Ron wrote: > So ... social engineering, in a way that stake's a caller's reputation. >
The engineer is an ancient, archetypal figure. The engineer is the one who makes things "work." I am comfortable with that title. Ron also wrote: > Fair enough. I can see how that can be valuable if that's one's goal. > The way I see it, all callers are deeply involved in social engineering. Some of them recognize it, take responsibility for it, and work to become better at it. Others don't. That makes a difference. Making the dancing "work" seems, to me, to be at the heart of what I do as a caller. If a dance falls apart it will not be serving the goal of anyone. That's part of the beauty of contra dance. Integrating the first-timers is possibly the most effective strategy for making sure the dances do not fall apart. Everyone has a stake in that goal. Ron then wrote: > It's better than shadow dances where you have more time with your shadow > than your partner - that's a personal gripe of mine as a dancer. > Follow-up question: Should a caller announce it as, essentially, a mixer > with a trail-buddy, and/or are there distinct pros / cons for / against > doing so? > Considering that the dancers have no opportunity to choose their shadow it does come across as a bit "heavy-handed" to assign you a more significant "other" than your selected partner. I don't consider it to be as bad as, say, calling a mixer without announcing it in advance. I'm not sure it would be worth the effort to explain what you are talking about in an announcement about a "shadow" dance with a "special" shadow. Probably best to call such dances only rarely. My philosophy is to give the dancers as much information as I can and trust in them to make social decisions. I never try to "trick" the dancers into doing anything. I think those kind of "gambits" and "ploys" are corrosive to the caller's relationship with the dancers. I let the dancers take the lead in whatever social engineering we need to make the evening work. If I see something that will help the dancers to make the evening "work" better I will assume the support of the dancers and try to give them the information they need to work towards that shared goal. - Greg McKenzie Santa Cruz, CA
