Thread: Troupe leaders: how is your troupe formed?

Is it a beginner or semi-pro level?
Is it a democracy or dictatorship?
Do you charge, is it set up like a class, or just for fun?

I'm forming one and I want to do it right from the start, I've already fumbled and run into problems :( Any feedback greatly appreciated! You can pm me or I can call you too if its easier

Democracy that has moprhed into a dictatorship. Much better now. Dues collected once a month to defray some of the studio rent. All fees put into a collective pot for group purchases (education is the priority).

A repertory group set up as a class (I don't call it a troupe, but most people would). Students must be concurrently enrolled in the advanced choreography class -- so the performing members are dancing twice per week, learning the choreo in one class and keeping a collection of choreos polished for performance in the second class. They get a discount on the second class, but they do pay (for my time, the studio time, etc).

I actually find that I spend MORE hours per week managing the performing group than teaching a regular class, I wouldn't be able to do it on a volunteer basis.

Mine is a student troupe; I have a wonderful group of 12 ladies who are so dedicated and passionate about the dance, I just could not be any prouder of them. I wouldn't call them beginner - more like an intermediate level. They do not do paid gigs, just BD shows and the occasional carefully chosen community event where other amateur performers are included. Costuming requirements are very minimal, as I didn't want anyone to not have the option of joining for financial reasons.

I actually volunteer my time for the troupe, although any troupe member has to be enrolled in my Level 2 class to be a member. I chose not to run it as a paid class, because in case things went sour with drama I didn't want to be tempted to keep it going just because I needed the income. One of the park & recs where I teach lets us use the space for free, so there's no out of pocket cost for me other than my time.

All members have to sign a 3 page troupe code of conduct upon joining. The troupe is what I call a "benevolent dictatorship"; in other words, I'm more than happy to discuss anything, as long as it's clear that I as director have the final say on all troupe matters. There has only been one time in the over two years I've had the troupe that there's been an issue, and that member quit before I tossed her out.

well, i've just restarted the whooole shebang. and i will be having gasp two troupes

- a student troupe. Invitation only. they can invite themselves but i get to say yes or no. pure dicatorship. i recruit from my intermediate and advanced classes. they have some input on costuming but other than me, me's the boss. i'll try anyway.

- a professional troupe. Invitation only. dictator (me) plus lieutenants (queenie, khalida, razia). and probably i'll allow "some" input from the other pro's also, but basically i decide on the choreographies, the costuming, the rehearsal dates

i've tried it differently (semi-democracy) and that really DID NOT work.
i have not gone the audition route, as i felt it a waste of time, all the people i'm working with and want to work with right now are people i KNOW. i would consider auditioning if someone that i dont know yet would apply. but in general new students i would prefer to take my regular classes for a while and other pro's i'd like to get to know a little rather than just seeing them dance.

right now i'm running both as a temporary project, but both might continue after the show we are going to be working towards has ended. the student troupe probably will be an ongoing thing, while the pro-troupe will be reformed (with possibly new dancers) for each new show... so we work with a small group towards a specific goal.

here's how i announced it

Nicole of Creativity & Dance asbl and Artemisia, director of dance school (e)motion are presenting the theatershow "An Evening with ... Bozenka" on saturyday 23nd october in theater Zinnema in Brussels. This will be the highlight of a three day workshop intensive with Superstar Bozenka (Miami) on 22-23-24 october in Leuven.

For this show Artemisia is currently starting work on two performance projects, as the show will not only feature a few selected top level soloists but also a "supporting cast":

- The A-Team. Artemisia will start a new student troupe. Her advanced students will rehearse on thursday nights from april-june 2010 and on additional dates throughout the summer. They will prepare 2 dances for the show, choreographed by Artemisia. (enrollment fee 125€).

- The RaksPro-Team. a group of professional dancers who will rehearse every saturday (all day) in july, and a few more saturdays in august, september, october. They will perform 4 choreographies in the show, choreographed by the Raks-team: Razia, Artemisia, Khalida, and Queenie. (enrollment fee 200€).

Both teams are invitation/audition only. Attendance of rehearsals will be strictly mandatory and will need to be your priority. Full rehearsal shedule available on request. Contact Artemisia (emotionvzw@gmail.com) if you are interested in joining either team so we can further discuss this. We can only accept a limited number of participants.

I was asking the same kinds of questions a couple of years ago...

Here's what we ended up with:

Benign dictatorship, with myself as director, and two other co-directors. But we do allow a huge amount of input from everyone, we develop our choreographies as a group and have (thus far) done quite well. We aren't yet collecting dues as we're small enough not to need to rent space, but everyone understands that if/as we grow, dues could become necessary. New applicants must be approved unanimously by existing membership. We are a "community" troupe, open to dancers of intermediate and above level. We require a certain level of commitment to be a member.

