[Callers] When the dancers aren't paying attention

Thu Apr 23 00:12:14 PDT 2015

I've used the statement, "when did SHUT UP become impolite to say?"

~erik hoffman


On 4/22/2015 7:48 PM, Michael Fuerst wrote:
> It's interesting that "shut-up" and "quiet down" mean the same.
> Michael Fuerst      802 N Broadway      Urbana IL 61801      217 239 5844
>
>
>
> On Wednesday, April 22, 2015 8:59 PM, Erik Hoffman via Callers 
> <callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
>
> On the question of paying attention:
>
> A while back, in one of these e-groups, someone pointed out that we 
> contra dancers keep talking about "community." This post pointed out 
> that we contra dancers go to a dance, and, often forsaking applause 
> (yet another topic...), run off to find our next partner and line up 
> for a dance. This posting compared that to country-western dance, or 
> swing dance, where they would sit around a table and talk, get to know 
> others through chatting, and not dance every dance, but have other 
> social things happen. It got me to thinking:
>
> Often, after people have lined up, they talk with each other, their 
> partner, their minor set, or other people around them. Often callers 
> strive to get everyone to shut-up so they can start the dance. I've 
> come to believe this time of conversation is the main time we get to 
> know a little about each other and is thus a "community building time."
>
> My practice now is to say into the mic in a regular talking voice, 
> "Are you ready?" If the general banter keeps going on, I wait a couple 
> beats, and say, again, "Are you ready?" After two to four times of 
> asking the question, someone will say, "Yes!" Then another might do a 
> loud, "Shhhh!" When people finally quiet down, I teach the dance.
>
> ~erik hoffman
>     oakland, ca
>
> On 8/4/2014 10:26 AM, barb kirchner via Callers wrote:
>> sometimes when dancers aren't paying attention, it's because there 
>> are too many other things going on in the hall.
>>
>> sometimes it's the band warming up or sound checking, but i've seen 
>> all kinds of things going on - bake sales, people on their mobile 
>> devices, a group of beginners coming in who don't yet know dance 
>> etiquette, or maybe the dancers are having trouble hearing you. 
>>  sometimes musicians talk loudly behind the caller (i'm a musician 
>> and a caller) and it's hard to understand the caller because the 
>> chatter can be heard through mics or pick-ups.
>>
>> you can't fix some of those things, but you can address retail events 
>> in the hall, cell phones, sound system, etc
>>
>> are your experienced dancers modelling good dance etiquette? are you 
>> teaching efficiently, or are you spending so much time talking that 
>> people lose interest?
>>
>> sometimes, i just start the walkthru anyway.  as soon as people 
>> realize that most people are starting to swing, they get a little 
>> more interested :-)
>>
>> cheers,
>> barb
>>
>>
>> > Date: Mon, 4 Aug 2014 13:05:57 -0400
>> > To: maia.mcc at gmail.com <mailto:maia.mcc at gmail.com>
>> > CC: callers at sharedweight.net <mailto:callers at sharedweight.net>
>> > Subject: Re: [Callers] When the dancers aren't paying attention
>> > From: callers at lists.sharedweight.net 
>> <mailto:callers at lists.sharedweight.net>
>> >
>> > It depends why the dancers aren't paying attention. Are there lots of
>> > experienced dancers, such that the walkthrough isn't really necessary?
>> > Are they ignoring walkthroughs the first time through because they
>> > know there will be a second one? Are they just having a lot of fun
>> > with their friends and prioritizing that above listening to the
>> > caller? How does the dance go once it starts?
>> >
>> > A few strategies I might try:
>> >
>> > * Not bother with the walkthroughs entirely. If the crowd is ignoring
>> > the walkthroughs because as a whole they don't need them, then just
>> > call the dance. This means only picking dances that can be called
>> > no-walkthrough, but there are still a lot to choose from.
>> >
>> > * Give the dancers a bit longer between dances before starting the
>> > walkthrough. If they're chatting with neighbors and catching up, let
>> > them do that for a bit. Then once you start the walkthrough go
>> > quickly.
>> >
>> > * Ask the band for rolling starts, where they play music under the
>> > walkthrough. This makes it harder for people to talk and feels more
>> > like dancing. You don't have time to explain complex things, so you
>> > have to give that up, but it's much more forgiving than straight-up
>> > no-walkthrough.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > On Mon, Aug 4, 2014 at 11:08 AM, Maia McCormick via Callers
>> > <callers at lists.sharedweight.net> 
>> <mailto:callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>> > > At Falcon Ridge this weekend, I saw a couple of different styles 
>> of dealing
>> > > with that frustrating state of affairs when 50%+ of the hall just 
>> isn't
>> > > paying attention to the walk-through. I'm curious if you all have any
>> > > particular strategies you employ here, thoughts on how to deal 
>> with this,
>> > > how to get the attention of the hall, etc.
>> > >
>> > > In dance,
>> > > Maia
>> > >
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