Hi all,
Chris Weiler wrote:
"I subscribe to the theory that if I need more than one walk thru, then
I'm calling a dance that is too difficult for the crowd... That doesn't mean
that
you don't challenge them at some point or call boring dances. The dances
need to flow well and be interesting, but not require a lot of thought
to dance. Most of the time, one walk thru should be enough."
While I wholeheartedly support keeping dances appropriate to the group at
hand, I always run two walkthroughs . Running only one walkthrough means
either you have to ask the dancers to reset or you start the dance with a
couple out at the top of the hall. In about as much time as it takes dancers
to reset, re-take hands four, etc. , I can do a quick second walkthrough which
does three things .
1. I do the walkthrough at something closer to dance tempo . I've found
that this is extremely helpful for people who don't yet have the ability to
"feel" the timing (especially of a series of quick moves) during a slower
walkthrough.
2. I move away from the educational language of the first walkthrough and
mostly use the calls I'll use during the dance.
3. I t progresses the dancers so that no one is out at the top. The music
can start almost immediately after the second walkthrough and new neighbors are
identified which minimizes the time between the walkthrough and the dance and
maximizes dancing time .
Also, it's my experience that new dancers aren't concentrating much on who
they're dancing with. S o reorienting back to a familiar face doesn't help
them much. Experienced dancers are used to dancing with different people, so
resetting just takes longer to start the dance.
Mark Hillegonds
cell: 734-756-8441
email: [email protected]
