First off, congratulations to Dale, who did a superb job of herding everyone into an excellent program on New Year's Eve. And congratulations to all the callers, too. Walkthroughs were crisp, band communications were good, and it certainly looked from the stage as if everyone were having a great time!
Mac reported that a few dancers said that there were too many dances where you had to think too hard - understandable, when you've got twelve callers and each one wants to make his or her mark - but I checked with a few other dancers ("Did the dances seem a bit difficult or complicated to you?") and they seemed to think the dances were just fine. Still, it's something to remember for a future New Year's Eve party - no thinking!
I'm happy to report that our Avant Gardeners, George and Laura, were delighted with the event. They went to a fair amount of effort to get here but felt it was absolutely worth it. They really like our dance community - we're fun-loving and friendly people and know how to show our appreciation. Of course, so are they, so let me tell you, I was in music and dance heaven, watching all you new callers (and our wonderful regular callers, and our guests!) and jamming with my peeps.
On to the next - Youth Contra tonight, Hatchling Dance tomorrow night!
M
E
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6 comments:
"Mac reported that a few dancers said that there were too many dances where you had to think too hard" If I remember right last year someone said the very same thing...where's the blog from 2008??? :D
ooooooohhh...wait...I found it...here's my quote from the 2007 New Years Eve dance...A Martha 2007comment:
"We kind of agreed that the New Year's Eve party, though a big success, had a few glitches of the kind we want to avoid in the future. One of our dancers complained that there were too many dances that required thinking, although another complimented us on an interesting and challenging program. I think the next time we should probably figure out how to plan an evening, and choose dances to fit, rather than leaving it to the luck of the..."
I would surely love to know who complained, not to go kick him (or her) in the shins, but just to understand. I asked a couple of other people if they thought the dances were too hard, and they said "Huh?" and then "NO." There are dancers for whom our dances are just not challenging enough, but there are a couple of dancers who are always telling me that they wish that the contra dances could be more like One-Night-Stand dances, or wedding dances.
Still, it makes sense to call dances that don't make you think when it's (a)later than usual and (b) people have been eating and drinking, which cuts down on brain power for a while and (c) they're in party mode rather than focus mode. But I don't think we should go all the way to Pattycake Polka and the Hat Dance, just avoid the "really cool" dances that only a mathematician could love.
I also heard a comment from a dancer who thought there were too many callers. That it caused too many changes in mood and energy, which made the dance evening seem rather jerky, rather than smooth and flowing. When I mentioned it to Mac, though, he replied that it was supposed to be more of a party than a first class dancing night, or something to that effect. Both comments to think about. I thought it was fun, though!
~Karen
Very interesting!
Have we ever gotten that remark at a Hatchling Dance, where there are exactly the same number of callers?
M
E
I've never heard the remark at a Hatchlings dance . . . but then I think people expect it there, given the venue. Not many besides us knew New Year's Eve was going to be so varied. I can see where it might seem unusual.
~Karen
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