Re: [Tower Ravens] Westerhope: costume and tommy

Hey all, I agree with ffion. I remember from last year that you can trawl over the notation and the general rules and it can be really hard to match. I think the kit looked smart and prevents getting stuck having to buy a whole new set of kit. Tommy again there were no specifics in the notation but we can only gain from having one in the dance! It also means as there is so little info available that we can have free rein rather than trying to adhere to anything in particular. I remember there was mention of a Betty, do we want to go down that road or stick to one hurdle at a time!? Becky xx Sent from my Sony Xperia™ smartphone ---- Rachel Sheridan wrote ---- Hi all, I've been thinking a bit about the costume and tommy options for Westerhope, and reading the official competition rules for this year, which can be found here<http://www.dert2017.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Traditional-Competition-Rules-2017.pdf>. The following is my interpretation of the rules, but I'd welcome feedback and other insights. The rules say that the marks available will be split into two sections, each worth half the marks: Notation and Performance. "There will be 4 judges, 2x of whom will be assessing the performance in the same manner as the Main Competition, and 2x of whom will be assessing the performance having previously considered submitted notations and researched the specific traditional dance. Each dance is marked by all 4 judges." The notation section says "The inclusion of historical costume, characters and other accoutrements will have no effect on the marks given and do not need to match the notation." The performance section just says "This will be marked in exactly the same way as the Main Competition, to the same marking criteria." The marking categories for the main competition are Stepping; Sword Handling; Dance Technique; Buzz factor; Presentation; Music; Characters. Costume: I think that we need to be neat, tidy, uniform, etc (as per the presentation marks in the main competition), but we do not need to recreate the costumes that the Westerhope team would originally have worn. I would therefore suggest the same outfits as last year, with shirts and ties as a nod to the tradition, but keeping very much in the team's style with the skirts and colours. Tommy: I think that we probably should introduce a tommy to the dance, despite there not having traditionally been one. As I read it, the notation section explicitly says that the tommy doesn't need to match the historical notation, and the performance section indicates that there will be marks available for character (which it would be a shame not to get). If we decide to do this, there is obviously a further conversation about what the tommy should do / look like / interaction with the set. I'd really appreciate other people's input, especially on whether or not you read this documentation the same way I do! Looking forward to hearing all those opinions. Rachel :)