Our club meets twice a month, one a singaround-style evening with a collection, the other a concert with a guest where everyone has to pay admission. Everyone is encouraged to perform in some way at the singaround, and if someone needs words in front of them, that is accepted. There are four 15 min. support spots on the concert nights, and if someone is unable to perform without a crib sheet, they are not invited to perform on these nights; likewise if they are not of a 'reasonable' standard, i.e. they can stay in tune, rhythm, or whatever is appropriate. There is a somewhat different audience for the concerts, and we feel that a paying audience is entitled to a certain standard. When the concerts were started, it was also a way of encouraging inexperienced performers to put a set together, rather than just doing one item at a time, and to work towards that requisite 'standard'.

We do occasionally run workshops, but that doesn't necessarily mean that those who need them most will attend...

Barbara