Comp Organization--Stuff We Like - Stuff We Don't Like

They are. I know the people dancing at these comps seem to think that they are wildly entertaining to watch. But competitions are actually pretty boring for spectators. Same dances over and over and over again. Same people dancing those same dances. After a couple rounds, you've been there, done that. As many levels and ages as everything gets broken down into. Then you've got people doing a couple levels, possibly in a couple age groups, doing singles and scholarships. It's the same darn thing OVER AND OVER AND OVER again. It's like going to a kid's music recital. You aren't going to be entertained. You're going to support the kid. It might be fun, but how many of you would pay the cost of a comp spectator ticket to go to a kid's music recital and listen to a bunch of 7 year olds playing Hot Cross Buns?

Unless a REALLY good friend is competing, I'm not going to a day session anymore. And it would have to be a really good pro SHOW (not just competition) to get me to pay for an evening session. Because of the price. At entertainment value for my dollar, I'll check youtube for some dance videos and go do something a lot more fun that watching the same people do the same waltz over and over and over and over again.

See, I don't see it as a problem because in no grand scheme of things is it a LOT of money, so if you want to go once to see your friend/kid/coworker/whatever, it isn't prohibitively expensive (if it is, you have bigger problems than going to see someone compete), and if you're considering taking up ballroom and think $25 is too expensive, it's not the sport for you.

It would be like complaining about $4 for public skate being expensive but wanting to learn to figure skate, where just ADEQUATE skates will set you back $300+ and forget lessons and the ice time THOSE are on. And compared to what the participants are paying, it's nothing at all.

And I suppose I just cannot imagine THAT many people who aren't related to someone dancing, or even who ARE, who want to routinely go well out of their way, to hotels they're not staying at, in cities they don't live in, to spectate at competitions. I don't even bother going to sessions I'm not in most of the time and I'm already there. I think I've had spectators...at dinky comp in NH, which happened to be a one-day in the same town where the skating rink I'd been lessoning at was located, so my coaches came, and my parents and one of my aunt and uncles (I have a lot) came to MDC one year because that's in Dearborn so I have about four billion relatives in a twenty-mile radius. Another aunt and uncle just met us for dinner, and my cousin's daughters wanted to come but it was a school night. I MAY go myself and spectate this year, but only because Boston folks are coming and my pro can't do it so I'm not dancing. Otherwise the only time I've ever gone to a ballroom competition I wasn't in was I was stuck in Brooklyn all day anyway last summer until my brother got of work and could rescue me so I spent the day watching Standard Day at Manhattan. (I hate NYC, had a big suitcase, and the cruise terminal is like four blocks from the Manhattan venue hotel so it was only logical.) I just do not see ticket prices for non-competitors as a huge crisis or something that needs to be cut, especially when the expense any cuts resulted in would be passed on to the competitors, who ARE paying a lot of money to be there. Audiences are okay, but they're not really the #1 thing about a COMPETITION. That's what showcases are for.

I have only invited friends to watch me dance 4 times in 4 years! Each time, I purchased the tickets for the friends myself, because I do feel that the "entertainment" value of watching several closed rounds of dancing to non ballroom dancers may be somewhat taxing. I was surprised though that they all seemed to actually enjoy the day. These were close friends though. In a strange way, I like the lack of a large audience when I am competing. It is much less intimidating to get out there and know that most of the people that are watching are other dancers in other rounds. I remember a couple of times my scholarship round was part of the evening show.... that was an entirely different experience to dance infront of a full house. So to the thread topic... which is preferable to DFs.... would you prefer that competition organizers have your scholarship rounds as part of the evening show when you are in front of a full audience, or during the day?

If I perceive something as same thing over and over and over and therefore boring, I wouldn't go watch it just for the sake of watching it even for free. I have to perceive something as worth watching and not boring before I decide to spend my time watching it without being an active participant.

