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Thread: Swish 2008 feedback

  1. #61
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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Warning – huge post ahead.

    I said to Marc that I'd like to write some feedback about Swish, but wasn't sure whether to, as it would necessarily be seen as biaised, being the 'teacher's other half', and perhaps being seen not to be as 'valid' as paying customers.

    Amongst mj weekenders, I have a lot to compare Swish to, since I have been to all the Ceroc weekends, including the Scotland and Wales ones, Beach Ballrooms, and also Beach Boogie, Bisley, Rock Bottoms, Southport, Scarborough, etc.

    Maybe I'm easily pleased as they are all good (mostly they are all excellent, actually) in their own different ways. But Swish has got to be my favourite of all. I have tried to ask myself if I would still think the same if I had paid for the weekend, as obviously this makes a difference, and I really think I would.

    Here's why:
    Above all – amazingly friendly and intimate atmosphere; and the dance/teaching rooms.

    Dance areas:
    The main room was the first thing I saw on arrival and my first 'wow, I love this!' A huge hall which, somehow, still seemed to retain a kind of cosy, warm feel. Great floor! Nice big tables and chairs all down both sides, and a wonderful loungey bar area at the top end where you could truly chill out, rest, chat with anyone and everyone, watch the dancing … Also really easy access to the dance floor, the bar, and to any potential dancer around who you wished to ask.

    Everyone was so friendly – anyone you ended up sharing a table with or sitting next to, was so easy to enter into conversation with, and I loved chatting with so many people I had never met before. The atmosphere seemed to be somehow buzzing but chilled – a kind of air of excitement about what everyone was up to, but still relaxed.

    The blues room – the best bit of all! This was fantastic – sofas and comfy chairs all round an amazing floor. Again really easy access to the floor, the dancers, the bar … True, the floor was a little on the small side, but I never saw it too crowded – certainly nothing like your usual Hammersmith crush. I understand that the choice of blues area was either to be in this room or the larger badminton courts – and I certainly know which I would prefer. I don't think you could really have disguised the gym feel in the badminton courts.

    The bars themselves – in both the main area and blues room – were superb. Always plenty of staff on hand who were really friendly (they were even up and dancing with us on Sunday night and were actually pretty good after an impromtu class by Alex & Lisa in the hallway). I rarely had to wait to be served, and pints of water were free. Oh, and a choice of coffees to choose from as well – day or night.

    The only thing here was that the price of drinks seemed to vary, not according to the bar, but according to who served you. Prices weren't by any means excessive, though – a very large glass of wine was £3.50, for example.

    Teaching areas:
    The main room was used for the big classes and the theatre as the second teaching room, alongside the blues area for beginners' classes. The main room was certainly big enough to accommodate everyone, and with the seating all down the sides and at the bar, you could easily watch the classes and see the teachers on stage. The theatre is my favourite place ever – wonderful décor, balconies, push button operation to send out the staircase to access to the stage. The nicest thing was that, even on stage, you still felt close to the dancers on the floor, as if you were amongst them. Yes, it was pretty crowded – though it wasn't an particularly small floor– but we even had people going up to the balconies with their partners and doing the class from there. It was rather surreal to watch these silhouetted figures doing your moves – I loved it.

    The best thing about the teaching areas, I thought, was the projection screens to relay the teachers on stage. Both rooms had two on each side of the stage and, from what I could see, the screens looked really clear. (Although Marc and I hadn't realised they were there during our first workshop and we kept wandering out of shot until a lovely lady had to tell us!)

    The dancing!:
    Do you know, it's funny, I didn't actually notice that the standard was any lower than any other weekender. In fact, during our workshops, people picked up the moves quicker and easier than anywhere previously (though maybe we're just improving in our teaching!). And the classes certainly weren't dumbed down. Yes, there were a lot of people who had only been dancing a few months – some of them did our workshops and then asked to go over the moves privately the next day as a reminder, and they seemed to have coped fine.

    And, proportionally, there were a lot of advanced dancers there. Spiky Steve and (sorry if I've got the names wrong) Kari and Aleksandra (?) were particularly stunning to watch. Not to mention many many others (Carl & the Swindon posse, Mas & HappyB, …) - non teachers – who made me just stop in my tracks to watch, mesmerised. The big difference – to me – from other weekenders were that the advanced dancers were so much more accessible because there were fewer people as a whole and because they were always around. In fact, anyone's chances of getting a dance with them were so much greater, because they were easy to find and fewer people queuing for them. Also, there were some awe-inspiring spontaneous dance displays by the teachers in the quiet periods, by Lucky & Ruby, Mike & Linda Ellard … They weren't intended to be displays, but as soon as people saw them dancing, they couldn't help but stop and watch.

