David wrote: How to teach/sell 'good dancing' without seeming like a pedant. (It seems like it's an easy trap for callers in all country dance genres to aim for competence/efficiency in teaching _dances_, and neglect teaching _dancing_. You pretty much have to slip that style/skill instruction in while teaching dances, and that's a skill in itself.) -- Alan -- =============================================================================== Alan Winston --- WINSTON(a)SSRL.SLAC.STANFORD.EDU Disclaimer: I speak only for myself, not SLAC or SSRL Phone: 650/926-3056 Paper mail to: SSRL -- SLAC BIN 99, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park CA 94025 ===============================================================================

David asked: Well, here is a write up for my own workshop. Feel free to use any of these topic ideas. Generally I feel that, after callers gain several years of experience, most develop enough confidence that they feel they can ignore many of the basics of calling. Things like using effective word order in calls and prompts is often dropped in favor of a more "natural" speaking style. This may put the caller at ease but their calling always suffers for it and the results are often dramatic when a good number of newcomers are present. Beyond that I would like to see more emphasis on integrating newcomers and inspiring a gracious, civil, and welcoming environment suitable to a public social event. (It might be good to recognize that open and public contra dances are very different events from special events designed for dance enthusiasts. The skills are different and the caller's job is different.) Just a thought. Greg ************** An Instructional and Participatory Workshop for Contra Dance Callers In Caller Lab I and II participants will learn many of the basics skills and techniques useful in calling dances and in dance instruction for groups of mixed skill levels. In Caller Lab III Participants will have the opportunity to try calling dances and will receive constructive feedback on their calling techniques from the entire group. This lab will be taught in three Tuesday evening sessions of 2-3 hours each during January and February of 2008. Topics in the sessions will include: Caller Lab I - The Purpose Of Social Dance - The Purpose Of Contras - The Purpose Of The Contra Dance Caller - The Caller's Responsibility - Integrating Newcomers Into the Community - Inspiring Confidence In The Dancers - Explicit and Implicit Messages - Voice Clarity and Projection. - Crafting Precise And Unambiguous Instructions - Effective Word Order - Know Your Audience (The Bell Curve) Caller Lab II - Earning And Holding The Attention Of The Dancers - Planning Your Dance Program - Gaining The Support Of Experienced Dancers - Setting a Tone of Decorum and Mutual Regard - Maintaining A Safe And Supportive Environment - Putting All Dancers at Ease - The Newcomer's Orientation Session - Proven Instructional Techniques and How to Avoid Them - 12 Common Mistakes made by Callers - Fool-Proof Dance Cards Caller Lab III - Using The Music Effectively - Working With Live Musicians - Working With PA Systems And Sound Engineers - Effective Use Of The Microphone - Microphone Etiquette - Recognizing Problems - How To Handle Difficult Situations - Recovering From Mistakes - How to Generate an Atmosphere of Graciousness and Goodwill This workshop series will cover techniques useful for dance callers, instructors, masters of ceremony, and workshop facilitators who use a public address system. The core program, however, is designed for callers of contemporary New England style contra dances, which involve a caller-led evening of intensely social dancing to live music in which newcomers are integrated without prior instruction. Whatever background or interest, all participants in Caller Lab should have attended at least one contra dance to understand the context of the lab instruction. Greg McKenzie has been dancing and calling contras for more than 20 years. He has a B.A. in Speech Communication and graduate course work in instructional design. He has managed and programmed contra dance series and has served on several Boards of Directors. He has also organized citizen-diplomacy contra dance tours of Eastern Europe where locals were invited to dance with visiting Americans traveling with a live band and a Russian-speaking caller. In this workshop series McKenzie applies his communication and instructional background to the traditional, contemporary, and remarkable public ritual that we call a contra dance.

Another topic that might be helpful is one that I know is near and dear to your heart - how to integrate dances that are not just duple improper contra sets. We have a lot of dances of slightly different shapes that people do enjoy if they are properly integrated and called, including triples (both types), proper dances, chestnuts, waltz contras, double progressions, 5 couple dances, couple dances, such as waltz, hambo, polka, schottish, etc., circles, and others. Many beginning callers avoid these dances for various reasons. More familiarity with these dance can help to make an evening of dance more varied and more interesting when they are included. Rich Hart. David Millstone remarked on 12/15/2009 6:48 PM:

I've had a few dances recently where people with learning disabilities, mostly along the autism spectrum, have been present. I've had to do some intense work on the spot to make sure to integrate them into the group. As increasing numbers of kids who've been mainstreamed into regular education have become adults, they are increasingly present in the world at large, as they should be. The skills we need to work with these individuals are different from the ones we use with dancers who are more typical learners. For example, one of the young women at my dance tonight had real difficulties managing her body- her feet sometimes appeared to not be connected to the rest of her- but she learned figures immediately, even challenging ones such as 1/2 figure eight and turning contra corners. I had to focus on her spacial awareness without getting concerned about the rest, which bothered her not at all. So, David, I suggest that while this may not be a topic of immediate need, it is a growing concern. Susan Elberger Arlington, Massachusetts --- On Tue, 12/15/09, David Millstone <David.Millstone(a)valley.net> wrote: