Congratulations; you have progressed from the status of a new dancer to now sit on the Executive Board of your local Club or Association. One of the duties that has come with your new position on the Board, is to coordinate the up coming open dance. However this duty, is one you have never faced before and you are not sure where to begin. Hopefully the following guide will give you some of the tools and ideas with which to successfully coordinate an open dance.
   The successfulness of an open dance may be measured in three ways; profitable; pleasurable; or minimum profit,-maximum pleasure. The minimum profit,-maximum pleasure, being the success desired most in the modern square and round dance community today. As the dance coordinator, should you choose to analyze the components making up past successful open dances in your area, you will see these components are for each dance basically the same.
   These components are:

• Dance Date and Time
• Facility or Venue
• Dance Program
• Dance Callers and Leaders
• Budget, Advertising and Ticket Sales
• Refreshments
• Club Enthusiasm

STEP 1: Selecting the date, times for the dance
   Your club is going to host an open dance, expecting that many dancers from within your area, as well as some dancers from outside your area will attend. You are the coordinator. The first item is to decide, with the executive of your club/association, the date on which the dance is to be held. Some issues you must consider are whether there is another open dance being hosted by another club for the same date as your planned dance and within a one hundred miles radius of your dance location. It is not wise to have more than one open dance within a one hundred-mile radius on the same date. The time of year also requires consideration, snow storms, ice storms, extreme cold or heat could have an effect on the attendance to your dance. Please note that Saturday and/or Sunday afternoon open dances have gained some noted popularity in the recent past.
   This is also an excellent time to choose a committee to assist you in coordinating this open dance. Where possible your committee members should be fairly knowledgeable in the expectancies of the square/round dance community, willing to meet the challenge, open minded, and comfortable to offer feedback, history, and critique. A committee of four or five couples would be ideal.
   This STEP 1 should be in place a minimum of ten months prior to the open dance date. One year is even better; many successful open dances are planned twelve to eighteen months in advance of the dance date. The facility and the callers/leaders you expect to rent and hire will take tentative bookings at least one year in advance.

STEP 2: Selecting and booking a facility in which to hold your dance
   Inquire and determine which facility was used in the past and whether it is acceptable to be used again. If no past records exist or the desired facility is not available, then you must check other local venues for availability, cost, and adequate rooms with good dance flooring and good acoustics. Other necessities to checkout would be adequate parking, cloakrooms, staging, tables and chairs, easy access from major highways, etc. Your club caller, local callers, or local dancers association will be capable and willing to assist you with this task. Possibly, many facilities in your area have been used for square dancing in the past. Some facilities may have better flooring for dancing than others, and some better acoustics than others. Try to find the best compromise of the two, again your club caller, local callers / dancers association could give you information or assistance with this. The desired facility to be used should be decided upon with your committee, and booked with confirmation in hand not less than six months in advance of your dance.

STEP 3: Selecting the dance program
   Inquire and determine from the present or the past executives, the program and levels of dance expected. Is the dance just Partial Basic/Mainstream, Full Basic/Mainstream, Plus, Advanced 1 or Advanced 2, with or without Star Tips, with or without Round Dancing or Rounds Dancing only? It could be one or any combination of the aforementioned programs.
   The best choice of a program is built around the largest number of dancers using that program in your area because, they are the dancers that will be attending your open dance. For example: There are five Mainstream Clubs, dancing five squares each, and five Basic Classes, of three squares each, but only one three square Plus Club, in your area. One program you might consider would be is a Basics level with a couple of new calls to be taught through out the evening. This allows everyone to dance together in one room, and you only need one caller/leader, this can greatly affect the cost of your dance. Another program to consider would be to have one hall for Basics, one hall for Mainstream, hire two callers and switch the callers half way through the dance. This program allows all dancers to enjoy both callers/leaders.
   Dancer Associations, Federations, and society dances may have predetermined programs and levels to be used. Be aware of this, and keep the communication lines open with those respective executives.
   Keep in mind that if you choose to hold two levels of square dancing in the one hall, let's say Basic and Mainstream, you would be cheating the Basic dancers, as they would have to sit out every other tip. You could therefore expect the attendance to your dance to be less than originally anticipated. A more acceptable program would be to have only a Basic program, but have your hired caller/leader, teach or workshop a couple of movements new to everyone throughout the evening. This program allows everyone to benefit not only by learning something new, but the dance floor will be full all evening creating a great party atmosphere. A sure hit with all in attendance.

