Re: [Callers] Workshop ideas ?

Hi everyone, I've been asked to do a workshop in an afternoon before a regular evening dance that will offer tips on how more experienced dancers can help the newbies on the dance floor, and how dancers can be better partners. I'm anticipating that the audience will be regular dancers, but some may be new dancers. I've chatted about this with one of my fellow local callers and came up with some good ideas. I'm specifically looking for exercises or things I can focus a dance on. A couple of ideas already hatched are encouraging the dancers to communicate only using eye contact or hand gestures, and discouraging pulling/pushing behavior. A specific exercise would be setting up hands 4, having the ones cross over and then asking all the number 2 couples to leave the room while the dance is taught. I would then call the dance as a no walk through and encourage the number 1 couples to help the other couple through the dance. Tips for being better partners would definitely involve helping the newbies but would also include giving weight, handing off your partner at the end of the figure, good contact (i.e. wrist position for allemandes, swing holds, to twirl or not to twirl...). Does anyone have any specific exercises that emphasize these ideas ? I'm anticipating that I'll discuss these points with the group but would like to keep my yakking to a minimum and focus on demonstrating these things with the dances I use. I suspect that many of you have done workshops of this nature, but this is a new thing for me. I'd appreciate all feedback as I know there is a wealth of knowledge in this group. Thanks very much in advance. Bev ***************************************** The Witful Turnip wturnip(a)sympatico.ca "I'm 40-fucking-5, and I've got nothing to hide !" - Samantha Jones (Sex in the City) ***************************************** _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers