| When: | June 4th, 2005 |
|---|---|
| Where: | Erie Exposition Center Hamburg, NY |
| Competitors: |
Ges (music) Devonna (Irish Language) Rebekah (dancing) Rachel (dancing/music) Luke (dancing) |
| Why We Went: | The original version of our 2005 feis schedule had this as an introduction to the Mid-Atlantic region. Plus, we wanted to try something other than Detroit this weekend. |
| Previously Reviewed: |
ORGANIZATION
WHAT WENT RIGHT
- Very good directions on both the website and surrounding road network on how to get to the feis site.
- Lots of parking close to the facility
WHAT WENT WRONG
- They never advertised to the non-Buffalo area dancers that camping was allowed in either building
- It was never explained on the syllabus that the Irish Language competition was supposed to be in Gaelic. Devonna had a moment similar to mine in Columbus six years ago until both adjudicator and committee graciously allowed her to compete in her native language. Both people also said that the syllabus would be changed for next year.
- Website layout could use some work for those of us who have
computers unpolluted by Internet Explorersecure computers. They need to go away from element positioning to a table-based layout so the various elements don't bleed over each other.
GRADE
B.
SCHEDULING
WHAT WENT RIGHT
- A Charlotte-style schedule was used, in that all Beginners danced first, followed by all Advanced Beginners, Novice, etc.
- Dancers were kept on the same stage throughout their level.
- Music competitions were broken out not only by age but by competitor level (Beginner, Open, and Championship)
WHAT WENT WRONG
- No adult competitions. By longstanding policy on this website, it's a What Went Wrong even though we enjoy the occasional feis where we don't have to compete.
- Some effort should have been made to provide estimates on when each non-champion level was expected to start competing.
- The interval between each of Rebekah's dances was tight. Rachel would have had the same problem if it weren't for other problems I'll mention below.
- Why were sets for Prelims and Champions scattered across all stages throughout the day instead of run on a dedicated stage? Every time you saw one of those on your child's stage, you could count on about an hour taken from your life and your dancers'
- A Set competition scheduled for Rebekah's stage was delayed, then run right in the middle of Rebekah's block of dances. The proper call in this situation was to wait for the rest of the Open/Prizewinner competitions on that stage to be run before running the set comp.
-
No guidance was provided on the syllabus to determine the approximate level of a music competitor. Rachel, for instance, has sung at feisanna for five years. She has also competed at one Fleadh Cheoil na h'Eireann. Is she Open or Championship level? Or myself, for instance, who has sung for over thirty years but came in last at my only Fleadh to three drunkards and the eventual World Champion that year. I finally entered Rachel in Open and myself in Championship just to see if our choice of levels would be challenged.
As it turns out, no guidance on levels in Music competitions had been given to the Music adjudicator. The committee needs to spell this out next year, both to the adjudicator and on the syllabus.
GRADE
C-. There was no excuse for the way Prelim and Champion set dances were scheduled.
FACILITIES
WHAT WENT RIGHT
- The facility -- especially the first building you entered -- was BIG.
- A big wooden signpost at the main entrance showed you which way you needed to turn to get to your stage(s).
- Bleacher seating provided at all stages.
- Multiple food vendors were provided, even though it was feis fare.
- I was concerned at first that the vendors were stuck in the second building provided behind the main facility. Devonna then pointed out that there was a lot of room to shop. Since you also had to go over there to check your results, there was no shortage of traffic past the vendors.
- The Music room was in the corner of the second building, and reasonably soundproof.
- The Language Arts competition was held in a very comfortable conference room behind the Awards stage in the main building.
- A table was set aside in the second building showing the history of the Buffalo Feis.
- There was some practice room in the outside area between buildings as well as the second building.
- Walkways through the main building were outlined in caution tape so you could get from one side of the facility to the other without stepping over someone's camping area.
- A trend I first noticed in Syracuse earlier in the year: A dedicated Awards stage so you could announce the results of the various Prelims and Champion competitions throughout the day instead of at the end.
WHAT WENT WRONG
- There were no close fast-food places to the feis site if you wanted something other than the provided feis fare.
- After looking at your results in the second building, you then had to go back into the main building to get any award you earned. The committee might want to work on this process flow a little more.
GRADE
A-.
OPERATIONS
WHAT WENT RIGHT
- The First Aid area was well signed and staffed all day.
- Feisweb managed the awards system, like at Syracuse. Definitely no complaints there.
WHAT WENT WRONG
-
Where do I start about the stage monitors?
- The monitors on Rachel's stage would hold a competition (maybe two), then go on a fifteen or more minute break for no adequately explainable reason. Not just once or twice, but all morning and into the afternoon. It didn't appear that either adjudicators or musicians needed to go on smoke or potty breaks that often.
- The adjudicator on Rebekah's stage went on an extended potty break as her reel competition was standing at the stage ready to go. When they had been standing for over 10 minutes, I went over to the stage monitor and asked why they hadn't been sat back down. The monitor then jumped down my throat, claiming I didn't know what I was talking about and that the adjudicator wanted them standing for that long. She got even more upset when I proceeded to detail why over five years and sixty feisanna worth of personal experience told me that she had made up the part about the adjudicator's alleged instructions and that I had a very good idea of what I was talking about.
GRADE
D. This was the 40th edition of this feis, which sadly enough explains the observed abilities of the stage monitors far too well