July 09, 2008

Fawnskin Victorian Festival - a Cautionary Tale

I was hired as dance caller and general consultant by the folks putting on the Fawnskin Victorian Festival. At the time, it seemed like not too bad an idea, since they seemed to have a decent track record with several years of Renaissance festivals and Pirate festivals.

They were determined to put on a "Victorian Ball" in the model of the SDI balls, thinking that by hiring the band and some of the management of the SDI ball, they would inherit its success. My first, and repeated advice, was to warn them that this was a huge risk and that they were unlikely to get many people coming up from the flatlands to attend--but that advice wasn't heeded, and the event crashed and burned, and was canceled at the last minute.

They are not the first however, to succumb to the siren call of the big vintage dance event, and not the first to fail. Here are a few thoughts on that topic.

Continue reading "Fawnskin Victorian Festival - a Cautionary Tale"

Posted by Walter at 09:15 AM | Comments (1)