    Food:
    Great – I thought. Served promptly by very efficient and bubbly waiting staff, even if the queue for the made-as-you-order omelettes was always huge. Even us vegetarians had 4 choices of main meal in the evening, not to mention 3 desserts! Yes, you did still have to sit on your 'set' table, which Marc & I didn’t actually realise until a perplexed group of people approached us while I was eating, not quite sure how to delicately tell us it was 'their turf'.

    Chalets:
    Great again. But perhaps we were just lucky (not Lucky, The Man Himself, cos he was obviously him, though he and Ruby were sharing with us which was wonderful). To be honest, I don't think we had a top of the range chalet, I don't know, but it did seem very nice. Comfy beds, fridge, kettle, mugs, tea/coffee etc daily topped up and the chalet cleaned by chambermaids. Above all – warm!!! Warmth for free!!! One downside – we did run out of hot water at 5am on Friday night when I wanted a bath – but after that, no problems. And the shower was rather pathetic. Free soaps and fluffy towels. After reading reports from some others about the state of their chalets, I do feel very sorry for them – I didn't see any like those described so they must have been hugely unlucky and quite rightly annoyed if they had paid so much money for them.

    Cabarets:
    I didn't see any of these, and I'm sure enough other people will comment on the Friday night debacle, which I gather was worse than awful. However, although the dancing didn't officially start until 10pm, the sack the dj slots in the blues room started at 8pm, right after the evening meal. So some people did come along to start their dancing early, rather than watch the cabarets. I loved doing my sack the dj set (well, I would, wouldn't I!) especially as I had some people tango'ing in the room and some west coast swingers, so I could really push the boat out musically.

    Music:
    Well, come on – Rocky, SilverFox, Marc and Mike Ellard in the blues room – what more do you need to say! Good varied stuff as well, with each dj retaining their own identity. And Erick did a hugely popular (true blues, from the parts I heard) set there too. Also – surprisingly – I very much enjoyed dancing in the main room, with Erick and others' sets.

    The after-parties:
    Ok, ok, let's not go there, but Wow! The people I used to think were outrageous just proved themselves to be even more so…

    Organisers:
    What to say – Karen, Glen and Paul, with help from Mike and David, were incredible. Obviously working so hard before, after and throughout the whole weekend, but on hand the entire time, teaching, dancing, laughing and generally available for anyone to talk to. Permanently bubbly and smiling – I honestly don’t know where they got their energy!

    So … a long post, I know, but I'm just gushing with all the things I wanted to say about it. Basically, if I could only go to one weekender next year, and I was a paying customer, it would be Swish. Or Blaze …no Swish … Oh, I'm so pleased I don't have to choose!

    Rachel

  2. #62
    Registered User Lynn's Avatar
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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Rocky View Post
    What is wrong is to suggest that Ceroc have considered the opinion to be irrelevant - and to suggest that you would be put off on going on another Ceroc w/ender because of the responses to the initial thread. Look, here's your post - it just stirring for the sake of it. The Forum is NOT the place to go to get an official response from Ceroc HQ, or from the Swish event organizers, so what is posted here is totally irrelevant from an official standpoint. Have you got that now? Or do I have to repeat it another 12 times...
    Oh, another 12 times please!! (That was sarcasm btw).

    Like it or not, you and others are seen as a representative from Ceroc in respect of that weekend if you were working at it. And I would have thought that anyone working for a company would have its best interests at heart and would pass on feedback whether it came by an official channel or not. I never for one minute suggested that this was an official channel, but people might say things via an unofficial route that they might not choose to put into an email to HQ.

    And I had made what even you considered to be a reasonable post, you wanted to stir it all up - why? I was not trying to diss the event, I even said good stuff about it. Why do you feel the need to make everything so personal?

    Quote Originally Posted by Rocky View Post
    Yes, I do use sarcasm on occasion and you are normally the first to neg rep me for doing so - so how hypocritical is that...
    Oh, you little liar!

