strathspey@strathspey.org:44452

Jim Healy

RE: Taking to the floor

March 3, 2006, 1:18 p.m. (Message 44452, in reply to message 44443)

Greetings!

Can I just add my support to George's plea that this practice be 
discouraged. As an MC in Central Scotland, I _always_ have to announce at 
some stage in the evening that the floor should be cleared between dances. 
This results in a split reaction: filthy looks from the people at the top of 
the centre of the hall in front of the band and applause and 'hear-hear' 
from a fair number of the others. Tthe 'offending' set dance every dance in 
their tight-knit little group, only pausing between dances to change 
partners within the set - and it's pretty much the same people at every 
dance. They will then happily tell you that nobody wants MCs at all and they 
have just come to dance not to be told what to do or how to behave.

One problem with this, however, is that outside of RSCDS functions, MCs are 
becoming a scarce commodity and the job is being left to the band leader. 
Some band leaders (George very definitely excluded) make it clear that they 
all they want to do is get through the programme and go home.

Jim Healy
Perth and Monaco