At the Pinewoods A&E week last summer, Jacqui from Michigan (Henry's wife) told me she had read a research article that studied peoples' sense of rhythm and timing. The article concluded that about 20% of all people never develop a "sense" of rhythm/timing as they age. They further found that, of that 20%, almost none of them were able to improve their rhythm even after extensive work to improve their timing. Rhythm is apparently something you pick up when you're younger, and if it's not gotten then, you likely aren't getting it... So that's one thing to keep in mind when dealing with newbies, or some of the perpetual beginners in your dance groups.
But Alan and Martha touch on something else. People who just don't connect in some sensory way that we expect them to.... Some people have very extreme and/or erratic reactions to new experiences, one or more senses will do surprising things. The guy at the calling party didn't understand until the end that the caller is telling you what to do--why didn't he? He probably observed everyone else moving along to what a caller said, and the same words were said when he got individual instruction--but nothing sank in. No offense, Martha, but did anyone simply tell him to listen to the caller? Some part of his hearing, or learning process, was simply shut down until the end of the dance. Who knows why? Fear? Embarrassment? Literally being "out of his mind" and not allowing himself to focus on the real world? I've had one woman tell me directly, and have heard the same from another indirectly, that the dancing was so tactilely and physically stimulating that she would get close to orgasming on the floor, and that made it difficult to hear and follow the caller... This example is probably a less common one, but the point is, we have no idea of all the emotional, mental and physical things happening on the dance floor that may be getting in the way of people being more successful. You just try to get their attention, and lead them gently to where you want to go if you get it. (This is one argument for keeping beginner sessions short: they already come in with so much on their minds, you shouldn't be trying to dump 30-45-60 minutes of new info into an already-addled brain. Get 'em moving, to get them out of their heads ASAP.) Alan, if that Portabella sequence is what you used to judge your beginner with... well, we have regular dancers with talent who would mess up that sequence 3 times out of 10. Keith 7. Re: What do you do as caller when you're completely failing > to reach a dancer? (Martha Edwards) > > > Message: 7 > Date: Tue, 22 Mar 2011 23:42:30 -0500 > From: Martha Edwards <[email protected]> > To: "Caller's discussion list" <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Callers] What do you do as caller when you're completely > failing to reach a dancer? > Message-ID: > <[email protected]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Yes! We had a similarly strange experience last week at one of our Calling > Parties. There were just six of us there - five of our very best dancers, > most of them callers, and one guy who simply could not process what we were > telling him. Each person would try to explain a move, but all that would > happen was more confusion. One dance had a hey in it, and after our usual > explanations had not worked, one caller said "Watch this!" and did a hey > for > four just by walking straight across the set and back, letting the other > three people weave around him. When the new guy didn't understand that, we > did the PattyCake Polka and a simple couples mixer. He did okay with the > Pattycake Polka (He did swing dancing, and I think the footwork made him > more comfortable - THAT was like dancing!), and during the couples mixer > excitedly said "OHHHHhhh... You listen to the caller and he tells you what > to do!" > > He didn't seem otherwise stupid or anything, but it was as if he couldn't > "get" what we were saying about dancing. He kept saying "I just don't know > where to go." It seemed as if his whole brain was occupied with some other > thoughts so that nothing else could get through - like a denial of service > attack... > > We've all been wondering ever since what we could have done, if anything, > short of turning the evening into a One Night Stand dance. > > M > E > > On Sat, Mar 19, 2011 at 9:42 PM, Robert Golder <[email protected] > >wrote: > > > There's only one thing I can think of to try at that point, and that's to > > strike up a conversation at the break, ask the guy if he's enjoying the > > evening, how he heard about the dance, etc., and if conversation > indicates > > he's not compromised in some obvious fashion, then ask him what's up. Had > > something similar happen to me with a couple that would fit the > description > > you gave. It turned out that as a consequence of surgery he would have > > occasional, unpredictable disorientation episodes. He really wanted to > dance > > but it may have brought on a spell; at any rate, though he seemed > clueless, > > he had instead been trying to fight the disorientation and continue > dancing, > > but he realized with disappointment after a few attempts that he couldn't > > dance any more that evening. He was a good guy and I wish he could have > > participated more fully. > > > > On Mar 19, 2011, at 10:05 PM, Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing > wrote: > > > > > Callers: > > > > > > Here are things that didn't seem to help this guy in any visible way: > > > > > > - continuing to call the dance when everybody else had it > > > - doing demos of things that we otherwise would not (eg, Trip to > > Tunbridge) > > > - having dancers in his set beckon or point, as appropriate > > > - strong partners who tried to lead him (by whatever means) where he > > needed > > > to go > > > - pointing out other people in the line in the same role to copy from. > > > - second walkthroughs > > > > > > I gave up following a problem couple up and down the set and calling to > > just > > > them years ago; that almost never works and just raises everybody's > > anxiety > > > level. I don't think it would have helped here. > > > > > > > I could see that he was never really managing to build a model of the > > dance, > > > and that he was, if anything, a kinetic learner. (Eg, in Portabella, > > where if > > > you're a 1 the A1 is gent cast off with partner behind and orbit > through > > 2s > > > place and back to place, and B2 is 1s cross, cast, and half-figure > eight, > > he > > > seemd to have some kind of memetic entrapment where having crossed he'd > > turn > > > back and follow his partner down the wrong side, as though it were A1 > > again.) > > > I don't think he ever connected pieces of music to pieces of dance. It > > wasn't > > > "he's got it except for"; I don't think he ever understood the basics > of > > any > > > dance well enough to be able to fix the parts that weren't working. > > > > > > He sat down at the last dance before the break and didn't dance again > the > > rest > > > of the evening. > > > > > > Now, maybe he's just not cut out for this. ( > > > > > > But maybe my bag of tricks isn't deep enough. > > > > > > What do you to do reach somebody like this? When do you know to let it > > go? > > > > > > -- Alan >
