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Dear Performers,

Here are details you’ll need for performing at CFCD.

📆 Request/Offer to Perform

We hire callers, bands, and sound engineers. To apply, email us. The homepage has a calendar at the bottom with TBD indicating available dates.

🗺️ Location

Temple Beth El is at 400 Deering Ave Portland, ME. The outside doors stay locked and it is a strict rule for this venue that we never prop the door open. Someone will open the door for you. There is plenty of parking in the dedicated lot or on the street. Feel free to pull up to the front door to unload gear.

A map showing parking, entrance, dance and bathroom locations at Temple Beth El.(see bigger)

🕖 Schedule

"The code is more what you'd call 'guidelines' than actual rules."

6:00 Organizers open the building; Sound Tech begins setup

6:15 Musicians set up and do sound check

6:30-7:00 Caller arrives

7:05 Sound check complete; Beginner lesson led by Caller (feel free to wait 5 or 10 minutes for latecomers, or if you want to do a shorter lesson).

7:20 Walk-through for the first contra begins

8:30 Announcements (Caller: Please line up dancers for the last contra of the first half, then introduce Organizer for Announcements)

8:45 Waltz and break

9:00 Second half

9:55 Last waltz

10:00 Take down/cleanup begins

11:00 The building alarm turns on automatically

🎻 For the Band

Please send the sound person any special sound needs. Please arrive around 6:15pm for sound-check. We’ve been positioning bands on the dance floor (on level with dancers) but there is a stage available. Please tell us if you prefer the stage.

🔊 For the Sound Engineer

Please arrive around 6pm to setup sound. We’ve been positioning bands on the far end of the dance floor. There are electrical outlets behind the moveable wooden "walls" that hide the chairs.

Please play recorded waltz music at the break if you can. We have a sound system available but you’re encouraged to bring your own.

🎙️ For the Caller

Expect a high number of inexperienced dancers. We use Lark/Robin dance roles. Please run a beginner lesson and include: dance role is unrelated to gender, inviting someone to dance, declining a dance, asking what role they dance, if they prefer flourishes. The beginner lesson is usually well attended. It is helpful to encourage new dancers to dance with experienced dancers, a mixer is one way to do that. See schedule for timing.

❄️ Weather/Cancellation

Check the weather. We will try not to cancel within 2 days of the dance.

💵 Pay

Unless otherwise discussed, every performer (musician, caller, sound tech) is promised at least $175. We share our profits after expenses, in 2024, pay averaged $230 per performer. The band is considered at most 4 people. Individuals performing multiple roles (e.g. caller and sound combined) receive half shares for their additional roles. Individuals performing half the evening are given half shares. Payment is usually made in cash at the end of the evening, but could be venmo or check mailed next day if we don’t have cash on hand. You will be asked to sign that you received your pay.

If any individual’s annual pay exceeds $600, you will be asked to fill out a W-9 and we will send you a 1099-NEC at tax time.

🛏️ Housing

We're happy to find you a place to stay with one of our organizers or community members after the dance (or the Saturday before! Make a weekend of it!)

📞 Contact

The dance organizers can be reached at CommonFloorContraDance@gmail.com. If you want a live conversation or an urgent reply, call/text