I'm just home from the awesome dance organizer's conference that just took
place in White River Junction, VT.
My mind is buzzing and I want to share some of my thoughts.
First, I feel so validated in my choice to invest lots of time and energy
into our local dances. Giving people the opportunity to experience
community in the context of social dance is a worthwhile and valuable thing
to do. I knew that already, but spending time with 80 other organizers
helped me to see this again, with new eyes.
Second, I'm energized about our dances, and about broadening the team that
manages the events. I see clearly that being able to help with the dance is
a privilege and an honor. I can feel good about tapping a regular on the
shoulder and saying, "would you like to be part of the team that puts this
dance on"?
I'm so happy that we already have this venue of Shared Weight - Organizers.
Let's keep the energy and support that we had this weekend flowing.
Thanks to CDSS, NEFFA, DEFFA, New England Dancing Masters, MFS, and the
hard work of Chrissy Fowler, Delia Clark, Linda Henry and Mary Wesley.
--
<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103582272438&s=522&e=001yMXrq9ir0gBX7ESCD5f3q…>
lisa(a)lisasieverts.com
603-762-0235
Thanks for all the input and good ideas! It looks like snacks are in.
My favorite snack was gleaned from a bicycling event -- bananas, sliced
thru the skin lengthwise then cut in inch or two pieces. Easy and
non-messy.
Cheers, Sue R.
I agree with Stephen and Jeff. Snacks are terrific. Especially good way to build a thriving community. Low cost for great return.
Chrissy Fowler
PS For 6 years our Tasty Treat potluck was a vital part of our dance. We've recently let our snack potluck slide into oblivion, due to lack of interest on the part of dancers and organizers both. It was complicated by our series structure (Community dance then Contras, with snacks in between the two) and hall configuration (nowhere to eat snacks but on the crowded dance floor) We were hearing complaints from parents with young kids who didn't want them sugared up before bedtime, and no one from the contras was coming early to contribute. For a while we had a coordinator solicit/buy snacks and set them up ($30 or so per dance, for fruit, cheese, crackers, etc.) When the coordinator 'retired', we decided to stop spending money and time on it, and saved ourselves from trying to sweeping up the crumbs and mess before the contras started (a futile task.) We may change our minds and revive the snacks in some other configuration. But for now we only do snacks on our 'birthday dance' - the anniversary of the series.
But I definitely would suggest doing it as part of a new series. Food greases the social machine.
Hi folks,
This is (or feels like) my first time writing to this list. Somehow, it feels like there must be an easier way to send a response, but if this works, so be it........
Sue, is your community dance geared toward folks who just want to have fun doing all sorts of dances? You call it "old style community contra with a variety of dance forms", which sounds like what we have been doing now for 3 years in the Albany, NY area. We have tried 2 different locations and experimented with times. Our dance season is November through April, Saturday nights.
At this point, I think we would be better off running it as a two and a half hour dance, with a 10 to 15 minute break. Right now, we are running it for 3 hours (7:30 to 10:30) with a 15 minute break, and by the last half hour, more than half of the dancers have gone home. We are thinking maybe 7 to 9:30 or 7:30 to 10. We get maybe 4 to 6 children, who go home after intermission.
Another community dance that I have been involved with, run twice a year (Oct or Nov and April) goes from 7 to 9:30 (15 minute break), and is a huge success. They get lots of children for the first half of the evening, but there are still enough folks after the break to have good energy.
Paul Rosenberg
www.homespun.biz
518-482-9255
Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2013 20:59:28 -0500
From: Sue Robishaw <sue(a)manytracks.com>
To: organizers(a)sharedweight.net
Subject: [Organizers] Length of Dance
Message-ID: <50F9FE00.8050201(a)manytracks.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Hi All,
I'm in the process of organizing a new dance series (old style Community Contra with a variety of dance forms). It will be on a week-day evening. I'm wondering how long others run their regular dances, not including beginner sessions or potlucks or such. And typically how long is your mid-break?
Thanks!