    Ah, guess that was your way of making sure I'd respond eh?
    Last edited by Lynn; 22nd-February-2008 at 06:34 PM.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Rachel View Post
    Warning – huge post ahead..............

    Rachel
    Regardless of what has been written before, I would use this as my benchmark? for deciding whether to give next year a try.
    If only I had the chance.
    Excellent post Rachel.

    Having lived in the area for years I always thought that Potters would make an excellent venue for a weekender.I am only surprised that it has taken this long for it to happen
    I mentioned it to an independant friend of mine at least 3 years ago but he didnt think he had the resources to organise it.

  4. #64
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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    I'd also like to know comparisons between this, Rockbottoms, and Franco's new venture - they seem to be aimed at (very roughly) the same market, from an accomodation point of view - that is, the "smaller but perfectly-formed" market.
    Am going to Franco's Lakeside in April, so will let you know
    I'm sorry you didn't enjoy the w/e Nebula (although we had a lovely dance)
    Yes we did, and I loved it
    and I know you were kinda pushed into giving the review - but please take your concerns up with Karen and Co. direct so that they can act on your comments for next year. Certainly from what has been said I can appreciate that maybe more information about the type of w/e should be given at the outset as it does appear that there are some assumptions being made that maybe need addressing.
    More information would be great, but I didn't feel like my comments would be listened to - not trying to be negative, just the impression I got. I think it was more what Lyn said - the event was fine, it just didn't live up to expectations. My expectations, maybe through lack of beforehand warning/knowledge, were pretty high.

  5. #65
    Registered User nebula's Avatar
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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    One of the good things came out of Swish - which I didn't mention (shame on me) was Ruby giving me a few very good points on my leading (cringe - yes, I was brave (or stupid?!) enough to ask to lead her... cringe again...). She was really good about the whole thing, one of the best "constructive" criticism I've had. And she pinpointed the reason why I might be doing it - overreaching compensating for being small.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    I would just like to say that Swish is one of my favourite weekenders.

    I had a fabulous time. The food was amazing and so much of it (I put on 1/2 a stone), the entertainment an added bonus, the music great, some lovely people there, all very warm and friendly, the organisation superb andI had some great dancers with people I knew and lots I didn't. And I could go on.

    I paid for my parents to go and they were so impressed and had such a good time they have booked themselves for next year.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Hi All,

    I very rarely visit the Ceroc Forum, however, as one of the organisers (Glen) of the Swish weekend, I thought it would be useful to obtain some feedback regarding the event, so that we can improve the event for next year.

    I think the last time I came to visit the site was after the Swish 2007 and as a result had put in changes for this year.

    I have read through the thread and would like to respond to some of the areas mentioned.

    We added extra freestyle sessions and sack the dj slots in the programme for Swish 2008 but for some this didn't seem enough, so we will look into this area for next year.

    For Keefy who had a problem with his accommodation, I can only apologise that you felt that it was not to a good standard. Did you actually come and speak to Paul or Karen because we could have done something about it. Potters recognise that some of their bungalow accommodation is getting a little bit tired hence why they have started to revamp three quarters of their bungalow accommodation with new decor, better beds, furniture etc so for Swish 2009, hopefully the accommodation standard should be a lot better.

    As for the shows, we had scheduled each show to last for no longer than one hour, unfortunately Friday nights show did not go according to plan and as a result we had a lenghty conversation with Potters to ensure that Saturday and Sundays show were more appropriate to the audiance and within the hour as scheduled.

    We are looking into creating more space in the Theatre for next year as we are aware that on occassions people were dancing round the edge.

    Please keep your comments coming as it really is appreciated so that we can make 2009 even better

  8. #68
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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by GB Dancer View Post
    Hi All, I very rarely visit the Ceroc Forum, however, as one of the organisers (Glen) of the Swish weekend, I thought it would be useful to obtain some feedback regarding the event, so that we can improve the event for next year..........snip....Please keep your comments coming as it really is appreciated so that we can make 2009 even better
    The perfect response from an organiser. This shows you as a true professional and will help to make the Swish weekender even more popular.

  9. #69
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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by GB Dancer View Post
    I very rarely visit the Ceroc Forum, however, as one of the organisers (Glen) of the Swish weekend, I thought it would be useful to obtain some feedback regarding the event, so that we can improve the event for next year.
    Great response, great attitude! Thanks for posting.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Lynn View Post
    Great response, great attitude! Thanks for posting.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Perfect. See what good manners and positive attitudes do to a complaint, no matter how big or small.

