5 Apr
2017
5 Apr
'17
9 p.m.
I find a theme is nice and does help people decide whether they want to
come. "Contras" is very general but you won't have the same dances if you
say "Chesnuts" or "advanced contras". Likewise, the workshop may focus
on a
specific aspect of dancing: end effects, communicating with your partner,
embellishments, ... If so, the participants should know that there will be
some actual teaching during that workshop.
Claire
Columbia, MO
On Wed, Apr 5, 2017 at 3:45 PM, Kalia Kliban kalia.kliban(a)gmail.com
[trad-dance-callers] <trad-dance-callers(a)yahoogroups.com> wrote:
On 4/5/2017 11:58 AM, Jonathan Sivier jsivier(a)illinois.edu
[trad-dance-callers] wrote:
--
*Claire*
This is addressed to callers who have led contra workshops at dance
weekends, or people who have been involved in organizing said weekends.
When you have an afternoon contra workshop what is your thoughts on
having a theme for the workshop? That is you could advertise it as
being "Advanced Contras", "Classic Contras", "Contras with a
Difference", etc. It seems that this might let people know, to some
small degree, what to expect. On the other hand there may be little or
no point to it. People interested in contra dance will likely attend
the workshop. Of course the caller might have a theme or at least some
sort of central idea to help in selecting dances, but that may or may
not be advertised.
What are your thoughts on trying to come up with a theme/title for
contra dance workshops? What do you see as the pros and cons?
I've done workshops on contras that utilize English country dance moves,
and one on dances with (often tenuous) connections to California.
A theme can be a handy organizing principle, but it can also really box
you in and make for ungainly and inflexible programs.
Kalia