Organizers October 2015

organizers@lists.sharedweight.net

1 participants
9 discussions

Re: [Organizers] What is the main goal of your dance series or organization?

by David Kirchner via Organizers

Here is the vision statement for our family dance series. Our contra series does not have such a statement (but IMHO it should). Tapestry Family Dance Vision 1. Fun. Dances will be fun! 2. Inclusiveness. Dances are open to all, regardless of age or dancing ability. The smallest children will be welcomed, and dances will be designed to enable them to participate in some fashion. 3. Community. A key purpose of the dance is build community among parents and children and to create interconnections between younger dancers and the contra dance community. Dances and activities will be designed to foster shared experiences and interactions. 4. Familiarity. The dances presented will be similar each month, with a number of core dances being repeated frequently. Children should be able to request favorites and callers should (most of the time) be familiar with the dances requested because they will be working from a common repertoire. 5. Safety. Dancers must be safe. Grown-ups are required to remain with the children they are supervising. Children should not be swung off their feet by grown-ups; grownups should not attempt to dance with others while carrying children on their shoulders. All snack food provided should be clearly labeled with ingredients for those with allergies. 6. Development. Over time, young dancers who come regularly should gradually learn key dance skills: a. Distinguishing between different sections of music b. Dancing in harmony with those around them c. Anticipating upcoming dance moves without dancing them prematurely d. Calmly and good-naturedly resolving mistakes or confusion e. Comfortably dancing with a variety of partners f. Young dancers interested in calling or playing music will be mentored to the extent possible Callers will not expect young dancers to come with these skills or to master them instantly. Any dance may involve young dancers at many different levels of development. David St Paul, MN

8 years, 10 months

Re: [Organizers] Problem with nondancing attender

by Ben via Organizers

David – Sounds like the “direct approach” of escorting him out has not been effective. Perhaps a good next step is to find out who this person is connected to – if he has some mental illness issues, is he under someone else’s care or guardianship? If so, does that person (or group) know he is coming to the dances, and that he can be disruptive? Is it possible he is being “dropped off at the dance” for what seems like an opportunity for community and connection, without an awareness of the difficulty that has caused? If not, is there any way to find a relative or someone who cares about this person, and discuss it with them? Possibly local social work agency? There must be someone who knows and cares about this fellow, who might want to be aware of this? Good luck! Ben N News, VA From: Organizers [mailto:organizers-bounces+benzall=cox.net@lists.sharedweight.net] On Behalf Of David Kirchner via Organizers Sent: Tuesday, October 20, 2015 12:00 PM To: Shared Weight Organizers Subject: [Organizers] Problem with nondancing attender Hi all, We are struggling with the best approach to deal with a community member who attends many of our dance events but does not dance (or pay). This person appears to have some mental illness challenges. He frequently has a small child with him. He has occasionally been disruptive in a minor way (or the child has been), and he has been escorted out a couple of times for that reason. He often simply hangs out in the building while the dance is going on, often in nondancing space. He is not easy to talk with. Reactions on how to deal with this person have varied across the different dance communities that use our space and different volunteers within those communities. We are trying to put together a common approach. Thoughts? David St. Paul, MN

8 years, 11 months

Seeking one more caller for Feb 2016 contra tour of New Zealand

by Rob Lindauer via Organizers

I had posted the notice below previously here in the Organizers' list. Could I ask anyone here who's also a resident of a callers' list to repost this info on the callers' list? We're still short one caller for the New Zealand trip. Thanks, Rob Lindauer ................................................................ I'm one of the dancers / musicians on the Allemande Joy 2016 contra dance tour of the south island of New Zealand. Julie Anspach (2016nzcontra(a)gmail.com) is organizing the tour. The last such tour was in 2012. The group will spend the entire month of Feb 2016 in New Zealand, taking a tour bus from the north to the south end of the south island, dancing about every other night in community centers, visiting local sites during the days, and staying in hostels. It's not a paid gig - we're all paying our own way - cost including air transport from LA is about $4200 per person. We're still short one person who can call. If you are a caller and are interested in joining the trip, please contact Julie asap for more info. Or, if you know someone who might be interested, please pass this note along to him/her. Trip info is also posted on Facebook, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/AllemandeJoy/ . Thanks, Rob L -- Rob Lindauer