    How refreshing.xx

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Rocky View Post
    I'm guessing that you've never been to Beach Boogie then... Now that is also a great w/e in spite of the truly, truly awful accomodation.
    aint the truth

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by fletch View Post
    aint the truth
    ...Did you see the email with the latest proposals for Beach Boogie this year........ log cabins etc?

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by JiveLad View Post
    ...Did you see the email with the latest proposals for Beach Boogie this year........ log cabins etc?
    Yes it looks interesting, but £370 for a week on the Isle of Wight!
    Here's a copy of the email in case anyone hasn't seen it.


    Rock Bottoms have the opportunity to kick off a similar week long holiday this summer, but we need to know if there is a demand for it. So we'll give you as much information as we can about what we can offer, and then it's over to you to answer a few simple questions for us.

    We have found a fantastic new site, with Log Cabins nestling within the woods right by the sea. Where is this wonderland? I hear you think....believe it or not it's in the Isle of Wight !!! Imagine you're getting off the FIshbourne Ferry.... Look to your right and you'll see a creek heading in from the sea - the site is just around this corner. So a foot passenger crossing will get you over to the camp which is rammed with exciting things to do.

    On the site are two fantastic venues for dancing, and a whole host of activities such as Dragon Boats so we can have pirate boat races ON THE SEA! There's a huge dining room big enough for us all to eat in at one time, and be as loud as we possibly can - I foresee many sing-off's and jolly's. The dates for your diary would be AUGUST 9TH TO 16TH ...YES THIS YEAR!

    So the plan is to run a Jive and a Swing holiday side by side with a full programme of lessons and freestyles for each. It would run Saturday to Saturday, so we'd offer 7 nights of dancing, 6 days of lessons and 7 nights accommodation with full board. And the cost to you lovely people for this paradise holiday : around £370.

    We four from Rock Bottoms are very excited about the possible prospect of this venture but all have concerns that we only have a few months to fill it before we have to pay for the full site ourselves! So before we go to the loan sharks and commit to this exciting venture, we'd like a bit of feedback - and if you could give it by Monday lunchtime that would be fantastic. Please keep your comments brief as hopefully we'll have lots to read through. We've given you a few suggestions below to help you express you opinion.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Hi y'all... I heard there were some gripes on the forum so I popped on to see what's up. Although I certainly don't represent Ceroc... as someone who provides a service for these week-enders, I'm curious what makes these things fun/unfun for people. And I'm occasionally tempted by gossip.

    My own experience:

    Organizers:
    Big-ups to Karen, Glen and Paul who were available and around throughout the whole week-end to run interference. They kept their cool under what I would consider a stressful organizational experience and had absolutely glowing smiles and adorable outfits to boot! They were truly great hosts all around.

    Food:
    I really enjoyed the group-dining experience rather than warming store-bought soup over an electric stove in Pontins. Our table staff did pretty well, especially considering that there was absolutely no tipping to be had despite constant demands of "more juice", "more tea", "my food is awful" etc. I think they also fairly reviewed the food when we asked what looked good back in the kitchen. Not all of it was amazing, but for serving that many people in an hour... not bad. Clearly there are some confusions about what a 5-star holiday park rating means. I had no exptecation and as staff, I'm happy not to have to cook my own grub, so I can't really complain.

    Extras:
    I didn't get a chance to try any of the activities, except for the steam/sauna/pool... which was absolutely desperately needed. Definitely got me through Sunday night. To me, dancing is paramount. And the Brooks boys did drop into the pool for a break, which was quite a treat.

    Dance Level:
    I think Rachel made excellent observations about the level of dancer. To read repeatedly that "the level of dancer is not all that high" really slights the entire attending population of Swish. Lucky and I were impressed that most students in our classes appeared to actually grasp the material. Hip-hop is always the hardest one to teach and so we lost a few there, but overall I was glad that we got to move on and cover more material rather than keep drilling basics in our classes.

    While there was an older set of dancer overall rather than baby-faced ingenués... many of the unfamiliar faces I danced with were quite able to lead me clearly despite that fact that Ceroc is a new style to me. I really only had serious uncomfortable-ness with a few dancers over the week-end... and one of them was kind enough to take my comments to heart. (And that's always a debate as a teacher... to provide feedback in a social setting... a discussion for another thread I expect. But thanks nebula for letting us/me know that it was helpful for you.)

