Substituting for another dancer?

Yshka

New member
Dear everyone,

I'm a little torn over something and need some advice. If another dancer asks you to substitute for one of her gigs, what information would you want from her?

If you get a gig and know you are not going to be able to do it, would you leave out asking questions and confirm only price and the location, then look for a replacement dancer and let her find out the rest, or would you ask what needs to be asked and THEN look for a replacement, having her contact the people after things have been made clear just so they know she is replacing?

I'm kind of torn, since the first situation above it what I was told today by a dancer friend I dearly love. She did leave the possibility open to turn it down if what I'd find out was not what I want, even though I'd already have spoken to the people by then. She felt I was being difficult and whiney and got mad at me for asking questions, saying I should call the people to find out instead.

I'm starting to feel that maybe I am being difficult in asking questions and shouldn't have asked, but I also feel I am allowed to know these things before contacting people to tell them I 'might be' substituting. Maybe that's my mistake? Is it wrong to want to know what you are up for before you contact people who are hiring to ask what IMHO should have been asked in the first place? Or does that make me ungrateful and difficult?

Sorry for ranting, it's just that I am currently torn between on one hand, being very grateful to this dancer who has been very generous in giving me her gig, but on the other feeling bad about asking questions or wanting to know what I am getting myself into.:confused: Any advice is greatly appreciated!
 

Daimona

Moderator
I'm a little torn over something and need some advice. If another dancer asks you to substitute for one of her gigs, what information would you want from her?

You are certainly right to ask the questions of whatever you need to know before accepting a gig. Your safety comes first, whatever they pay you! And only you know what you need to know to prepare yourself and make the gig as good as possible.

If another dancer passes a gig on to me, I too would like to know the answer to certain questions (what kind of gig, practical things, agreements etc). If the dancer that passed the gig doesn't know the answer to all of these, I would have to contact the organizer.

If I get a gig and know I cannot do it, I ask for several of these questions - simply to know who I should pass it on to or recommend. I never arrange or confirm a price for other dancers (and my price would be irrelevant to tell as long as I'm not able to do it).
 

SidraK

New member
If the other dancer can't or won't provide the booking information to you, then she should be asking the venue to contact you, not you to contact the venue. Really, you aren't "subsituting" for her as you might for a class she regularly teaches. You are a dancer being hired to fill an obligation that she cannot, so I'd place a certain level of expectation on the employer.
 

Yshka

New member
Dear Daimona and Sidra, maybe I don't realise enough yet how things work in this area on the professional level, but I do feel I am allowed to expect somebody can inform me on a gig if they pass it on. The price is not the problem, as we work together a lot and have solid agreements on this with all the dancers we work with out of solidarity and not undercutting, but it's the additional info that worries me. I could certainly not pass a gig on myself if I didn't know what it was all about.

I did contact the organisers and get some info out of them, but I don't feel good about the way this was handled by the dancer handing me the gig. She is a very experienced dancer and as I understood they knew her from someplace she had danced before, but that does not make this particular event the same in terms of people, safety, etc.

I trust her to pieces and would in the end accept if it was that important to her, but myself, I am *extremely* sensitive to these type of things and do not like surprises when arriving at the site of a gig, just because things were not asked in the beginning. I just like to know where I stand from the off, but then again not being as experienced yet (she has been around performing a lot longer than I have) might have to do with it as well. These kind of situations make me feel very insecure, maybe partly because untill now I have never really developped the skills to go out and apply/sollicit for gigs by myself. It is like my personal feelings and standards are colliding massively with those of performing professionally.

I realise one can still get into iffy situations even if agreements and practical things have been talked over, but this seems just so logical to me I'm really having a hard time to understand why another dancer would not ask the same questions.
 
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Yshka

New member
Hmm, that might have been the case (I hope so). I just felt I had to get it off my chest and needed some input. Thank you so much for talking to me about this!:)
 
If you get a gig and know you are not going to be able to do it, would you leave out asking questions and confirm only price and the location, then look for a replacement dancer and let her find out the rest, or would you ask what needs to be asked and THEN look for a replacement, having her contact the people after things have been made clear just so they know she is replacing?

Definitely, 100%, no doubt - I would ask what needs to be asked and THEN look for a replacement.

Think of it from the client's point of view - they could wind up having to repeat the information to three or four different dancers before they find someone able to do the gig.

If I'm going to undertake to find a substitute, then I wouldn't expect the client to have to worry about it until they got a call from the substitute confirming the booking. If I'm not prepared to do the work of organizing the substitute, then I might as well decline completely and let them do their own ringing around.

(Edit: this is based on my experience as a flamenco dancer, maybe the etiquette in the belly dance world is different?)
 

walladah

New member
You have done well asking questions!

Sometimes those can save your time, reputation and money as well!

You might trust the other dancer, but she only deserves the trust if she answers all your questions or points out any problematic points in the cooperation with the event organisers.

If you do not have answers to your questions by the other dancer or the organisers and if your own requirements are not fulfilled, at least at this phase of negotiations (it might not be money only, it can be that you do not want to dance among clients' tables), you should consider declining the offer. But you do not need to worry unless they offer you the place under the saying "no lady, either you take it as it is, with our own conditions, or you leave it". Agreements that are of your liking are usually honoured, because people who do not know you, will not want to mess up with a stranger...

I wish you the best!
 
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