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Caller (dancing)
A caller is a person who prompts dance figures in such dances as line dance, square dance, and contra dance. The caller might be one of the participating dancers, though in modern country dance this is rare.
In round dance a person who performs this function is called a cuer. Their role is fundamentally the same as a caller, in that they tell dancers what to do in a given dance, though they differ on several smaller points. In northern New England contra dancing, the caller is also known as the prompter.
Callers and cuers serve slightly different functions in different types of dance. Improvisation in modern Western square dance calling distinguishes it from the calling in many other types of dance.
Callers in many dance types are expected to sing and to be entertaining, but round dance cuers do not sing and are expected to be as unobtrusive as possible.
Standardized dances such as round dance, modern western square dance, and Salsa Rueda consist of a number of defined difficulty levels. Callers and cuers are responsible for knowing all of the calls or cues (respectively), also known as figures, for the defined difficulty level at which their dancers are dancing, as well as all figures belonging to lower or easier levels.
Callers for other types of dance may be required only to know the particular dance they are calling.
Contra dance callers typically take on a role as the host of a contra dance event, stepping aside only briefly to let the organizers of the dance (who hired them and arranged logistics) make announcements (typically before the break). They are responsible for helping attendees find partners and organize themselves into contra lines, for teaching them the moves of the dance during a walkthrough, and for calling the moves during the dance until the dancers have it memorized. They also coordinate with the band to help them figure out which tunes to play and how long to play a dance for.
The role of a caller in modern western square dance is not only to provide the dance steps which all of the dancers on the floor should be able to follow, but also to provide entertainment through a combination of factors, including programming, showmanship, singing ability, and challenging choreography.
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Caller (dancing)
A caller is a person who prompts dance figures in such dances as line dance, square dance, and contra dance. The caller might be one of the participating dancers, though in modern country dance this is rare.
In round dance a person who performs this function is called a cuer. Their role is fundamentally the same as a caller, in that they tell dancers what to do in a given dance, though they differ on several smaller points. In northern New England contra dancing, the caller is also known as the prompter.
Callers and cuers serve slightly different functions in different types of dance. Improvisation in modern Western square dance calling distinguishes it from the calling in many other types of dance.
Callers in many dance types are expected to sing and to be entertaining, but round dance cuers do not sing and are expected to be as unobtrusive as possible.
Standardized dances such as round dance, modern western square dance, and Salsa Rueda consist of a number of defined difficulty levels. Callers and cuers are responsible for knowing all of the calls or cues (respectively), also known as figures, for the defined difficulty level at which their dancers are dancing, as well as all figures belonging to lower or easier levels.
Callers for other types of dance may be required only to know the particular dance they are calling.
Contra dance callers typically take on a role as the host of a contra dance event, stepping aside only briefly to let the organizers of the dance (who hired them and arranged logistics) make announcements (typically before the break). They are responsible for helping attendees find partners and organize themselves into contra lines, for teaching them the moves of the dance during a walkthrough, and for calling the moves during the dance until the dancers have it memorized. They also coordinate with the band to help them figure out which tunes to play and how long to play a dance for.
The role of a caller in modern western square dance is not only to provide the dance steps which all of the dancers on the floor should be able to follow, but also to provide entertainment through a combination of factors, including programming, showmanship, singing ability, and challenging choreography.