I call for weddings, camps, and other one-off events from a perspective of community-building and "missionary work", rather than as a side hustle for income (which is a luxury). As such, the attitude of the client makes a difference to me. Others have already mentioned consideration of whether it's a friend, or a long-time member of the dance community. If it's a stranger, I will ask for some details about the event to get a feel for what they're looking for -- where will this be held? What kind of floor does the venue have? etc. I frame it as logistical questions (how far away is it (my travel time), *but then I go and look up the venue and see what they charge for an event. If this is a $10K wedding at a posh resort, I'll charge 4-figures, and they won't blink. If it's a potluck on a family farm, I'll charge a "non-profit" rate on par with a regular evening dance, especially if it's not too far away. *
A big 2nd factor is how much of my day the entire event will suck up, from the time I leave my house until I'm home again. It's often a 6-hour day, for maybe 60-90 minutes of actual dancing. - Diane ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Diane Silver Asheville, NC On Tue, Nov 11, 2025 at 10:59 AM Joseph Erhard-Hudson via Contra Callers < [email protected]> wrote: > Thanks to everyone who has responded for your thoughtful and detailed > replies! > > Point of order: I seem to recall that we are asked to include name and > location with our signatures. I could be misremembering, and it’s not a big > deal, but location could be particularly relevant information to this > discussion. > > I confess my mind boggled a bit at quoted fees into 4 figures, although it > helped to know that those figures were (I believe) inclusive of sound, band > and caller, came from folks who do this as their livelihood and who, I > humbly concede, bring a level of professional experience and knowledge that > similarly dwarf my own. It feels a bit like the semi-retired small-town > solo lawyer helping a friend draw up a simple will, talking shop with his > big-city colleagues in a partnership about what they would charge for a > will with complex assets…. > > I’m similarly boggled at this glimpse into the wedding industry and its > costs. To know that a fee of $1250-$1750 in US dollars might still be the > cheapest part of an event … well, my one and only wedding (to my one and > only former spouse) was put on for $1000 exclusive of jewelry in 1989 – > about $2600 with inflation today. We were a frugal do-it-yourself couple > with similarly inclined extended families and friends, held the wedding in > my parents’ back yard with potluck, did not have a dance of any kind, and > eschewed most of the other trappings that have been laminated onto present > day weddings. We hadn’t been exposed much to traditional dance at the time: > if we had been, it’s likely our budget would have risen substantially to > include it. 🙂 I believed then and now that the best weddings are made by > getting your loved ones together to do something you’d do to celebrate and > introduce them if a wedding weren’t involved, and then tack on a marriage > ceremony. Never once have I considered fireworks as part of a such a > get-together… > > I digress. Not to close the discussion, but this has been fun and > enlightening. Thanks again for the comments so far and any yet to come. > > -j > > Joseph Erhard-Hudson > Moscow, Idaho. > > Sent from my phone, which has odd ideas about formatting sometimes. > >> >> _______________________________________________ > Contra Callers mailing list -- [email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >
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