This is a great topic and yes it is an issue.

I do sponsor an event here 4 times a year. The limit for solos is 5 mins and groups is 8 mins -- would rather have the person/group leave the stage with the crowd wanting more than bored. Part of this issue is that the performer is not 'in tune' with the crowd and obviously does not understand that less really is more!

So I do ask for the cd in advance and they are contacted if it is too long....they are asked "where would you like us to cut the song". Also....if they do over step and change out a cd that is longer .. then they are not allowed to do it again. In general the second issue of changing out -- is really really rare as we point out that we cannot promise the cd will work or issue will not happen if a cd is switched at teh end. We make a cd of the whole show ... so it is strongly discouraged. Making one cd also helps to ensure that cd malfunctions do not happen...we know the computer we use to burn the show cd works with the system....so it is safe.

Good topic....it is hard to pull the cane out and let a performer know....show is over. As a sponsor....I really wish that performers understood what we are juggling and how those 'little things' really matter.

Phoenix

I agree with everything said. Yes, it's important! And yes, getting music in advance is great...and it also prevents people from dancing to the same music.

I've run into various policies about this, and the one I liked the best was "your music will be gradually faded out once the time limit has passed." This enforces the time limit without bringing the piece to a screeching halt. I think this is best for the audience, because suddenly stopping the music would break the mood and probably make people wonder if that's what was supposed to happen. Fading it out keeps things professional and gives the dancer a chance to make an appropriate exit.

I have only done more hafla events, but basically "Burn me once, shame on you. Burn me twice, shame on me" I keep track of who is respectful of the rules and who doesn't. If they sign up to perform again, and I know they broke the rules before, then I would tell them that if they go over again, "like last time", I will fade their music out at the time limit.
In my experience, most people will respect the limits you set. No reason to go out of your way to police everyone strictly for the few that disrespect the rules.

Most shows I've been at, the dancers are respectful of limits up front and it's not an issue.

When dancing to live music, I've recently seen one dancer who stayed on stage after the song ended, in a pose which implied "hey, there's more!" The band started back up with something else and so did the dancer -- it was obvious that she had to get off the stage, but also obvious that she didn't want to! The band quickly wrapped up after giving her a little extra, and somehow she got the hint.

Only once a few years ago, I was a performer playing irish whistle and participating in a "Village Scene" at a BD show. One of the performers who was on before us was enjoying her time up there a bit too much (two live musicians and she danced). Seriously.. she went on... and on... and on... they tried giving her hints from the side... I even think the organizer danced onto the stage to give her a clue and dance her off the stage.. no go. Ultimately they faded the lights out on her and once it was black she got the hint.

OY!

First off, this drives me crazy! Nothing is more unprofessional, in my opinion, than disregarding the rules!
Here's what I do. I require all the music in ahead of time, to be approved and compiled onto one disk. Thus, I can check the times of the songs. If the songs are to long, I would first take the polite approach and ask if they need help editing the song down to the allotted time. If things get ugly, they get kicked out of the show.
If things were somehow to progress to the point that they managed to get their music on, I would fade the music out. At least that would give them a little bit of warning, but still get the point across.
If they get mad, tough!

Something my instructor had us start doing was in order to dance we had to get our music approved and to her the week before the show. This way she could put together the dancer line up and catch any pieces that might be inappropriate or too long. I'm curious to see how different this weekends student recital is from the last one.

I host a big hafla once a year in my area. I give soloists up to 7 minutes and troupes up to 10 minutes. I've been asked previously if a dancer or group could go over by 1 minute, and that's not usually a problem, rather than cut 3 minutes from their performance due to the inability to use a second song. I've also been allowed an extra minute at big festivals when I've asked for it.

At my haflas, I ask dancers to submit to me their bio for the program, their introduction to their performance, and the names and times of the songs they are using. That way, I know what's happening and how long each performance is. Also, knowing what music is being used in advance allows me to structure the show so that it is varied, and not the same kind of performance or same song is twice in a row.

I've never had a performer abuse this and go severely over the time limit at an event I've produced.