The following was printed in ³Northern Junket², vol 3, no 11, March 1953. It¹s humorous, insightful and very telling about the differences between contra dances then and now (see tips #1 and #3). I¹ve read some pretty wild stories about country¹ and barn dances in different parts of the US in the early and mid 1900s (think alcohol as a prominent feature). And of course, nearly all callers back then were men; thank goodness for the brave women who took on learning to call and the efforts of Larry Jennings and others to see that they got supported to do so!
Tips for Callers by Ralph Page 1. Don¹t drink on the job. 2. Be able to do the dances well yourself, for the better dancer you are, the better caller you will be. 3. Don¹t allow your parties to degenerate into brawls. 4. Keep your temper. Smile, even if it kills you. 5. Have patience. Remember that you too had to learn. 6. Don¹t call dances that are beyond the ability of most of your dancers. 7. Don¹t talk too much. People came to dance, not listen to you chant a mess of doggerel. 8. Admit a mistake. Laugh at it, and don¹t let it get your goat. Remember this: the person who never makes a mistake is a person who never does anything. 9. Practice. Practice. Practice. 10. Never be satisfied with just getting by. -- William M. Loving Dedication Technologies, Inc. 7 Coach Lane Amherst, MA 01002-3304 USA w...@dedicationtechnologies.com Tel: +1 413 253-7223 (GMT 5) Fax: +1 206 202-0476