I'm still learning all this, and my Bhuz sisters REALLY helped when I was asking the same questions - VERY good luck to you and your troupe!

You need a strong leader. Set up the ground rules asap and in writing. Like all troupe members must be at so many practices in order to perform. Troupe members must have such and such for costuming/props etc.

Have STRONG boundaries and stick by them. It's important for everyone to have input but there are always those who seek drama and people who are pushy with their own agendas. If YOUR vision is clear then they can decide if it works with them. I think a big mistake would be trying to be all things for all the people...if you get my drift.

So....to sum things up
1. Your vision and goals (why do you want a troupe and what do you want to do with it?)
2. Written Troupe rules/"guidelines"
3. What people are expected to have for costuming/props etc and is it troupe property or do they need it individually. I would want to know upfront how much $$$ I would need to come up with before taking part of the troupe.

Originally Posted by laura 2

The troupe is what I call a "benevolent dictatorship"; in other words, I'm more than happy to discuss anything, as long as it's clear that I as director have the final say on all troupe matters. There has only been one time in the over two years I've had the troupe that there's been an issue, and that member quit before I tossed her out.

This is set up like the troupe i'm in now. I'm a member but I always look to our Queen ..g.: for the final say. It's her baby...her love and her creation. We have mutual respect among the three members but we also know and respect the hierarchy. I really love it because ATS isn't my first love so I wouldn't spend the time organizing things like she does. I dance with them because I like the community and really enjoy their company.

This troupe was much larger but a few of the members had a very different vision. They have since created their own group and are dancing and happy doing a different style of things.

Q: Is it a beginner or semi-pro level?

I'd say the dancers I've pulled together are fairly advanced in skill level, with a longer term goal of the troupe becoming a professional level entity.


Q: Is it a democracy or dictatorship?

Dictatorship, but I like to think of it as a benevolent dictatorship. Everyone gets to give their input, but in the end I have final say.


Q: Do you charge, is it set up like a class, or just for fun?

We have troupe dues that we put in a special troupe account, which is used for troupe expenses. If someone leaves they don't get their money back, it is their investment in the troupe.

We work very hard in practice and whomever is bringing their particular choreography to the table teaches it, like they would in a class. We give each other feedback. It is fun too, but fun via dancing together and working to bring to life our creative visions, not just sitting around and jawing or screwing off, there isn't time for that in practice.

--I guess I should also note, I wrote up a troupe contract with detailed expectations that everybody in the troupe signs indicating they know what is expected of them as a member of my troupe.

I started the troupe by holding auditions. We are still just at the beginning, newly formed, but so far so good.

Sending you an e-mail because I can't get the PM to work.

What you do will really depend on what your goals are. There are all kinds of successful troupes.

Is it a beginner or semi-pro level?
We have two groups, one semi-to-pro level, one adv.beginner-to-semi level. The long-term goal of the first one is professional excellence. The goal of the second is good dancing by good dancers with lives outside the studio.

Democracy or dictatorship? Dictatorship. All suggestions are considered BUT the company vision and course is ultimately determined by the Director. And this is in the written contract.

Dictatorship is not for wimps. Not only do you need a clear vision of your own but you need to keep your strong-willed, talented dancers happily convinced that your direction is the right one. Right now we're working on a way to encourage good dancers who don't see things our way to withdraw before they implode. We're not trying to run a cult but some folks hang on 'for as long as they can stand it' which means drama with the inevitable exit. I think having a group with performance opportunities tends to keep folks 'hanging on' way past the point that it starts hurting.

Do you charge, is it set up like a class, or just for fun? All members are studio students. Their troupe fees cost them less than the fee for two classes and entitles them to attend twenty or so classes a WEEK (beg, adv.beginner and intermediate levels). Then there are weekly rehearsals on top of that. We provide most of the costumes: members are out of pocket for their shoes, their makeup and their jewelry. We provide a LOT of training for their money so that a dancer can leave at any time and walk away with all that she has paid for, even if she never gets to the paying-gig level. This, I think, is an important ethical aspect of a Dictatorship.

I'm not a leader, but I'm a member of two troupes, and our systems are very similar to the others described here.

One is by audition or invitation only. With the other-a newly formed troupe-everyone had to audition.

They are not beginner level troupes, but I would not describe them as pro. We are required to also be registered in intermediate/advanced level classes, in addition to troupe rehearsals, so I guess I'd say the level is intermediate to advanced student level. Some members, though, also teach and/or do occasional, paid, solo gigs, so I guess they are semi-pros. Three members of each troupe also dance with another troupe, as well. (Two of us dance in the same raqs sharqi style troupe and tribal fusion style troupe.)

