15 Jul
2008
15 Jul
'08
10:26 p.m.
Oh, well said, Chris!
I often agree w/ Greg on matters of all things dance/philosophy, but this
time I'm with the other side of the aisle.
Imagine a new dancer that hears the name of a certain caller credited over
and over ("I learned this one from Ted Sanella, who got it from Ralph
Page") vs one that doesn't - which one is more likely to, say, pay
attention to flyers for the Ralph Page Legacy Weekend? Or actually do a
ladies chain WITHOUT THE EGGBEATER TWIRL because "Ted wrote it that way,
and the courtesy turn really does send both of you into the next move
better if you do it that way"
New dancers need to know that the dance world is not -- quite-- all about
them, and about their having a peak aerobic active dance experience every
possible minute - there's reasons that the dance world is here for them
to enjoy, and those reasons (the organizers, sound folks, musicians,
callers, dancer crafters and sometimes even tune composers) all deserve
their (brief but eloquent) moment of credit.
My .02.
Cheers,
Amy
I must agree with Susan on announcing dance names. My
own technique is
to announce them after the walkthrough and before the music starts.
"come back to place and we'll dance ____ by ____". The
beginners won't
think that they're being left out because they all have been taught the
dance, and in fact may be distracted by everyone starting to back up.
The ones who are interested and have attention to spare will hear. This
also lets the band know that we're ready for some music.
There are many ways for a caller to gain the attention of the dancers.
Scarcity of speech is one of them, but tone of voice and force of
personality do a lot more to making the evening fun. If just your tone
and style of speech can convey "I'm having fun, please join me"
and
command attention and obedience as well, it really makes the evening fun
for the dancers. It's not easy, especially for someone like me who tends
to be shy, but it can be cultivated without sounding phony.
Chris Weiler
Goffstown, NH
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