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the East Coast Contact Improvisation Jam has been organized by a varying collection of volunteers over the years (as of 2006, for 20 years). it is a gathering of contact improvisation enthusiasts for an extended ci "jam" - a free-for all ci gathering where practitioners explore where the contact point, the sensibilities that the dancers bring to it, and the unique combinations of the moment, take them.
though the jams could be run in many different ways, they have taken a now familiar shape.
Where the Jams Happen
the East Coast Jams have always been conducted at Claymont Court Seminars, with which we have a warm and friendly history[#]. room and board is provided as part of the jam fee, and the extensive rural estate provides tons of opportunity to relax and play, in addition to dancing.
Who is an East Coast Jam Organizer?
separate sets of volunteers organize the spring and fall jams. each of these small groups is typically constituted by three members, a mix of men and women. these volunteers are generally jammers - contact improv enthusiasts. they typically do not pay to attend the jams they organize, and may get some portion of the proceeds above jam costs, depending on the jam policy (which is set by the organizers). big take-homes are not the goal nor, historically, the outcome. a fine jam is the goal.
an organizer might be:
- able to work well with others in a casual mode (mandatory)
- enthusiastic about jamming, and having the jam work well (this is also a key ingredient)
- outgoing, and eager to be in the thick of things, or maybe
- shy, and eager to help things run smoothly from behind the scenes
- compulsive organizers, all too aware of benefits of good planning, or maybe
- compulsive anarchists, all too aware of benefits of spirit and improvisation
- etc, etc...
- any combination of the above, or anywhere in between.:-)
What the Organizers Do...
In Principle
i see jam organizers as coordinators, essentially.
jam organizers:
- coordinate the practical arrangements
- coordinate planning of the group activities, in "town meetings"
- are the default go-to guys for exceptional and emergency situations
jam organizers are visible, and expected to try to be available to help keep the jam running smoothly. they are not superhuman, and not expected to be able to handle every situation, but to know who to talk to about handling it.
i suppose the organizers could be seen as leading, but they can't actually arrange for dances to happen. they do their job best when they help the group find and plan for what it needs to do, rather than acting like tour guides and providing activities. in this way, the organizers are responsible for fostering communication and decision within the group, maybe helping to guide the choices just as any experienced jammer might.
Phases
the specific things the organizers do fall into phases:
Preparations
facilities arrangements
- Secure the space - traditionally, with Claymont Court Seminars.
policy
- attendance limits:
- minimum and maximum number of jammers
- age sensitivities:
- at what age is chaperon required?
- how are the charges varied by age, eg, children at a discount?
- registration prices and schedule
- ramping of charges to incur cost of late registration and drop-in on those doing so
- granularity - eg, how are partial days charged? is it per-meal/sleep, or per day? how much
outreach
communications and guidance
- the respective (spring and fall) jam pages need to be adjusted with correct dates, organizer names and contact info, and so forth as the info becomes available. generally, we make the new pages as copies of that of the previous year, adapting the schedules and costs accordingly. it's crucial to mark the old pages as obsolete, so people don't mistakenly use them, eg send the registration to last years registrar (yikes - yes, it's happened, where the previous registrar had moved and the registration got lost in limbo).
- some shared parts of the website need to be adjusted to track who's responsible for what job, eg Jam Rides Coordination
jam publicity - not so much selling it, but getting the word out to those that would like to know about it
commercial ads - CQ, maybe other dance magazines
grass roots:
post to ci-related mailing lists
we need to be careful about this, to avoid going beyond merely providing useful information and exceeding to the point that we're spamming. for this reason, the central outreach needs to be considered and coordinated.
engage people to engage others. for example, in grass-roots outreach posts, include a message like this:
We ask that those fond of the jam help get the word out about it. Get in touch w/friends that you'd like to see there, and encourage them to get out the word, as well. The best kind of publicity is personal, because it leads to a jam that's personal. (There's plenty enough commerce in the world, already.)
