Thread: do you dance outside??

and if you do do you have any requirements for the footing, like if its gravel, dirt, ashfault? how would you dance on it if you dance in bare feet of dance slippers?

First...I'd invest in shoes. You can find decorated shoes (not dance shoes) that are terrific for outdoor gigs.
I have some teaching shoes (the Pedini) that were too worn for the studio, so I saved them for some outdoor gigs...
I don't dance on gravel ever, dirt is also a no-no. Too dangerous. Grass is fine, cement or ashphalt and I modify the choreography to make sure that I and/or my dancers will be SAFE!!!
Outdoors and bare feet is a disaster waiting to happen.
Gia

I can tell you some desert horror stories...get some shoes!

Get shoes. Yearly gig at the Grounds for Sculpture (NJ) sculpture garden with pebble size stones and dancing on the drum kit's carpet did not work. There are a few flagstones to which I gravitate but they are islands in a sea of small stones.

I custom ordered shoes from Elegance Shoes. You can order heel height (I wear the 1.5" square heel shoes for this out door engagement), heel shape, and choice of fabric (from multi glitter to snake print). Super comfortable.

Also, as you know, indoor gigs in Canada in the winter time are nasty b/c of the snow shoes draggin' the dirt and water inside. I made the mistake of dancing during the winter w/o shoes and I may as well have danced outside bare foot.

Also asphalt at the outdoor Lebanese Festival necessitates use of shoes.

There are nice dance shoes to compliment your costumes and they don't have to be high-heeled things.

I always use hermes sandals for outdoors. If I have to match them with a cabaret costume I will use gold or silver ribbon for the laces. I would stay away from heels because of the unevenness of surfaces--you don't want any twisted ankles or heels sinking into soft ground. Whatever shoe you choose, make sure it has a semi-firm leather or faux-leather sole. If its too soft (like a ballet slipper) it won't protect against sharp stones, shards of glass, et cetera. If its too firm it will be slick and unyeilding and may make you more prone to slip and fall.
I don't have a problem with gravel or dirt--I say watch out for grass--it can be VERY slippery even when its dry. All outdoor surfaces tend to be uneven, so prepare for that and be extra vigilent throughout your show with things like spins and travelling steps. You also have to contend with wind/breezes which can make veil work problematic at best.

Shoes shoes shoes. Dance slippers also work. Personally, I HATE dancing outside unless it's on a performance stage, and even this can be a drag b/c of wind and weather factors. I have found that most belly grams booked in the summer often take place on someone's deck, lawn or pool--and they never think to mention it when they book you so be sure to ask and keep a pair of slippers in your bag just in case.

You could bring your own rug, but it severely limits what you can do...

if you can have a say at all in the matter, insist on having a decent surface to dance on. this is one of my big pet peeves. nobody would ever expect a flamenco, ballroom or ballet dancer to give a demonstration of their dance out in the middle of their yard. dancers are dancers and have the same needs, and I think it's a good thing to point this out gently and politely to the people that hire you.

I'm remembering a party I did with two other dancers, where we were led out of the spacious house onto a very lovely large, level and clean outdoor deck... to some blankets that they'd set out on the grass, on a slope. come ON. the deck would have been perfect. grass? bad. slope? worse. blanket? impossible. the three together? what were they thinking we do? and don't get me started about how their sound system didn't work so we had to back somebody's truck out onto the grass and use the stereo with the truck doors open...

so, that said - when talking to your person about your set, be sure to ask them where you'll be expected to perform, and if it's grass/gravel/pavement, ask if there are any other options - because there might be!

sometimes there are no other options, and if you want to dance at the event, you have to make do. NEVER dance barefoot. it's just not safe. my outdoor shoe of choice is a hermes sandal that I take to the shoe repair guy and have him sew a leather half sole onto (essentially replacing the sueded surface under the toes/ball of foot with a more sturdy material).

if the surface is clean and flat but just hard (like concrete or asphalt) you can order ballroom shoes with a low or nearly flat heel and a street sole. I get my shoes from tina sargent in seattle at centerstage dance - she sells awesome ballroom shoes with a hundred different fabric options, tons of styles, several heel hights, and your choice of sole - totally customizable - and very, very affordable (under $70).

the other issues with dancing outside are wind and weather. be prepared for a breeze if you're doing veil, or have a backup set with no veil. if it's hot out, the surface you're dancing on can burn your feet.

