No matter how skillful a dancer and instructor you may be, recital planning requires an entirely different skill set that takes time to hone. If you haven’t read the first three posts in this series on recital planning, we highly recommend you go back and read those, first:
- Dance Recital Planning, Simplified
- Dance Recital Planning, Streamlined
- Dance Recital Planning, Settled
As you plan your next recital, we hope you realize that Jackrabbit Dance software is there to support you along every graceful step toward a memorable and successful event that truly displays all the hard work you, your staff, and your dancers have put in over the past year.
Selecting & Confirming Volunteers
Carefully selecting volunteers is perhaps even more significant than recruiting their help. After all, a name plugged into a spreadsheet may be pointless if the person represented by that name is not reliable. If you know of some volunteers that you’re not sure you can trust, be sure to pair them with those who have proven to be responsible, and then assign them to tasks that could get by with only one person. As long as you have volunteers you know you can count on, these individuals will be invaluable to you as you approach your long-anticipated recital day.
As you enlist the help of volunteers, be sure to keep a well-organized list and periodically check in with them, making sure they understand their responsibilities and have made plans to complete them.
Plugging in Volunteers for Various Positions
We’re guessing you already have a few ideas about areas where you’ll need to delegate volunteers. But just in case a few responsibilities have fallen through the cracks, check out these potential volunteer responsibilities:
- Set Design, Lighting, and Sound
- Recital Night Parking
- Ticket Collection
- Program Distribution
- Makeup and Props
- Tables for Flowers, DVDs, and Extras
- Backstage Dancer Organization
- Supervision of Young Dancers
- Prop Collection as Dancers Exit Stage
In addition to making sure you have enough responsible volunteers in place to handle your crowd, you also want to make sure those you’ve chosen are well-suited to their positions. For instance, it’s best to have a friendly, go-getter collecting tickets and handing out programs. And you definitely want someone who pays attention to details managing the DVDs.
Embracing Communication with and Appreciation for Volunteers
While you’d be making a major mistake if you tried to handle every tiny detail on your own, you need to realize that your volunteers may not realize exactly what you have in mind if you don’t communicate it! You might even want to consider creating task sheets for each volunteer position, so each person knows exactly what’s expected in their role.
Holding a volunteer meeting prior to the recital might be another way to touch bases with each person and give them opportunity to ask questions. You can also use that opportunity to express appreciation – both verbally and practically. Perhaps a T-shirt with the recital logo would be appropriate, serving the added purpose of providing a unified appearance for your event.
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