    Late Night Action:
    There does seem to be a touch of animosity between a few forumites against the uh... teacher/DJ set who party till the wee hours. While I can appreciate that this week-ender catered to a generally older crowd who might want to get up earlier, it's interesting to me that the people holding down the dance floor till the very end are essentially staff. My meaning is that this isn't a group of people going off and being exclusive to the detriment of deserting the dance floor... but instead are staying available for dancing till the last punter drops. While the hard-core dance crowd might have been smaller... it was still there in force.

    And *respect* to nebula and any one else who might have felt intimidated (by virtue of me being a teacher I presume... and not my massive frame) about asking me to dance, and still giving it a go anyways. First off... if you feel you need to improve, you never will if you don't dance with more experienced dancers. Second... how will I discover you as a person/student/friend if you don't take a risk and ask for a dance? Third... I've spent years and tons of money learning to become a better dancer so that I can follow virtually anyone I meet.... so that I can have better dances. So... don't shy away.

    If you are at a week-ender and want to dance with someone who you are intimidated by... my suggestion is.. and this of course could really vary per person... but ask early. Don't wait till the end of the night. When the night is starting out and I'm ready to dance, I'm often walking around the room, looking for someone to catch my eye by way of an invitation. I'm usually fresh and ready to take risks with folks I don't know. At the end of the night, when I'm absolutely spent, I really only have the mental energy and coordination to respond to someone I've danced with before. I'm less likely to take chances dancing with someone I don't know at the end of the night because I'm not on form. I can't give as good a dance and I'm not as good at protecting myself against injury.

    DJs:
    Mike Ellard's set in the blues room was absolutely the best I've heard out of the last five week-enders I've been to. I'm not kissing up... I just really did not want to get off the dance floor... and I was miffed that Lucky was not there to experience it with me till the end. This could lead into a whole new topic, but I wish there was a bit more of the type of swing/jump-blues that he played at Ceroc events. Ceroc seems to be a dance form that invents itself... and rumor has it that in the olden days of Ceroc, there was a bit more of the swingin' stuff. A little bounce goes a long way... I'm just sayin...

    Vince's Sunday night set was an amazing combination of appropriately mellow tunes that had an up-beat theme. It really kept us moving without exhausting us. I was really impressed. Conversely, I think Eric's set cleared the floor a few times... I stood by with a friend at the bar and watched it happen. Gave me a bit of a laugh in a way. However, there was a bit of discotheque style hand-bagging on Saturday night, thanks to Eric, which was pretty damn amusing, though beyond what I could do at that hour.

    Space:
    The chip-board on the main floor was great. Better than the other stuff that gets laid down. I really enjoyed the intimate feel of the blues-room... the comfy couches and the bar had very nice coffee service. It was definitely a great mood and feel in there... and the few times the dance floor got a bit crowded we just hopped onto the carpet.

    I did dance in the theatre one night, but the flashing lights gave me total vertigo. I felt physically un-safe dancing in there and had to bow out, despite good music. Since I've been injured on the dance-floor, I'm a lot more interested in looking out for my own safety when I'm out there now-a-days and if I can't see my fellow dancers out there... forget about it. But the space had a really nice intimate feel to it.


    Overall... I had a good time. Met some new folks and hope we sent people away with some dance-nuggets to chew on...

    -Ruby
    Last edited by Ruby; 24th-February-2008 at 07:42 PM.

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Ruby View Post
    ... A little bounce goes a long way... I'm just sayin...
    ohmigod.ohmigod.ohmigod.
    shhhhhhh!
    Don't mention the up and down motion on here, the bounce police will haul you away!!!


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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Hahahah. Yeah... I'm aware of the anti-bounce sentiment 'round here. However... they'd better haul Mike Ellard off first. I caught him red-handed this week-end. And it was awesome!


    Quote Originally Posted by TA Guy View Post
    ohmigod.ohmigod.ohmigod.
    shhhhhhh!
    Don't mention the up and down motion on here, the bounce police will haul you away!!!


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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Ruby View Post
    But thanks nebula for letting us/me know that it was helpful for you.
    I wouldn't take it any other way - and more, please... How would I improve if nobody told me?