About 95% of the places I dance at here are outdoors. everything from the street surface to concrete to gravel to grass to a theater stage with what felt like a fine grit sandpaper for a surface, you name it, I've probably danced on it.
Heremes sandels have been the most versital for me as far as working well on a wide varity surfaces. You can very easily replace the laces with ribbons or cording to match your costume if you want.
Something else that has worked well for me during our very short cold months were those cheap ballet style house slippers that pretty much any discount store carries. You have to do a little work to them, I cut off the bows and put ribbons I can tie around my ankle ballet slipper style on mine, some gals go all out and sequin and trim them. They work great on street and concrete surfaces with the added bonus a little extra padding under your foot and the non-skid on the bottom is enough to keep you from wiping out on a slippery flooring but not enough to grip the floor and cause you to twist a knee or ankle wrong.
I also have several pairs of shoes from a company called Nine-west. I found them at the local Shoe Pavillon outlet. They look like ballet slippers, only they have a rubber sole under the ball and heel portion of the shoe. The center arch area is just heavy leather. They are fantastic for outdoors.
Hope that helps some!

If it is a home, ask if they have a dog! If so make sure you watch for dog holes! Twisting your ankle on those are no fun.
Ask if you will be outside. If so have a frank talk about exactly what you will be dancing on. Just tell the person hiring, "I need to be prepared with proper foot wear." Usually the talk can progress into what surface.
People who hire you are not dancers and frankly don't think about it in the same way we do. We are to arrive and cause "magic" ..g.: (OK we do, just no well in dirt, gravel, and dog holes!). I have arrived and found that I am to dance for 20 minutes in a 3 foot space between a stove and frig!..c::
I now talk about what i need "To give YOU a really good show".
That being said, I enjoy summer dancing outside, it is usually a pretty laid back crowd

You have to be careful on grass too as grass can hide holes.
Wear shoes.

Originally Posted by patrisha

You have to be careful on grass too as grass can hide holes.
Wear shoes.

and wet grass ( of which we have a lot) is a nightmare!

I definitely require a firm, even surface to perform on, and grass just doesn't qualify as that for me. I guess maybe if you were on a golf course or something, but the yards I've been on are lumpy and uneven, and can hide gopher holes, doggie doo and insects. I've had a couple of gigs where the person wanted me to perform on the grass, but when I explained why it's not safe, they were able to move me onto a deck, patio or other hard surface.

I have no problem with dancing outside but I do require a level surface. I almost always wear shoes when I perform so that's just basic for me, either split sole jazz shoes or hermes sandals for outdoors... I don't dress cabaret to perform outside either, I wear something more 'dance casual' either a 7meter set from Nourhan or jazz pants with a gypsy top and a hip scarf. Few outside functions are formal occasions and I'll not be putting my $200 Desert Jewels at risk much less anything else! At least I can throw my 7 meter set in the genle cycle if someone at the bbq spills their Heineken on me, but those beads & sequins are nigh impossible to clean when stained!

Have we mentionned veils yet? Very tricky outside, do not plan a veil choreo. Veil impro is fine because if you get strong wind you can adjust your dance to the circumstances or drop the veil entirely.

People here love garden parties, so I have danced outside many times. I always wear slippers with rubber soles.
Depending on where you are and what time of the day it is, remember to put on sunscreen or something to keep of the mosquitos!

MEISSOUN

I've seldom if ever had a serious problem with surfaces other than at community events, and I think it's generally because for proper paid gigs the way we tend to frame it is "I will require". Seriously, if someone says "we want you dance on gravel" I'd say "that's not going to work for me." But having said that, most people I've found are very realistic about performance space. Even hen parties where they're all outside on the back lawn (Y halo thar NZ), they will say things like "you could dance on the deck or on the lawn, whatever is best for you."

we only dance barefoot, so i always ask about venue surfice when booking.
if there are options, we pick.if no good options, bring a rug.

wow this is a good thread. the reson I asked this is that I have been asked to dance at a charity event at one of the local schools. It Relay for life, to raise money for cancer ( a great cuase happy to be a part of it) so its an outdoor event. there will be a stage however as I was added later I was not schedualed on the stage, the lady organizing the event firstly said that i could fit inbetween sets, but for what ever reason that didn't work ( between set they are moving equipment on and off the stage) so her solution was to have me dance to the side of the stage. I already told her I will not dance on gravel or dirt or any uneven ground ( for all the reasons mentioned above). howwever i don't think she is getting the point.
I totally agree with what Elisagamel "noone would ever expect a flamenco, ballroom, or ballet dancer to give a demonstration of there dance in the middle of there yard"

oh ya, when she emailed me to tell me i would be dancing to the side of the stage I immediatly responded with " whats the ground like there" she then relied " i thinks it packed earth or dirt i can't remember"
if she thinks i am going to dance around in the dirt shes crazy. i would like to see here put on all her best fancyiest cloths and go dance around in the Dirt.
I really want to take part in this event but if i am not able to have a decend place to dance, I may have to back out. wich i would rather not do. Yikes.

