Good question.
Its a question of safety re COVID (and rapid increase in new cases is not helping). Even though there are no provincial restrictions right now, we need to decide for ourselves what is acceptable risk for social dancing, and what systems we would need to keep people (and make them feel) safe.
Social dancing is a full-contact, face-to-face activity usually done in an enclosed space. Its way more risky for transmission than say, going out to a restaurant. Keeping everyone at our dances as safe as we can is our first priority. We don’t want to see anyone getting seriously ill or unknowingly carry the disease to an unvaccinated person.
Members of our board work in health care and have seen first hand how devastating the disease has been to patients and staff of all ages.
Here are things we’re thinking about to increase safety:
- – Double vax only dances
- – Masks (or not)
- – Limiting numbers of dancers in the hall, and pre-purchasing tickets (no tix at the door)
- – Tracking all dancers who attend, having a plan in case of an outbreak- Have rapid 15 min testing at the door for everyone
- – Sign waivers for entry
- – Increased cleaning
- – Increased ventilation in the hall
None of this is certain, nor is it complete. Only being considered at this point.
If we go ahead and implement these, there is more planning, time and effort needed to run a typical dance (and money, but that’s not an issue right now).
For reference: What are others doing?
From research Juliana has done, almost all WCS orgs across Canada are not doing dances right now – Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Saskatoon, Victoria, Vancouver.
A few are:
– WCS Calgary is running dances with no restrictions
– Edmonton Sugar Swing is running dances, but with a list of restrictions.
– Toronto Rhythm and Motion is running dances, but with masks and no partner switching.(Correct us if you hear otherwise on these)
We recognize there are people in our dance community that have passionate opinions at every point on the spectrum on this. From, ‘lets dance now, no restrictions’ to ‘dance is ok with some precautions’, to ‘holding a dance is irresponsible until COVID is completely over’.
No matter what path we choose, there will be some people unhappy. Bear with us as we move cautiously, and find the path that best suits our situation. We all want to get back to social dancing as soon as we can, and with as many of you as we can.
Thank You
WCSA Board