    If you are at a week-ender and want to dance with someone who you are intimidated by... my suggestion is.. and this of course could really vary per person... but ask early. Don't wait till the end of the night.
    Ah, but that's probably when we, mere mortals, muster the courage to actually ask you ...

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Rocky View Post
    I'm guessing that you've never been to Beach Boogie then... Now that is also a great w/e in spite of the truly, truly awful accomodation.
    haha... I have to admit as a retro kinda girl I really liked that stepping-back-in-time-wouldn't-quite-call-it-charm feel to the place... And the direness of the rooms merely persuaded you to stay out and dance (or play games). I was quite content to leave my room to the rats until the early hours of the morning when I'd get back from freestyling and kick 'em out my bed for my two hours kip before breakfast...


    Quote Originally Posted by nebula View Post
    I also (perhaps foolishly) thought that if you dance hard, you'd be ready to skip breakfast...! Obviously not.
    Problem is when I know I'm going to be doing workshops all day and then freestyling all night I'm mega keen to get breakfast to fuel my day. By lunch time its a toss-up between food or catnap.... zzzzzzzz


    Quote Originally Posted by DavidJames View Post
    It's good to read everyone's feedback - I'd be interested in Marc and Rachel's comments - but anyone involved in organising it won't have a punters-eye view of the event, and that's the stuff I'm more interested in.
    I only just read Rachel's kind feedback, Marc was raving about it on Tuesday in his charming bouncy way and saying how it was perhaps his favourite weekender of all time - echoing Rachel's sentiments?


    Quote Originally Posted by Rachel View Post
    The theatre is my favourite place ever – wonderful décor, balconies, push button operation to send out the staircase to access to the stage.
    I like pressie buttons too presssss me.. go on you know you want to find out what I do....


    Quote Originally Posted by Rachel View Post
    The best thing about the teaching areas, I thought, was the projection screens to relay the teachers on stage. Both rooms had two on each side of the stage and, from what I could see, the screens looked really clear.
    This sounds like a great idea... were they positioned high enough so you could see the teachers' feet? That is my greatest bugbear when doing mass classes and probably why I seem to only be able to dance tango from the knees up....


    Quote Originally Posted by Rachel View Post
    Music:
    Well, come on – Rocky, SilverFox, Marc and Mike Ellard in the blues room – what more do you need to say!
    I also sees elsewhere on hear good things and much applause for a set by a certain young lady well done for your spinning and your great post!


    Here's the report that reached the Thames Valley Ceroc ears. For profiling purposes its written by non-forum, intermediate, older-gen, ceroc-dancer who dances for social fun only.... your "average" Jo(e) Bloggs on the dancefloor:

    Just come back from Ceroc's SWISH weekend in Norfolk,
    which I can highly recommend to you all, as we had a fantastic time.

    The venue is really nice, being a five star leisure resort - a load more
    comfortable than Camber! All the facilities are very central, the rooms
    are pleasant, and you get full board (great food - now I have to go on a
    diet!), and everyone stops to eat together 3 meals a day! In the evening
    after dinner Potters put on their own very professional cabaret hour,
    and dancing doesn't start until around 10.30, but with the Blues room
    going on until about 4.30am you still have lots of time for dancing!

    And if you want to ease up on the dancing, there is the pool and sauna
    and jacuzzi, the tennis and badminton courts, pitch and putt, archery,
    rifle shooting, golf, etc. etc. to entertain you. Its really more like
    going on a leisure weekend but with all your dancing classes and
    freestyling on tap too. Very much more laid back than the normal
    weekenders!
    I would highly recommend it - take a look on the website, but if you
    think you want to go don't delay - last year it was approximately 50%
    booked for the following year when it finished, as those attending get
    priority booking. Ladies especially, it gets booked out quickly. This
    is one of those cases where if you want to go to this very different
    weekender you have to book up a year in advance!
    6 of us are already booked to go again in 2009. Come and join us!

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    Re: Swish 2008 feedback

    Quote Originally Posted by Cruella View Post
    Yes it looks interesting, but £370 for a week on the Isle of Wight!
    Here's a copy of the email in case anyone hasn't seen it.
    £370 for a week doesn't seem too bad - proportionally about the same as an average weekender. Depends on what you're getting for it, of course (food? What's the actual accommodation like? etc.), but it's not obviously a ripoff - compared to £239 for the Chalet From Hell for a weekend.

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