Ummm, pretty sure Flamenco is a descendant of Middle Eastern dance from when the Moors ruled what is now Spain... ask her if she would expect a ballroom dancer or Flamenco dancer to dance on packed earth then inform her of those roots for Flamenco or Andalusion dance... Anyone else know if I'm remembering this correctly?
Also, prepare an invoice for what you would normally charge to perform and write "donation" in the 'balance due' column, then ask for a reciept for your taxes (forces her to deal with the invoice rather than just glance at it...) it's amazing how putting a price on your performance can inspire organizers to value you and your performance... Worth trying, besides, it makes for nice, neat accounting come tax time! Good luck!
Rach

I once danced for Relay for Life, and it was outdoors, at night, on wet grass. That almost ended badly!

I've also danced outdoors at different functions; once I had to dance on a driveway! Good thing my feet were already Hawai'i-proof!

After reading about the specifics of your situation, I would say you need to put your foot down and insist that you dance on the stage. Aside from the surface issues, you need to consider that people WILL NOT see you if you're dancing next to the stage. What are you, sloppy seconds? Why shouldn't you get the courtesy and considerations being extended to other performers? Who asked you to perform, the event organizers? If so, they should be prepared to accomodate you, last minute or not. It takes all of 5 minutes to strike band equipment to create enough room for a solo dancer. You need to be polite but firm and simply say that for a number of reasons, performing on the ground in front of the stage is not an option. Charity or not, if you aren't going to be respected and valued as a contributer, you don't need to participate.

My troupe and I are dancing at Relay for Life this year, and I've already met with the organizers to scout the location for an appropriate spot. They did originally think we would perform on the grass, but I asked for and was given a large rectangular space of blacktop right next to the track. I would not have danced on the grass or allowed my troupe to, as I don't feel it's a safe surface to dance on.

I have to agree with nayastrance - you're donating your performance, so in return you should be treated with respect and gratitude by the organizers. Sometimes for a paid gig, you have to deal with sub-par conditions as part of doing business. But if you're donating your time, you should be given as many concessions as are logistically possible. I'd be firm with the organizer and say, "You know, it seems like there's really not time or space for my performance after all, so I'd be happy to drop out of the lineup. I'd like to participate, but there's minimum conditions that need to be met in order for me to give a good performance that the audience will enjoy watching".

A couple of years ago, I was asked to perform at a different Relay for Life, and was told there would be a stage, DJ, etc. When I got there, the "stage" was 4 card tables lashed together with bungee cords (which I of course refused to step foot on as soon as I saw it), and the DJ had already left. My husband had to drive my boombox over, and they wound up putting me inside the school because there was no place to plug it in. There was hardly anyone in there, so the whole thing was a total bust. When I was called for this upcoming Relay, I told them the story and made it clear that they needed to be honest with me about what the conditions would be, and stick to it or the troupe and I would leave the venue without performing.

Thanks so much everyone for all you input. I talked to the lady finally today. after sending her an email saying I will not dance in dirt!!!! she called me this morning, her first suggestion was to put down a tarp!!!! yikes can you imagine dancing on a tarp, I envision myself lying there tangled up in it after a turn or a chase. or a wind coming up and sweeping it away. anyways we finally worked it out we will lay out some folding matt from the gym and that should be a workable space. I used to teach gymnastics at the gym and am very familiar with the matts.

I love Relay for Life, don't get me wrong. I have been a relay participant and team member for several years. BUT..as a performer, the gig is just a bust. My troupe has held a hafli fundraiser and made a much more significant contribution than a 15 minute set ever would. We donate 10% of our proceeds from the door, plus hold a raffle. Last year we raised $200. If you really want to make a difference, that's the way to go.
In fact, all of our haflis raise money for local organizations and my student showcases cost 1 non-perishable food item for admission. As dancers, we can always do more for our communities when we organize events.