Dealing With Wobbly Stages

[maria_harlequin]

I just had a gig last night for a private party and I planned on dancing around the guests and the tables, but they had a stage set up. Of course, the lighting technician decided to light only the stage and in danger of dissapearing in the darkness, I did most of my dancing on stage.

It was terrible! The stage was hollow, carpeted, and I can literally feel it shaking underneath me and it totally threw my rhythm off. I ended up dancing gingerly through my numbers and I hope the guests didn't notice.

Have any of you performed on flimsy stages before? They should be banned!

 

[Kharis]

I just had a gig last night for a private party and I planned on dancing around the guests and the tables, but they had a stage set up. Of course, the lighting technician decided to light only the stage and in danger of dissapearing in the darkness, I did most of my dancing on stage.

It was terrible! The stage was hollow, carpeted, and I can literally feel it shaking underneath me and it totally threw my rhythm off. I ended up dancing gingerly through my numbers and I hope the guests didn't notice.

Have any of you performed on flimsy stages before? They should be banned!

Yes, many times. That's one thing you have absolutely no control of... the state of your venue. No matter how much someone says it ok, you can be assured there's something wrong with it somewhere.

 

[maria_harlequin]

Yes, many times. That's one thing you have absolutely no control of... the state of your venue. No matter how much someone says it ok, you can be assured there's something wrong with it somewhere.

I totally agree. Ahhh...the joy of gigs I guess. I once had a gig where they forgot to put me in the program and totally forgot about me. Not mention they also gave me a changing room that was filled with ONLY guys changing and undressing. Oh, the horror!

 

[alosha]

For Spring Fest, the stage slanted to one corner. It was SO hard to keep our circle in shape, as you tended to go downhill...

 

[Oona]

Well, our last performance, we had to dance in the middle of a road, a road with an adverse camber, and there was pig poop! One of the girls had to wash her shoes twice to get the poo off. :lol:

 

[PracticalDancer]

a double horror story for you

So flash back to -- say -- 2003 or so. I was to perform at a local children's museum doing two numbers, the first one a duet with my beloved teacher, the second MY_FIRST_EVER_SOLO!!! My teacher and I are the first to perform. I barely knew the choreo, but I so wanted to make her proud. We got out on the "stage" only to discover that it was a bunch of carpeted blocks smushed together (picture those cube style ottomans that you see for sale nowadays). There was NOTHING to secure them. E---, my teacher, had a bunch of pivots and arabesques in her choreo, and the first one just about sent me flying right into her.

By the time of my solo, I was a wreck. I think I hopped down on the main floor in desperation. I muddled through, somehow.

All I can say is, thank GOODNESS the audience was a bunch of two year olds!!!