The troupes are dictatorships, but the dictators listen to input from members and sometimes seek it.

In one troupe, we pay for our rehearsal time just the same as class time. It is right after class in the same studio. We purchase troupe costumes, but we are expected to sell them back to new members, should we leave the troupe. We also rehearse at each other's homes, and we occasionally book additional studio time on our own (i.e. without our instructor/director attending), when we need the space for extra rehearsals (e.g. for raqs assaya). With the other troupe, we attend one class or more per week (many attend two or three classes, but I don't because of my commitments to the other troupe), and we rehearse every second week on a separate day. These are definitely rehearsals and not classes, although we sometimes have additional choreography workshops on the alternating weeks to learn specific choreographies. We pay a monthly troupe fee for studio rental, etc. We pay separately for choreography workshops (usually at a rate similar to the class rate--i.e. a three-hour workshop will be a similar cost to three hours of classes). We decided as a group that any fees earned by the troupe go back into the troup fund to help offset our expenses. We buy/make most of our own costumes, although in specific instances, our leader may lend us pieces that she keeps for particular choreographies. We also do a lot of sharing, currently, as it's a newly-formed troupe, and some of us have more pieces than others.

The troupe I am in has 3 divisions - one is the pro-level troupe, the other 2 are advanced/semi pro, one more classic amcab the other more fusion inspired. Benevolent dictatorship, as someone above mentioned, it how it works - we have the leader and a choreographer, and then we have a piece where everyone gets to put in their say. We pay monthly to defray the cost of the studio, and every year we sign a 9 month contract (And take winter off, due to weather and travel constraints).

A couple of additional points to consider:

In one troupe, members are encouraged to develop solo pieces, in addition to the troupe choreography.

In the other troupe, some members are "apprentice" members. They haven't been studying the movements for as long, perhaps, and aren't as familiar with the cues and combos and the choreos we learned previously as "intermediate/advanced" students. So, when we are invited to perform, the director decides how many and who will go. It's understood up front that not everyone will necessarily do every performance, and that some will perform more than others.

Thanks everyone, I really, really appreciate your time.

For those who have an account for dues - is that a personal bank account set up for troupe monies?

Originally Posted by laura 2

All members have to sign a 3 page troupe code of conduct upon joining. The troupe is what I call a "benevolent dictatorship"; in other words, I'm more than happy to discuss anything, as long as it's clear that I as director have the final say on all troupe matters. There has only been one time in the over two years I've had the troupe that there's been an issue, and that member quit before I tossed her out.

I'd be interested in seeing your agreement if you'd be willing to share it. I have a 1 page one (very basic) that I have had my members sign in the past. But now that I've moved I am thinking of revising it ALLOT and making things more clear :)

Mina

Originally Posted by desertroses

I'd be interested in seeing your agreement if you'd be willing to share it. I have a 1 page one (very basic) that I have had my members sign in the past. But now that I've moved I am thinking of revising it ALLOT and making things more clear :)

Mina

Sure thing - just shoot me an email at galateadancer AT gmail DOT com, and I'll be happy to send it over.

Originally Posted by laura 2

Mine is a student troupe; I wouldn't call them beginner - more like an intermediate level. They do not do paid gigs, just BD shows and the occasional carefully chosen community event where other amateur performers are included. Costuming requirements are very minimal, as I didn't want anyone to not have the option of joining for financial reasons.

All members have to sign a 3 page troupe code of conduct upon joining. The troupe is what I call a "benevolent dictatorship"; in other words, I'm more than happy to discuss anything, as long as it's clear that I as director have the final say on all troupe matters. There has only been one time in the over two years I've had the troupe that there's been an issue, and that member quit before I tossed her out.

Laura 2's description is very similar to the small group I have right now, except that my "troupe" really is simply those students in a 10-week class who decided to stay an extra 30-40 minutes each week to polish up a three-minute choreo for performance at my dance festival. It is not on-going. The students range from low- to high-intermediate.

In the two-page "agreement" each student signed, I described very clearly the expectations for home practice, the potential for rehearsals outside class time, costuming requirements (dark bottoms and tops, colorful hip scarf + coordinating veil) and a code of conduct. The wording is friendly but firm. I used words such as "will" or "shall" to indicate absolutes, etc.

I would never attempt to have a group of folks work together in this way without a concrete agreement in place. Even if I was working with friends, I'd want some sort of written agreement in place so we would all are sure where we stand on basic issues, expectations, etc.

Deborah