Sue Robishaw, U.P. of Michigan
P.S. And thanks also for all the sharing that has gone on in the past on Shared Weight. I have lots of good notes and ideas from past posts (from the Callers list).
Hi Organizers,
I have been exploring holding a 2 or 3 day fundraising event in June in the
venue where we hold a monthly dance series. Two prominent and popular
callers have agreed to call one on the Friday and one on the Saturday of the
weekend. A third caller may be available if the event is scheduled for
three days. The committee is afraid it will be another Woodstock with kids
sleeping in school busses and peeing in the bushes. Have you encountered
these fears before (I have not). They are afraid that we will be inundated
with large numbers of people, many of them unruly. I feel we can limit
attendance if need be by requiring pre registration or tickets, and I am
frankly not so worried. I am definitely not looking to organize a huge
event. 50 to 100 paying customers would easily meet our fundraising goals.
I also see it as a way to reach out to the community around us - with
beginners' events and family dances and free outdoor activities. I believe
that the fears of the committee are grossly exaggerated.
Have you ever organized a small multi-day event? What were your experiences
in terms of having too many people? What has worked? What has not? If you
have experience with this please let me know your experiences, on or
offline, and if it would be ok to put committee members in touch with you.
Direct, people to people contact is always best I feel.
Rickey
P.S. If you feel you know where this is, please do not say so, so that I can
preserve their privacy.
r.
Regarding microphones for use by the Caller (not by the band), do you have a particular brand and model that you think is superior for use by a caller?
Our group (Queen City Contras, Burlington, Vermont) does not own sound equipment, so we are at the mercy of the the equipment provided by the band (or sometimes a small-time, local provider). Often it is quite difficult to hear the caller during a dance, and I have experienced the same problem in many other halls, with many other sound systems (even some very expensive systems). The calling needs to be intelligible, not acoustically accurate. I know that there are many contributing factors, but I suspect that often the microphone is a big part of the problem.
Do you supply a microphone for the caller? Do you have a particular brand and model that you think is superior for use by a dance caller?
Thanks,
-Brian Appleberry
Queen City Contras
Frozen in Vermont
Hi,
Thanks so much for all the responses to my dance length question. It was good to get an idea of what others do.
Another area that is up in the air for our new series is snacks. How important do you think they are or aren't at a twice a month Community Dance series? Our organization group is very small at this point so we're thinking maybe this is something we could add in later if dancers want.
Cheers,
Sue R.
U.P. of Michigan
Hi All,
I'm in the process of organizing a new dance series (old style Community Contra with a variety of dance forms). It will be on a week-day evening. I'm wondering how long others run their regular dances, not including beginner sessions or potlucks or such. And typically how long is your mid-break?
Thanks!
Sue Robishaw, U.P. of Michigan
P.S. And thanks also for all the sharing that has gone on in the past on Shared Weight. I have lots of good notes and ideas from past posts (from the Callers list).
Hello everyone!
This weekend is the Ralph Page Dance Legacy Weekend at the University of
New Hampshire in Durham. As usual, it will be a wonderful gathering of
dancers, callers and musicians to celebrate the history our wonderful
tradition and those who continue to make it live. We have a blast and
you won't find a group of dancers that is more elegant, fun, warm and
friendly out there.
As usual, on both Saturday and Sunday, SW has encouraged list
participants (and those of a like mind) to push some tables together in
the dining area and discuss matters related to dancing, calling,
organizing or playing music for dances. We just geek right out for an
hour or so! You're all welcome to join in and participate. It's a
wonderful opportunity to meet and hang out with some fantastic people
who provide such sage advice on our lists.
My wife, Anne Obelnicki, and I will be there this year after sadly
missing last year's. I look forward to meeting many new people from the
list and greeting many old friends.
Happy Dancing!
Chris Weiler
SharedWeight moderator, co-founder
Craftsbury, VT
P.S. If you don't know about the Ralph Page Weekend, here's the link. A
highly recommended festival for those interested in the history of our
tradition and meeting many of the people who made it possible for us to
do this.
http://ralphpage.neffa.org/
