Re: [Callers] Putting Out Fires

[Lewis Land]

When I'm doing the newcomers instruction, or instruction at the first 
dance of the evening, and it's obvious that there are more than the 
usual number of novice dancers in the crowd, I'll tell them this:  You 
know how, when you're doing couples dancing, like a waltz or swing, and 
something goes wrong or your timing is off, it's always the guy's fault? 
Even when it's not really the guy's fault, it's still his fault. Well, 
contra is community dancing, so when something goes wrong it's always 
the /caller's/ fault. Even when it's not my fault, it's still "my 
fault". This usually gets a laugh and makes the newcomers a little less 
self-conscious about making mistakes.

On those rare occasions when things get so out of hand that I have to 
stop the music and start over, I apologize to the dancers for having 
chosen a dance that didn't work for them, and pull out a back-up dance 
that I've called successfully many times before. A few weeks ago I tried 
calling, for the first time, a double-progression becket with petronella 
twirls, and one of the lines totally fell apart. Fortunately I had 
another dance in reserve, also a becket with petronella twirls, that I'd 
called many times to this group, and it worked fine. Because I often 
have lots of inexperienced dancers to contend with, I always hold a few 
simple backup dances in my pocket. I like to challenge myself by calling 
new and interesting dances, but I find that it's most satisfying when 
all the dancers are having a great time and are genuinely engaged in the 
dance, even if all you're calling are dances like Broken Sixpence.  
-Lewis Land