Re: [Tango-L] Tango Co-op?
I found this on the internet http://www.tangotravelercard.com/color_tango_products.htm Michael Ditkoff Washington, DC I am sort of playing around with the idea of setting up a membership organization basically I imagine folks pay some amount per year as members which entitles them to discounted workshops, free admission to milongas, etc. thanks b I'd rather be dancing Argentine Tango ___ Tango-L mailing list Tango-L@mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
Re: [Tango-L] Tango Co-op?
The first and most important question is What is the purpose of the Club? In my opinion, the best role of a tango club is to nurture community, which means taking a neutral or encouraging stance with respect to local teachers. So, look carefully at whether your goal is to help or compete with local teachers. If you are doing workshops and classes, you will be setting up an antagonistic relationship with local organizers. Also, consider financial risk and liability (injuries from poor instruction or what to do when a creepy guy grabs a sixteen year old). There is a particular rule of thumb for community building: You need to have 25 couples in one room in order to create the critical mass for good social interaction and growth. Maybe there is enough Salsa in Buffalo so you can have five teachers with 50 people each, but tango is more specialized, and an individual teacher has a hard time creating the snowball effect. On the other hand, Teachers are usually better than organizations at one-on-one instruction, group classes and privates. Organizations are usually best at nurturing the broader community. Individual teachers should be able to succeed or fail on their own merits or personalities without causing a rift in the community. In cities without a broader organization, there is a tendency for the tango events to be silo-ed with individual teachers, (Class 1, Class 2, Milonga). Competitive instincts (and insecurity) motivate teachers to hold tight to their students and not inform them of other events. If you have a club that is neutral and serving the needs of all the teachers, then the confident teacher will want their students to mix in the community for marketing purposes. Economies of scale favor a larger organization when it comes to advertising expenses, relating to arts funding and grants, and renting a dance space. A club needs to serve the broader needs of all the dancers, so it may be constrained to serving the lowest common denominator. If the club is inviting teachers for workshops, they have to serve everybody, not just the young and athletic. An individual teacher can choose a tighter focus, for example, specializing in show dance or nuevo which are accessible to a smaller subset of the community. Also, an individual teacher can sponsor a workshop, and then offer specific, follow-on instruction so the visitor's contribution isn't just wind blowing through the grass. Tango Colorado follows the model of cooperating with and helping local teachers. The club doesn't really do anything, except organize the community- wide practices and a few special events. They rotate through the local teachers for beginner classes allowing them to pitch their on-going classes. If a newcomer doesn't fit with teacher X, they might fit with teacher Y. Teachers all have their own styles, but the students end up trying out different teachers and mixing with each other at the practices, so most people can dance a variety of styles, not just the one favored by their teacher. Tango Colorado can afford to rent a big space (actually we own it, now). It can afford advertising. Officially neutral, it lists all teachers, DJs and local organizers in good standing on its web site. Good standing pretty much means dues are paid up; it doesn't say anything about teaching ability, that is up to the wits of the individual teacher. A teacher has to be pretty egregious to be removed from approval. Yes, there is a behavior code, but again, nothing about skill or ability. There are other models around the country. One of the most successful is the U of Michigan tango club. For the past several years they have had three ongoing classes operating in adjacent rooms, followed by a practice. The Advanced and Intermediate classes come over to the Beginner room for the practice, so in effect, the community comes to the newcomers. If they have 50 beginners in the room, suddenly the social energy explodes to 100 people. I imagine that it takes good people skills for a club to manage the personalities of the different teachers. Boston Tango Society follows the model of a club that does a lot of teaching and workshop organizing. In the old days, they did not even permit professionals (income earning dance teachers) from belonging to the club. Maybe they have changed that policy. You'll have to ask people in Michigan and Boston how well their clubs work for the greater community. On Jan 15, 2008, at 8:06 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I am sort of playing around with the idea of setting up a membership organization - but even if I do something like that, it's way, way far off - but I'd love to hear from anyone who has done itbasically I imagine folks pay some amount per year as members which entitles them to discounted workshops, free admission to milongas, etc. If you are a member of something like
Re: [Tango-L] Tango Co-op?