among the leads to connect with are those people in relevant regions in the contact quarterly's "contacts" section
when contacting those people, ask them to forward our invitation to their local jammers, and also to see if there's a regional "dance activities" mailing list (which many regions have - there's one for dc, one for richmond, etc) and post there, if they feel it's appropriate. we need to resolve a good time or times to suggest such submissions.
local jam "ambassadors" - contact central people at jams in relevant regions (eastern seaboard, mid-northeast, etc) to convey invitations
web site/guides
there is too much critical, basic information missing from or unclear on the web site - things like registration schedules, guidance about what to bring and expect, and generally the fundamental information that a jammer needs when attending or considering attending. i'm hoping this jam organizer guide is one bit that may help us rectify the situation.
attendee (jammer) coordination
- preregistration
- work study
- rides
- special provisions (diet, sleeping, children, disabilities)
jam facilitation
- jam physical setup
- arrive early
- prepare for jammer arrival:
- floor-plan/beds-sign-up chart
- daily-schedule to be filled in w/activities as we go
- kitchen chores sign-up sheets
- registration table/prep
- what else??
- confer w/claymont liaisons
Beginning
help arriving jammers register for jam, sleeping space, kitchen chores
opening circle - help jammers launch into this intensive dancing activity.
my main concern here is to directing people's attention to the question of what they can do to foster a jam they will enjoy. for many (but probably not all), that involves making a good space for dancing. just considering the question - in the context that it's not going to be served up to them in a pretty package, they're partly responsible for making it happen - may be a crucial part of getting the group intelligence engaged in making a good jam.
some questions i like along these lines:
- jammer aims and concerns - anything you want to start in motion now?
- what kind of journey do you tend to have, how would you like it to be different, how the same?
- or, what challenges would you like to have, and what comforts?
there's another important concern, which is establishing a receptive space, so that everyone feels they can join in and participate as they would wish.
it may be good to propose concerned people forming "project" groups to take care of particular items, like:
- the performances/boogie night
- contact improv orientation and classes for the unfamiliar
- providing a helping hand/ear to those feeling lost in one way or another
- maintenance oversight, eg kitchen duty/eating areas
not only can these groups contribute to the smooth running of the jam, they can provide easy opportunities for real, reliable involvement.
Middle
want to support a balance of open dancing, structured/lead dancing, and other activities for people to do to replenish from and/or inform dancing. too little "other" activities and people are prone to isolation when they're resting/replenishing. too many "other" activities and it consumes energy that would go to dancing. too many people have popped into the barn yearning to dance only to find it empty, because all their prospective partners were at the bonfire, some wishing they could expect to find people at the barn because they'd rather be dancing...
conduct "town" meetings
- convey crucial information, answer questions
- welcome incremental arrivals
- shepherd town issues, as they arise
- recruit suggestions and volunteers for jam activities
coordinate task volunteers
- work study folks
- kitchen duty folks (generally, by coordinating with kitchen-shepherd work study person)
answer questions and look out for those who need morale support
this last item is as important as anything else, but must be conducted with the understanding that organizers are not servants, tour guides, therapists, or parents. they're concerned jammers, trying to look out for situations that need attention and directing whatever resources the group has to it. organizers are not obligated to handle everything, but they should be looking to provide that little extra that may be necessary to keep things running well. hopefully, other jammers are doing so as well.
field exceptional situations - injuries and other emergencies
End
- accounting and payment meeting with claymont/kit - often saturday morning or afternoon
- closing circle: acknowledge ending, and starting whatever's next.
- make space for closing business
- make space for closing comments - "is there anything you want to mention about your journey?"
- jam communications wrap-up
- address lists to attendees
- feedback surveys
- name (optional)
- how was your jam?
- what worked?
- what didn't work?
- suggestions?
Jam Followup
this needs to be filled in, with things like:
- collate and dispatch jammer address list to jammers
- collate surveys
- record disposition on web site:
- attendance
- finances?
- outstanding issues
- debrief
- notes and hints to next jam's organizers
| [1] | The people in charge of Claymont Court for the past several years are contact improvisers. Lawton was part of the DC jam for several years before returning to Claymont, and Kit was part of the North Carolina - triangle area? - jam. |
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