5 Dec
2013
5 Dec
'13
10:36 a.m.
actually, that's one of the reasons that this came to me. too many experienced,
well-meaning dancers helping newbies. not a bad thing - but if they did it with a few
specific points in mind, it could work much better.
the cadre gets "training" - ie, everybody could have a meal together and talk
about the basic points, or something like that. it could be as simple as a one-page
document describing "good dance floor behavior". that way the dance
ambassadors, or whatever you want to call them, are NOT part of the "distract newbies
during the walkthrough" problem.
btw - i'm not starting a new dance. i've done that twice, and learned a lot. i
just want to discuss this as a possible method for people who ARE starting new dances.
and the cadre does not need to be identified - they are just people on the floor who have
decided to be good role models and discussed what that means.
CC: organizers(a)sharedweight.net
From: bryanwalls(a)bryanwalls.com
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2013 09:26:30 -0600
To: organizers(a)sharedweight.net
Subject: Re: [Organizers] starting a new dance series
Once upon a time our group made a bunch of buttons labeled "dance ambassador".
They were available at the sign in table for experienced dancers to pick up. The caller
could tell new dancers that those with the button would be happy to dance with beginners
or answer questions. It worked okay, I think. Not lots of people wore the buttons. They
eventually all wandered off, and we never made a new batch. Something of the sort might
help with your cadre. I guess the danger is this might indicate that some experienced
dancers are not happy to help new dancers.
Sent from my iPad
On Dec 5, 2013, at 5:37 AM, barb kirchner
<barbkirchner(a)hotmail.com> wrote:
good points, john. that's exactly why almost the very first thing i teach in class
(and repeat a lot) is a swing.
i agree that it's not fair let them flounder in the swing, but as a caller, it seems
to me that if you're teaching the swing during a walk-through, they will fllounder
through the whole dance, not just the swing. where is the satisfaction in that? i've
certainly talked to new dancers who left at the break saying they were "too
confused". i could see that this often happened because well-meaning dancers
distracted them during the walk-through.
and the things that are taught by "helpful" partners are often not helpful at
all - just get bad habits started.
if you can teach it in a couple of seconds, that's great. but i've seen people
spend the whole first walkthrough of a dance "learning" to swing. then they
wander through the line, confused, causing tangles. then the experienced dancers complain
- even though they might have helped set up the situation.
if there is no class - "crew leaders" could greet new dancers and teach a
couple things - how to swing, ladies on the right - that kind of stuff.
so - this thread isn't about swinging.
it's about the idea of having a cadre of educated iand goal-oriented individuals on
the floor helping to maintain order and fun among a bunch of new dancers, and making sure
that new dancers listen to the caller by exhibiting good dance floor behavior. because
THAT's the main thing that new dancers do NOT know - to LISTEN TO THE CALLER.
cheers,
barb
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http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/organizers From: info(a)contrafusion.co.uk
To: organizers(a)sharedweight.net
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2013 10:04:41 +0000
Subject: Re: [Organizers] starting a new dance series
We did some analysis of swings some time ago, considering a typical contra
dance evening, with modern contra dances and their bias towards swings.
We estimated that there was about 106 minutes of dancing, and that about 26%
of it was swinging! As a dancer you spend nearly THIRTY MINUTES of the
evening swinging!
To let first-timers flounder without help on their swinging seems extremely
unfair to me. And while we have some excellent swingers who can teach a
swing well, we also have dancers who are not so good, have strange ideas,
and are the most likely to teach a first-timer while the caller is teaching
the dance.
So if there are only a few first-timers I will teach them the swing
individually before the first dance. But if that isn't possible, if I am
aware of any first-timers being present, then I always teach the swing when
we get to it in the first dance. It only takes a few seconds and can make
an incredible difference to the first-timer's experience. There is also
always the hope that some of the more experienced dancers will pick up some
of the tips and improve their swinging.
Happy dancing,
John
John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362
http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent
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