FAQs / les questions fréquemment posées:-
1. Do we have to be members to attend?
It’s an open dance club, its not a membership club. We have people from all over come to us, as we’re part of a network of French dance groups around UK. There's a page on our website here that lists many of the others.
2. We do not know the steps, are they called?
Many of the dances are from a common European 'social dance' repertoire such as waltz, Scottish, polka, etc. Regional dances include Breton dances in lines & circles, group dances which look like squares and Circassian circle sort of things.
We don’t “call” the dances like at a barn dance, though we might do that to start with, or walk through some of them if they are less familiar. We often ask the experienced dancers to do a quick demonstration.
The Breton dances in lines, for example, are often just a matter of joining in (go somewhere in the middle, not at the end of the line) and being taken around by the other people in the group. We tend to do lots of the Bourrée, which is one of the most common dances from Central France and has regional variations. These are most commonly done in pairs, or small groups and circles, not necessarily of mixed sex traditionally ... Regional dances are usually easy to pick up, if you watch one happening, or if you get into a small group with others - it depends on how used to dancing you are. It’s important to just relax and enjoy the movement until you get used to the rhythms. Many of the dancers in our club have been doing it for quite a long time but we have new people all the time. If you identify yourself to us at the start, we can help by getting others to look after you too.
If we have a few new dances that we have picked up at festivals over the summer, say, then Anne, Barbara, Jan or Mel will teach it specifically. Sometimes we run dance workshops in the afternoon, depending on who is playing in the evening.
Have a look at the video links on our website. The Folk Inspirations Starter Guides are two sites where the most common dances are explained and demonstrated http://www.dansezfrancais.org.uk/videos-how-to-dance-bal-folk.html
From there you can find others on YouTube, including our own YouTube Channel.
3. The 'shared supper' - does this mean we bring our own food to eat/share?
Our shared supper is a sit-down Pot Luck Supper (une auberge espagnole!). You can bring your own food to eat or bring something that can be shared (cater for another 3 or 4 people, we are usually about 20 people eating). This means that we can get the band fed, but also you get to to meet people, sitting down and sharing food together. It is part of the general ambiance and part of our reputation for being a friendly group. It’s a normal practice in several of the French dance clubs, but equally you don’t have to get here in time for that, just come to the Bal.
There is a small Co-op supermarket just up the road, which is open in the evenings, sometimes people check out at the beginning of the mealtime what is still needed, eg. bread or fruit, and pop up there to get their contribution.
We don’t have a bar, so please bring your own drink and glasses.
We rent the hall, so we don’t have a big catering outfit, and you are asked to bring your own plates & cutlery. Whilst there is a kitchen for communal washing up, you could just put them into a plastic bag and take them home.
4. What is your preferred method of payment?
People turn up and pay cash on the door, we don’t have a card system. You don't need to book for the Bals in advance, unless the publicity asks you do that because a band might be particularly popular and there is a limit of 100 people in the Hall.
If we run a workshop in the afternoon we would ask people to book in advance (using a specific email address that would be linked to that invitation) so that we know how many to expect. There will be a discounted 'joint ticket' price for the workshop and bal, but we tend not to ask for payment in advance.
5. Given Brighton's hatred of motorists, what is the parking situation?
The hall is in the north of Brighton, just off the A23/A27 junction, and in a residential area, but there are no parking restrictions in the evenings. There are buses from the centre of Brighton that stop outside, and the country buses from Horsham, Haywards Heath etc. also stop nearby. Here’s a link to the hall’s website, with maps. http://www.pmhpatcham.org.uk/how-to-contact--find-us.html
1. Do we have to be members to attend?
It’s an open dance club, its not a membership club. We have people from all over come to us, as we’re part of a network of French dance groups around UK. There's a page on our website here that lists many of the others.
2. We do not know the steps, are they called?
Many of the dances are from a common European 'social dance' repertoire such as waltz, Scottish, polka, etc. Regional dances include Breton dances in lines & circles, group dances which look like squares and Circassian circle sort of things.
We don’t “call” the dances like at a barn dance, though we might do that to start with, or walk through some of them if they are less familiar. We often ask the experienced dancers to do a quick demonstration.
The Breton dances in lines, for example, are often just a matter of joining in (go somewhere in the middle, not at the end of the line) and being taken around by the other people in the group. We tend to do lots of the Bourrée, which is one of the most common dances from Central France and has regional variations. These are most commonly done in pairs, or small groups and circles, not necessarily of mixed sex traditionally ... Regional dances are usually easy to pick up, if you watch one happening, or if you get into a small group with others - it depends on how used to dancing you are. It’s important to just relax and enjoy the movement until you get used to the rhythms. Many of the dancers in our club have been doing it for quite a long time but we have new people all the time. If you identify yourself to us at the start, we can help by getting others to look after you too.
If we have a few new dances that we have picked up at festivals over the summer, say, then Anne, Barbara, Jan or Mel will teach it specifically. Sometimes we run dance workshops in the afternoon, depending on who is playing in the evening.
Have a look at the video links on our website. The Folk Inspirations Starter Guides are two sites where the most common dances are explained and demonstrated http://www.dansezfrancais.org.uk/videos-how-to-dance-bal-folk.html
From there you can find others on YouTube, including our own YouTube Channel.
3. The 'shared supper' - does this mean we bring our own food to eat/share?
Our shared supper is a sit-down Pot Luck Supper (une auberge espagnole!). You can bring your own food to eat or bring something that can be shared (cater for another 3 or 4 people, we are usually about 20 people eating). This means that we can get the band fed, but also you get to to meet people, sitting down and sharing food together. It is part of the general ambiance and part of our reputation for being a friendly group. It’s a normal practice in several of the French dance clubs, but equally you don’t have to get here in time for that, just come to the Bal.
There is a small Co-op supermarket just up the road, which is open in the evenings, sometimes people check out at the beginning of the mealtime what is still needed, eg. bread or fruit, and pop up there to get their contribution.
We don’t have a bar, so please bring your own drink and glasses.
We rent the hall, so we don’t have a big catering outfit, and you are asked to bring your own plates & cutlery. Whilst there is a kitchen for communal washing up, you could just put them into a plastic bag and take them home.
4. What is your preferred method of payment?
People turn up and pay cash on the door, we don’t have a card system. You don't need to book for the Bals in advance, unless the publicity asks you do that because a band might be particularly popular and there is a limit of 100 people in the Hall.
If we run a workshop in the afternoon we would ask people to book in advance (using a specific email address that would be linked to that invitation) so that we know how many to expect. There will be a discounted 'joint ticket' price for the workshop and bal, but we tend not to ask for payment in advance.
5. Given Brighton's hatred of motorists, what is the parking situation?
The hall is in the north of Brighton, just off the A23/A27 junction, and in a residential area, but there are no parking restrictions in the evenings. There are buses from the centre of Brighton that stop outside, and the country buses from Horsham, Haywards Heath etc. also stop nearby. Here’s a link to the hall’s website, with maps. http://www.pmhpatcham.org.uk/how-to-contact--find-us.html
