are in a range of mental states from alcohol, etc., have trouble staying oriented and coordinated, causing recurring problems in their sets. > > I'd argue that in these contexts, though the dance floor itself is experiencing a breakdown, the caller hasn't done anything wrong, nor does s/he have the responsibility of fixing the problem. In the first scenario, the caller must select dances for and call to the broadest possible swath of dancers among those present, recognizing that some minor problems are inevitable. In the second scenario, the inebriated dancers are entitled to participate in the dance at that venue, and there's little the caller can do to improve their mental coordination. > > So I'd say the caller almost always has responsibility for problems that occur in the hall, but in certain scenarios does not, or at least has limited responsibility relative to most situations. --Jeremy > > >>> > > >>> > > >>>> > > >>> There are never fires in the hall--only in your own mind.  If there >>> is trouble anywhere in the hall it is because you have screwed >>> up...somewhere. <snip>  The caller should take full responsibility for >>> the gaff. >>> > >                          > _________________________________________________________________ > The New Busy is not the old busy. Search, chat and e-mail from your inbox. > http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?ocid=PID28326::T:WLMTAGL:ON:… > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)sharedweight.net > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers > ------------------------------ Message: 5 Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 07:15:21 -0700 From: Rich Goss &lt;richgoss(a)comcast.net&gt; To: Shared Weight &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: [Callers] New Dance Message-ID: &lt;C7EB1C09.8C6E%richgoss(a)comcast.net&gt; Content-Type: text/plain;    charset="ISO-8859-1" Wrote this dance recently in honor of one of our dancers who recently passed away, Betty Stewart.  Has this one already been written? Betty?s Night Out ? Rich Goss Improper, Double Prog A1: Neighbor Dosido and Swing (end facing down hall) A2: Down hall 4-in-line, turn as couples; Return, face across B1: 1/2 Hey, Gents Ricochet Back (Ladies cross rt sh)      Partner swing B2: Circle Left 3/4      As Couples, zig left, zag right, zig left Rich, Portland Or ------------------------------ Message: 6 Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:15:03 -0600 From: Lewis Land &lt;lewisland(a)windstream.net&gt; To: Caller's discussion list &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Cc: J L Korr &lt;jeremykorr(a)hotmail.com&gt; Subject: [Callers] sometimes not the caller's fault! Message-ID: &lt;4BC5CDE7.5010309(a)windstream.net&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Regarding J L Korr's message observing that it's not always the caller's fault, he is completely correct. The point Greg and I were trying to make is that the caller is sort of like the conductor in an orchestra, the person who is ultimately responsible for making everything go smoothly and happen on time. Things don't always go smoothly, of course. Where I call we often have a group consisting of more than 50% newcomers, and when I tell them that any mistakes in the dance are always the caller's fault, it's my way of putting the newcomers at ease and making them feel welcome. Some people that show up have never done any kind of dancing before, in their entire lives (these are usually guys), and the prospect of community dancing can be quite intimidating. Based on my own experience when I first started contra dancing, I try to make it clear to the novices that we're a very non-judgmental group, so even the most catastrophic missteps on their part are ultimately my responsibility. That said, at almost every dance I've called I have found myself rolling my eyes at the sight of, for example, some dancer who has been showing up regularly for /years/, and still has no sense of timing (again, usually a guy), or the group of young, inexperienced dancers who insist on dancing exclusively with each other, disrupting the entire line because they seem to think contra is somewhat like break dancing. There are plenty of times when incompetent dancers screw things up, and during post-dance conversations with our other caller I will rant about them unmercifully. But at the dance the best thing I can do is try to project an air of confidence and let people know everything's going to be fine, and fun. It's very similar to the attitude I tried to project when I was raising teenage children. One final comment: I sometimes find myself dancing in a venue where the caller is very experienced and is obviously experimenting with new and challenging dances, at a level that is clearly incompatible with the experience level of most of the dancers in the hall. I think this is very self-indulgent. We all need to grow as callers, but the best callers can gauge the experience level of the group and call appropriately. Some of my best calling experiences have involved calling a dance that I've labeled "painfully easy", and afterward having a new dancer come up to thank me for my calling and tell me what a wonderful time they've had. That's really what it's all about. -Lewis Land ------------------------------ Message: 7 Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:57:15 -0700 From: Greg McKenzie &lt;gregmck(a)earthlink.net&gt; To: Caller's discussion list &lt;callers(a)sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: Re: [Callers] sometimes not the caller's fault! Message-ID: &lt;E1O24y1-0007YT-4g(a)elasmtp-junco.atl.sa.earthlink.net&gt; Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"; format=flowed Thanks to all who spoke up, for bringing this issue into more clarity.  ?It?s always the caller?s fault,? is a clever line that is often misunderstood.  Too many callers see it as a throw-away gesture that has a laudable sentiment, but no real substance. It might be more accurate, and more useful to say: ?The caller always takes full responsibility for anything that happens in the hall.? This posture is one with a history that grows out of the caller?s role as the master of ceremonies.  MCs have always understood the need for taking responsibility as part of their task of holding the attention of the hall.  This is how they maintain their position of leadership.  It was with the development of amplified public address systems that this responsibility became much more salient and much more necessary.  When speaking with a microphone the emcee has the awesome power of projecting their thoughts into the minds of all present, with little effort.  This ability comes with a great responsibility of leadership, and professional emcees have learned that their role is to always speak on behalf of the interests of everyone in the hall.  That means taking full responsibility for anything that goes wrong. How can the caller take responsibility for everything that happens?  If the toilet in the ladies bathroom backs up, is it the caller?s fault? Actually, it is.  More to the point, it is the caller?s responsibility, as a leader, to deal with the situation.  Here is one possible example: ?Ladies and gentlemen: Please accept my sincere apologies.  I have been informed that there is a serious problem with the plumbing in the ladies bathroom.  I am sorry about this inconvenience and ask for your gracious cooperation.  The ladies bathroom will be closed for the rest of this evening.  Julie, our wonderful dance manager, has made a sign with both a ?Men?s? and a ?Ladies? side which will be hung on the working bathroom.  Julie will take responsibility for switching the sign during each dance.  We ask that you use this bathroom only when it is labeled for your gender.  Once again, I am sorry about this inconvenience.  We all appreciate your cooperation and consideration in dealing with this problem.  Now, please take hands in groups of four from the top of the hall.? This announcement could, of course, be made by the dance manager or some other responsible party.  The caller, however, should apologize, in any case, for the disruption of the dance program.  In the absence of anyone else stepping forward it is the caller?s responsibility to address the problem.  The point is to put the dancers at ease so that they can do their job of enjoying a wonderful evening of social dance with live music. Someone brought up the issue of dancers who fail to integrate into the community and form clumps of newcomers.  Is this the caller?s fault?  Yes it is.  The tradition of contra dance includes learning at a regular dance rather than in separate lessons.  Consequently, integrating newcomers into the community is the caller?s responsibility and is one of the most essential core skills that define an excellent contra dance caller.  Clumps of newcomers in the hall are a clear symptom of poor calling.  Sorry.  It?s one of your primary responsibilities.  (Note that if we relinquish this responsibility it eliminates any discussion of how the caller can integrate newcomers, something that really should be addressed.) There have been some good points made in this thread.  In the final analysis, however, the idea of the caller taking total responsibility is an inescapable position.  While it may be true that the caller is not omnipotent I would submit the following points about the caller?s responsibility for the hall::      * This is not a statement of fact.  It is a statement of policy which defines the professional role of a caller.      * Any alternative policy offers no possible action that the caller can take to ?put out fires? or improve the situation.  Other positions offer only excuses for the caller to relinquish leadership.      * By accepting this policy the caller can provide both leadership and a positive example for others.  If the caller makes excuses others will follow that example. If there is any core principle to calling effectively and with professionalism, this is it.  If the caller is not willing to take responsibility for everything that happens in the hall they are simply not doing their job.  If there is a problem with the evening?whether it be disruptive dancers, a band that plays inappropriate tunes, or ?incompetent dancers,??an excellent caller will always ask: ?What could I do differently next time to better address this problem??  Without taking full responsibility the caller will not have the motivation to improve.  There are always excuses to employ.  A professional caller does not make excuses.  Most importantly, this action sets an example for everyone. Calling is a role of leadership.  If the caller?who has a PA system?is not willing to take responsibility, why should anyone else? Greg McKenzie ------------------------------ _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers End of Callers Digest, Vol 68, Issue 12 ***************************************