8 years, 11 months

Re: [Organizers] Problem with nondancing attender

by David Kirchner via Organizers

One of the difficulties is that people have different definitions of "friendly and innocuous" and "behavior that bothers dancers." He makes many people uncomfortable. Others are OK. And he's in our space as much as 3-4 nights a week across multiple dance forms (contra, English, ballroom, international, Bollywood) that have different volunteers dealing with him. So we need to come up with a clearly stated policy that can be applied across those multiple forms. David On Tue, Oct 20, 2015 at 11:54 AM, Dan Pearl <daniel_pearl(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > If the gentleman were friendly and innocuous, I would just let him be. It > is important to know the nature of the disruptions that this gentleman > causes. If he accosts people or makes outbursts, I would attempt to make > it clear to him that he is only welcome if he remains quiet and does not > <do behaviors that bothers dancers>. Also make it clear that the child may > observe, and move around the periphery of the hall, but <whatever she does > that's disruptive> is not allowed, and if it happens, that they will be > asked to -- and they will need to -- leave and NOT RETURN. > > >

8 years, 11 months

Fwd: Problem with nondancing attender

by Lisa Sieverts via Organizers

My first reaction is that he's there because of the good energy and community feeling that your dance has created. There's so little of this out in the world and many are hungry for it. Is there a way to involve him? Give him some sort of small job? I'm sure that seems counterintuitive. Does he seem actually dangerous, or just different? If you perceive that he is a threat to himself or others, then you do need to get authorities involved. Our local police officer has been great about occasionally meeting with an individual and helping that person to sort out his/her priorities. Good luck, keep us posted. Lisa On Tue, Oct 20, 2015 at 11:59 AM, David Kirchner via Organizers < organizers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: > Hi all, > > We are struggling with the best approach to deal with a community member > who attends many of our dance events but does not dance (or pay). This > person appears to have some mental illness challenges. He frequently has a > small child with him. He has occasionally been disruptive in a minor way > (or the child has been), and he has been escorted out a couple of times for > that reason. He often simply hangs out in the building while the dance is > going on, often in nondancing space. He is not easy to talk with. Reactions > on how to deal with this person have varied across the different dance > communities that use our space and different volunteers within those > communities. We are trying to put together a common approach. Thoughts? > > David > St. Paul, MN > > _______________________________________________ > Organizers mailing list > Organizers(a)lists.sharedweight.net > http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/organizers-sharedweight.net > > -- Lisa lisa(a)lisasieverts.com 603-762-0235 -- Lisa lisa(a)lisasieverts.com 603-762-0235

8 years, 11 months

Problem with nondancing attender

by David Kirchner via Organizers

Hi all, We are struggling with the best approach to deal with a community member who attends many of our dance events but does not dance (or pay). This person appears to have some mental illness challenges. He frequently has a small child with him. He has occasionally been disruptive in a minor way (or the child has been), and he has been escorted out a couple of times for that reason. He often simply hangs out in the building while the dance is going on, often in nondancing space. He is not easy to talk with. Reactions on how to deal with this person have varied across the different dance communities that use our space and different volunteers within those communities. We are trying to put together a common approach. Thoughts? David St. Paul, MN

8 years, 11 months

Seeking one more caller for Feb 2016 contra tour of New Zealand

by Rob Lindauer via Organizers

I'm one of the dancers / musicians on the Allemande Joy 2016 contra dance tour of the south island of New Zealand. Julie Anspach (2016nzcontra(a)gmail.com) is organizing the tour. The last such tour was in 2012. The group will spend the entire month of Feb 2016 in New Zealand, taking a tour bus from the north to the south end of the south island, dancing about every other night in community centers, visiting local sites during the days, and staying in hostels. It's not a paid gig - we're all paying our own way - cost including air transport from LA is about $4200 per person. We're still short one person who can call. If you are a caller and are interested in joining the trip, please contact Julie asap for more info. Or, if you know someone who might be interested, please pass this note along to him/her. I'm not sure this forum will let me do so, but I'll attempt to attach the info letter on the trip. Info's also posted on Facebook, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/AllemandeJoy/ . Thanks, Rob L -- Rob Lindauer

9 years

"Notice of Nonrenewal" of group's general liability insurance

by Rob Lindauer via Organizers

Hartford Community Dance's insurance carrier (Markel Insurance) just notified us that they will not renew when our current policy expires Dec 1. Apparently their underwriting guidelines have changed, and we no longer meet their guidelines. I'd appreciate suggestions on carriers. I think CDSS offers access to liability insurance; I'll be talking to them shortly. Are there other carriers dance groups (probably I should stick to US groups) have used with good experience? Thanks, Rob L -- Rob Lindauer

9 years

Thanks - Insurance Issue

by Rob Lindauer via Organizers

Thanks to those who have already responded (and thanks in advance to those who will respond). My group is indeed a CDSS affiliate. We're not currently an NFO member. -- Rob Lindauer -- Rob Lindauer

9 years

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Organizers October 2015