Thread: Question about etiquette for setting up workshops

Do you think it's poor etiquette for out-of-town dance instructors to setup their own workshops, rather than having a local sponsor invite and host them? I'm asking because someone has done that here. There are several sponsors in our community who regularly host workshops, but I don't recall any that were setup by outside instructors themselves without a local sponsor. Aside from it possibly not being the best way to go about it (no local support), would anyone consider this to be a rule-breaker?

I don't see anything wrong with it.

Of course there are the normal considerations like not over-scheduling other events, but those apply to anyone scheduling an event, whether with a local sponsor or not.

Why wouldn't it be OK?

I don't see anything wrong with it. The out-of-town instructor is creating her own income-earning opportunities rather than leaving her fate in the hands of other people who might not be interested in her.

It may be the best way for someone new to the workshop circuit to build people's awareness of her. Sponsors usually aren't very interested in hosting unknowns.

Of course, if possible, the out-of-town instructor should try to schedule her event at a time that doesn't conflict with things being scheduled by the local instructors.

I agree- sounds ethical to me.. just works out best for ALL parties to avoid as many scheduling conflicts as possible. :)

Thanks, Sedonia.

Originally Posted by da Sage

Why wouldn't it be OK?

That's my perception from how workshops are typically setup here (Cleveland, OH), and I'm curious if it's the norm in other areas.

Thanks, Shira, I see your point.

Thanks, Shiraz.

Agree with the above. It is not poor etiquette but conflicts with locally-scheduled events are more likely unless the out-of-towner coordinates with a knowledgable in-towner.

Scheduling conflicts aside, I guess I'm puzzled why the out-of-town instructor thinks it would be a good idea to teach in a place where no one wants to sponsor her. There's "building your brand" and then there's "gambling that someone will show up." Where I've lived, it has been common for sponsors to have a big workshop or two a year and then a few smaller ones in between to highlight second-tier and up-and-coming teachers. The main reason people wouldn't offer to sponsor someone in those latter categories is because they didn't think there would be enough interest to make it a financially good choice, or they had recently sponsored that particular teacher, and they were looking to host different dancers now.

My first impression is that this seems like a situation where OOTI has friends/relatives in the area and was planning to be in town anyway, or s/he has a really enthusiastic fan in the local community and they are engineering an opportunity for them to work together. From a dance standpoint, I don't think it's unethical, just a tad peculiar. OTOH, if the whole thing is an elaborate ruse to turn a family visit into a deductible business trip or to shift the expense of one student's private lesson onto the local dance community, then that's a little iffy.

I can see it in a larger city, but in my small community and the cities around it, it would be considered rude to not include the locals in the planning stage.

I don't see anything wrong with it, either. Perhaps the instructor wants to minimize dance community rivalries/conflicts by not associating with any one party?

Are you referring to the gal from PA who is contacting EVERY dance studio across the country trying to put together a tour?

Are you referring to the gal from PA who is contacting EVERY dance studio across the country trying to put together a tour?

See..that sounds very kosher to me.

Originally Posted by anala

I can see it in a larger city, but in my small community and the cities around it, it would be considered rude to not include the locals in the planning stage.

This response on the part of the locals puzzles me a bit.

To me, it kinda borders on the "a teacher/performer new to town must (somehow) get permission from the powers that be (whoever they are) to hang out his/her shingle" mindset.

I think it just good business sense to study a workshop market one is considering entering: what events fall regularly when, what topics have been covered over the past year or are scheduled within the next 6 months, etc and ad nauseum.

Maybe I just don't notice who/what group sponsors workshops but other people do and it is important to them . . . perhaps especially if the workshop instructor is unknown?

Deborah

There was a question about that here last year when an international instructor/dancer/performer was coming to town and there was another workshop the same weekend. It caused a ruckus with some of the locals here but I believe it all worked out in the end.

Originally Posted by gretchendances

Are you referring to the gal from PA who is contacting EVERY dance studio across the country trying to put together a tour?

We get these emails frequently, too. But the fact is that if we don't know about someone we are not going to sponsor a workshop featuring them. Not a question of etiquette but of business practice. We put our creditability on the line when we have a teacher in. We want our students to be able to expect a good workshop when they buy one from us.

A couple of out-of-towners have rented our studio for workshops with teachers that we approved of, but it turned into a bust for them because they didn't pay attention to what was going on locally and didn't listen when we told them. It turned out that at least one of them was expecting to fill her workshop with our students. Ahem, our students were already attending the other events!

I was contacted by a dancer asking to not only set up workshops but did I know of any gigs to set her up in. Seriously?

Originally Posted by anala

I can see it in a larger city, but in my small community and the cities around it, it would be considered rude to not include the locals in the planning stage.

Same here. It feels to me like someone coming to your house uninvited and then ignoring you completely. Or like someone throwing a party in your house and not even inviting you.

Thanks, Tourbeau - I believe this is a situation where the OOTI is taking a gamble and hoping people will show up. Since they haven't targeted only this area I don't believe it's anything shady, there are lots of cities listed on their site. But it seemed strange to me that they wouldn't want to at least reach out to anyone here and try to build some interest first. They booked the studio where I teach, otherwise maybe I wouldn't be quite as worked up about it.

Originally Posted by haleemachandani

But it seemed strange to me that they wouldn't want to at least reach out to anyone here and try to build some interest first.

Although my earlier post defended the concept of someone sponsoring herself, I actually do agree with you that it's a better idea for an instructor to try contacting the locals when she's planning something.

I don't think it's bad etiquette to sponsor oneself, but I think the out-of-town instructor would enjoy a more successful event if she did some relationship-building with local teachers and inspired them to recommend her event to their students.

And who knows, if she had contacted local teachers in a relationship-building effort, maybe one of them would have come forward with an offer to sponsor the event.

I don't think it's shady or unethical, but it seems ill-advised from a business standpoint.