[Callers] Re: calling weddings

One addendum: I said “no duple minors.” Let me amend that a tiny bit: My second dance at all my one-nighters, after a big circle with ad-lib calling, is Ed Durlacher’s Sanita Hill, done either as a Sicilian or a scatter. (Scatter if there are too few folks for a good pass thru, or if there are too many drunks or little kids.) It’s done by groups of two couples and gives people the feel of a duple with very little teaching. A.1 Circle left, circle right A.2 Dosido neighbor, dosido partner B.1 Star right, star left B.2 (original version) Forward and back, pass thru to a new neighbor couple B.2 (modified) Scatter promenade, look for a new neighbor couple It’s one of the very few “nearly bombproof” dances on my list, particularly in the scatter version. Tony Parkes Billerica, Mass. www.hands4.com<http://www.hands4.com/> New book! Square Dance Calling: An Old Art for a New Century (available now) From: Joe Harrington via Contra Callers &lt;contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; Sent: Monday, July 3, 2023 3:53 PM To: Shared Weight Callers &lt;contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net&gt; Subject: [Callers] calling weddings Any advice for calling weddings? I've been asked to call my first one and I don't see a lot of wedding-specific advice online. What do you ask them in advance, how do you approach it, what are good dances to call? I'm assuming that a workshop is impractical, so it's barn dances and maybe working up to a contra by the end? Try to teach a swing? Some advice I've gotten so far: Band - can they play contras, am I DJing instead, if so what kind of music, trad or pop? Floor - make sure it's big enough, get length, width, and surface Sound system - what is it and is there a sound tech? Duration - how long they'll want to dance Dancers - how many, any experienced guests? Special dances - first, parents, bouquet, last? Will the bride and groom dance? (If not, nobody will) Will there be alcohol? (one person suggested doubling the fee if there is) Will many women be in high heels? I welcome any advice! My main goal in taking wedding gigs is recruiting new dancers to our local scene, if that matters. Thanks, --jh--