thanks Tom - I've already incorporated the Buffalo Artgentine Tango Society as a non-profit, and I regularly get 25-35 folks to the milongas I organize, 40-50 (not necessarily all tango dancers) for a gala dress-up events associated with visiting artists, and sell maybe 50 workshops when I bring someone in(that doesn't mean 50 people, because any 1 person can take more than one workshop, etc.) I see BATS as a portal - sort of. I organize a couple of milongas each month - I advertise that they are free and open to the public, and I do them at various bars, restaurants - this brings folks in. Then they get on my e-mail list, find out about new events, and so on and so on :). I have also successfully partnered with other non-profits by providing entertainment and demonstrations. Generally, we're just there to dance, so it's really just a milonga to us...to the event's attendees its great music, fun to watch and something they've never seen before. Sometimes, the visitng artists perform at these fundraisers. I had a great experience bringing two artists to a performing arts high school here, and those kids really, REALLY took to it! Other than bringing folks from out of town in, BATS does not directly work with any local teachers - or, more accurately, works with all of them. I do not (and will not) teach, and I promote everyone's events. If there are teachers at my events (other than the monthly milongas), I always offer them an opportunity to perform something - even folks from those franchise dance studios. I also encourage teachers to bring any brochures or flyers they want to, and announce up-coming events. So far, I have been fortunate in that I could personally absorb some of the up-front costs of a weekend of workshops, etc., and then have those costs reimbursed. But my ability to do that is limited and if I want to go to another level, I need working capital. Also, so far I have never been in the red - although a couple of times, I just broke even. But I know it's coming - an inadvertant conflict with another event, bad weather or burst pipes at the venue I've rented - something is bound to happen that will screw up my budget.so having some working capital for that too would be helpfulwhich is why I was interested in what other communities do. thanks everyone for your ideas and suggestions barbra Have you joined the Buffalo Argentine Tango Society Yahoo! group yet? It's easy, and the best way to make sure you know what we're doing and what's going on with the Argentine tango in and around Buffalo..go to www.yahoo.com select Groups search for Buffalo Argentine Tango Society follow the directions to join BATS_tango. Thanks! -Original Message- From: Tom Stermitz [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Tango-L tango-L@mit.edu Sent: Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:26 am Subject: Re: [Tango-L] Tango Co-op? The first and most important question is What is the purpose of the Club? In my opinion, the best role of a tango club is to nurture community, which means taking a neutral or encouraging stance with respect to local teachers. More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail ! - http://webmail.aol.com ___ Tango-L mailing list Tango-L@mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
Re: [Tango-L] Tango Co-op?
Hi buffmilonguera, Its sound as if youre off to a good start. However, Id be concerned about investing so much of your own financial resources if your intent is to be a non-profit. With your current activities, I dont see the advantage of being a non-profit instead of a for-profit, unless youre applying for grants or gain a marketing advantage. Grants can be an excellent source of capital for you. As for memberships, it seems to work very well for Tango Colorado, the Univ. of Michigan, and other places. However, there seemed to be issues with Boston. I don't know if they have been resolved, yet. Membership does gives voting rights and that may bring about new issues you'll need to explore. Trini de Pittsburgh --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: thanks Tom - I've already incorporated the Buffalo Artgentine Tango Society as a non-profit, and I regularly get 25-35 folks to the milongas I organize, 40-50 (not necessarily all tango dancers) for a gala dress-up events associated with visiting artists, and sell maybe 50 workshops when I bring someone in(that doesn't mean 50 people, because any 1 person can take more than one workshop, etc.) PATangoS - Pittsburgh Argentine Tango Society Our Mission: To make Argentine Tango Pittsburghs most popular social dance! http://patangos.home.comcast.net/ Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ ___ Tango-L mailing list Tango-L@mit.edu http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