Yeah, what counts as expensive is a personal judgment call, so nothing to argue about here. I will say that my own judgment is a bit different -- it makes sense to me if spectator tickets for lower levels are on a par with community theater, say, or a high school sporting event. Amateurs doing something that some people would find entertaining, especially if they know one of the performers/competitors. A session with high level (open amateur or pro) couples should cost more -- on a par with other types of entertainment with professional/highly skilled performers. Based on those comparisons, when I have friends/family in the vicinity of a comp, I'm happy inviting them to come watch me compete for $10-15, and many of them would come at those prices and enjoy themselves, and I'd enjoy having them there. Much more, and I wouldn't expect them to come; might not even ask them. But ok, I'll stop beating this particular horse now.

Yes, my aunt and uncle (I honestly have no idea if they bought their tickets or my parents paid for them) really enjoyed watching a non-show evening session (pro-am scholarships, including mine, I don't remember what pro events there were), despite honestly having no idea what was going on. Their sum total of ballroom experience was DWTS, so all that really registered was "people in pretty costumes dancing to music and looking really good at it." They enjoyed it, without the desire to analyze what was going on.

Now, personally, I love a big audience, but it's not really high on my list of things I'm worried about a comp having.

after an hour or two, the mrs says " i can dance each of those girls routines right now" i almost believe her!!

uh uuh they are all staring at YOOUUUUUUUUUU

a ticket to Wicked for 50 bucks that would rock!! well said bia!!

...You know, if I could just talk two or three other students into doing a major "travel" comp (Boston's a long way for most people here)...

its further for me

but its a great idea all organizers should consider this

Heh, you haven't been saying for three years you'll go. (It's not my fault! You have to talk my pro into going and that means talking a few of his other students into going!)

LOL true i did say that about millenium tho .. but this year i am going!!

If it is being organized and run as a non-profit by a chapter - than any proceeds are going to go to chapter activities, scholarships/prizes, and having enough in the bank to run it again.

There is a huge difference when it is being run as a business, and a portion of the organizers livelyhood for the year rides on the event. If a non-profit event doesn't cover costs, it may not happen again. If a for-profit event goes belly-up - that can be a business or personal bankruptcy.

I'm going to stick my toe in the water on this thread...

As a competitor, I like when comps run on time. I like when you can clearly hear the heat numbers announced over the sound system. Running on time and clearly being able to hear the heat numbers helps me make my heats without making a made dash to the floor.

Sometimes I deck captain. When I deck captain, I don't like it when the chairman changes around my heats. I have to find the dancers and get them on the floor without losing time, when a heat is moved up 15 or more heats it makes my job difficult.

Also heats list often change from what is printed in the program. Dancers, don't us the program to keep track of your heats; get them printed when you get to the comp.

I love it when pros and amateurs know to check into the ballroom at least 30 minutes before their heats. I appreciate dancers that will ask if they have time to go to the bathroom.

I understand competitions are social events, but please do not stand in the on deck area chatting and distracting those that are about to dance their heats. To many times I have sent a out a heat only to have a couple missing because they are still talking on deck.

I don't like it when the heats move around too much either. And when they get combined with other heats. It can cause problems elsewhere, too (i.e. video people are more likely to make a mistake and not tape something because they didn't realize it was moved up or merged with another heat. Happened to me at St. Louis this year, to the credit of the video vendor they didn't charge me for that multi-dance, even though they got 60% of it).

Split floor for early bronze rounds

The side effect of not having a split floor for bronze smooth or standard, or starting morning sessions at a later time (i.e 8:30 am instead of 7:30 am) at a medium-sized comp is sometimes that the schedule can get really cramped, or downright screwy for higher levels. At St. Louis Starball this year gold standard single dances were moved into the evening session on Friday night and the rest of standard took the entire Saturday morning - finished at about the same time as last year, when all of standard except open scholarships was on Saturday morning. For me, that meant that I had about an hour break between my smooth and standard. Just enough to have a quick snack and change into a different dress. Honestly, I don't care for this type of schedule at all.