There are some adjustments that people can make to compensate to inability to move
quickly, for example allemanding just halfway instead of once and a half; swinging just
halfway around instead of once and a half or twice and a half (or zero times instead of
once, twice, or more); skipping a move like do-si-do instead of rushing to catch up if you
arrive late to start it; faking arches if a nominally arching dancers can't
comfortably raise their arms or nominally ducking dancers can't comfortably duck.
Recognizing opportunities for such adjustments may be easy for someone who is familiar
with the dance form and generally mentally sharp, but not so easy for someone who is
unfamiliar with the dancing or who has challenges besides limited mobility, such as
difficulties with spatial orientation. It can be helpful if the caller points out
opportunities for adjustment, both for the benefit of the challenged dancer(s) and for the
benefit of other dancers who may be in position to offer guidance. The caller might also
say explicitly that it's ok for someone to drop out if they feel their stamina
flagging, even in the middle of a dance and even if there's nobody ready to step in
and take their place.
At some point--and obviously I have no idea whether the people Don's been told about
are at that point--people can be so slow-moving and so unsteady and have so little ability
to compensate or to accept assistance from other dancers, that they become a danger to
themselves, and possibly to others, on the dance floor, on account of increasing
likelihood of falls and increasing likelihood of serious injury if a fall occurs. I'm
picturing, for example, an unsteady dancer suddenly grabbing at another dancer for support
in a situation where the second dancer happens to be moving quickly away from the place
where the unsteady dancer is reaching, or where the second dancer is completely not
expecting to be called on to provide such support, or where the second dancer is someone
nearly as unsteady as the first dancer.
--Jim
On Sep 11, 2019, at 2:37 PM, Don Veino via Callers
<callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
I've got clarification back from the organizer and there's no specific challenges
over slower and potentially unstable movement. Thanks for the ideas shared! I'll
likely be well sorted for the event.