In Houston, then whole dance was a beginner session for years. There had never been contra down here before about 1980, except an occasional single dance in an evening at the International Folk sessions. As one of the original dance leaders, I was the teacher/caller for the first year alone. I only knew old dances from my years with Dudley in South Amherst, so that's what I called.
As the group grew, we kept that teaching focus for a very long time, and did not add beginner sessions until the last maybe 8-10 years. I still prefer personally to teach through the dances I select, but I do the beginner session because the group requests it and the newcomers feel better with a little general guidance when they first walk in. Dorcas Hand Houston TX -----Original Message----- From: callers-boun...@sharedweight.net [mailto:callers-boun...@sharedweight.net] On Behalf Of Bree Kalb Sent: Saturday, September 03, 2011 11:22 AM To: Caller's discussion list Subject: Re: [Callers] When did pre-dance beginners' workshops start in YOURarea? I started dancing in the Chapel Hill/Durham/Carrboro NC area in 1988. I missed the newcomer class my first dance, but attended the classes several times after that to feel more confident. All the dances in this area have a pre dance lesson that are well attended by new folks as well as some long time male dancers who enjoy helping the new women dancers. _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list call...@sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