STEP 4: Selecting the caller or callers and round dance leaders for your dance
   Inquire and determine which caller or leaders were selected in the past, and whether the same callers/leaders are to be selected again. If no records exist, or a new staff of callers/leaders is required, then you must select them.
   A good method in selecting a caller/leader for your dance is to, with the help of your club executive, prepare a list of popular callers/leaders you and your executive think would attract dancers to your dance. Then along with your committee attend open dances, or club dances where that caller/leader on your list is calling the program or programs desired for your dance. Instruct your committee to dance and observe the callers/leaders ability to keep the floor dancing smoothly, the number of dancers on the floor, the success rate at which the dancers complete the movements, or sections of the dance. Observe and listen for up beat enjoyable dance music with exciting, enthusiastic, precise, calling/cueing, accompanied with the expected level of confidence in both the caller/leader and the dancers. Once you and your committee have danced to and observed all your pre-selection list of popular callers/leaders meet and decided which callers/leaders you wish to hire. Contact the desired callers/leaders discuss their availability, their fee or the fee you are prepared to pay. Tentatively book that caller/leader. Mail the callers/leader two copies of a contract, have the caller/leader sign one copy and return it to you.
   Another method in caller/leader selection is to discuss with the club executive members of another club which has hosted a recent successful open dance the callers/leaders on your pre-selection list that they may have hired. Determine their views, reflective thoughts and ideas. It would be wise also, to insure with that executive, as to whether there is any objection to your clubs intent to hire those callers/leaders. Where possible speak with dancers who may have recently danced to a particular caller question for their views. Dancers who travel to many open dances and festivals are usually willing to share their views on any particular callers/leaders they have danced to.
   Dancer associations, federations and societies may have prerequisites for hiring callers/leaders. Should the prerequisite be that a mix of experienced, popular callers/leaders be hired along with less experienced, less popular callers/leaders, your selection task could become very difficult. One good rule to follow regarding caller/leader selection is choose the callers/leaders who are calling and teaching the levels and programs you desire for your dance. That they are truly working for the benefit and betterment of the dancers and the growth of the movement overall, and not to satisfy their own ego. The callers/leaders who are teaching, and working for the betterment of the movement, are in for the long haul, and will give you 100% of their present ability. Dance coordinators and dancers could not ask for more.
   Keep in mind your goal. Your selection of callers/leaders for the open dance will have the single greatest effect on dancer attendance at your dance. The weather will have the next greatest effect. You can not select the weather, but you can select the caller/leader. It is a very simple equation, popular, experienced callers and leaders generate good dancer attendance. However the inverse is also true.
   The selection of callers/leaders and the contracting them should be completed not less than six months in advance of your open dance. Most open dance/festival callers take bookings one, two and three years in advance of the dance. To ensure you get the caller you want book early and remember you can always put a cancellation clause in your contract.

STEP 5: Budget, Advertising and Ticket Sales
   This step is where you and your committee get to calculate the total estimated expense and set up the budget for your planned open dance. Set the admission price per person, design the tickets, and advertising flyers, coordinate members of your club to visit other clubs in your area to enthusiastically promote and sell tickets to your open dance. A very good method to get this accomplished is find the person or couple on your committee that may have some experience with budgets and advertising and let them take this task on. All you, the coordinator, have to do then, is to periodically check that the task is being completed. Note here, that it is a good idea to set two prices for ticket sales, one for advanced sales and one slightly higher for tickets sold at the door.
  The most effective process for advertising and selling tickets to your upcoming open dance is to involve your club members. Have one of your committee members prepare a chart of all local clubs, showing the day and time they dance. Talk about this to your club, what your intent is, and show them the chart. Inform them that they can pick clubs and dates, that they could visit these clubs to advertise and sell tickets. This way your club members can sign up for the club and time of their choice, also take another couple or so with them to visit that club. Give your club members ample tickets and off they go. On their return they can inform you of the success of the sales, and if they left tickets at that club for future sales. It is a good idea to telephone the president or caller / leader of that club a couple of weeks in advance, to inform them of your planned visit, and the reason for the visit. In that way members of that club will be prepared to purchase tickets during your visit.
  I will caution you here that the poorest, least productive, method of promoting and selling tickets to your open dance is to deliver or mail your dance tickets and flyers to the club callers/leaders. Callers and leaders for the most part have only one item on their mind, and that is the dance they are about to call or the one they are already calling. Many times your tickets will end up in the bottom of the briefcase resulting in zero ticket sales.

STEP 6: Recruiting, and delegating club members to help at the dance
   This section is very good to build on club participation. Get your club involved. A good method for accomplishing this is to have each member of your committee head up one particular subcommittee or segment. Then that subcommittee head can recruit club members to assist them. This way all club members get involved and feel wanted or needed and are part of the picture.
   Subcommittee or segments heads could be:

• Dance Hall setup, take down, decorating and directional signage.
• Manning ticket sales, sign in and fifty-fifty ticket sales desk.
• Meeting and greeting dancers as they enter your dance.
• Set up refreshments.
• Speeches

   There can be as many subcommittees or segments as you desire or as you have committee members to head up.

STEP 7: Debriefing, post dance reviews, reports and records
   Now your hopefully successful open dance is over and this is the time you and your committee review all, the positive, as well as the negative, aspects of your dance. It is a very good idea to note all the individual segments of the dance, whether each had complications and glitches, or went smoothly. Also reflect on the complications to determine what if anything could be done differently, that would resolve or diminish the complication.
   Usually not all the segments of an open dance meet the expectation desired, however writing good notes, and keeping good records can definitely assist the next dance coordinator. It could be you again next year.

   This guide is based on the experience I have had being in the position of open dance coordinator, for many open dances and festivals. Also as a square dance caller for many open dances, festivals and conventions. I admit that not every detail is included in this guide, but some of the most important ones are. Please use what you need, learn from your experience, pass along your own reflective views to others taking on your position. Sharing of knowledge can only benefit and better the square and round dance movement.

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