Following explanation & discussion was posted here 26.10.10

 

Good morning everyone
 
I'm very sorry to have been vacilating over the last few days. After a deathbed cough & splutter, the original diagnosis is confirmed. 12th Night has died: final, definitive, irrevocable!

 

After Salsa York, tomorrow, I will start refunding all ticket holders.

(All refund cheques were posted 01.11.10)
 
I promised a full explanation. For those who can be bothered, here it is.

First, this is a brief time line of the final days:
 
Wednesday 20th October:
University inform me that, after student registration, they have virtually no accommodation left.
Wednesday night:
Up all night, worrying about the event; deciding to cancel; emailing everyone; & updating the website.
I upload the new information, & the homepage goes blank. Web-man can't look at it until Thursday evening.
Thursday 21st October:
Overwhelmed by a flood of support by phone; email; & Facebook. Feeling very fragile, & wobbly.
Thursday night, Friday morning:
Phone's red hot, & Engine Shed sausages get burnt! Other promoters are suggesting that I run a more compact event.
Friday 22nd October:
Website is back up, saying that 12th Night is cancelled.
Feel that I'm letting a huge number of people down, & decide to run 12th Night as an all-dayer on the Saturday.
Make an announcement at the Engine Shed. Even more stupidly, commit myself to running 2012, while we find someone to take over.
Saturday 23rd October:
Upload revised information to the website. The Homepage goes blank. Web-man away.
Try to contact teachers & performers, with a view to re-building 12th Night.
Spend Saturday Night in Sheffield visiting venue, & discussing situation with trusted friends & colleagues.
Sunday 24th October:
Early signs aren't good. Webpage is still down, & Thursday's wave of support isn't going to translate into a wave of bookings.
The enormity of what I have to do is sinking-in: finalise the line-up; design & print new fliers; write & print a letter;  mail 500 addresses; do the rounds of regional promoters; work flat-out for 10 weeks; & spend even more cash that we don't have!
Decide that we simply can't carry the weight anymore.
Monday 25th:
Write this email, & wait for my web man. The website's not a major problem, but is symptomatic of the shituation.

Firstly a brief word about Sheffield University, because I've seen comments that are a mile wide of the mark.
One of the great pities about this cancellation is that, as a seasoned congress goer, I have never see a more perfect venue.
Furthermore, the staff could not have been more helpful and could not have predicted a level of student intake that is unprecedented in ten years. The accommodation may have been the final straw but, had it been the only problem, we would have overcome it.

So! Why is it all over? Firstly, you need to know a few things about us, and also about 12th Night.

Tony & Mary:
Mary is a part-time secondary-school teacher, & I earn a few bob from Salsa. Our combined net income is around £15K, & we live a modest lifestyle in our 2-up-2-down terraced house. Fortunately we've paid our mortgage, but still have grown-up kids to support. We have no pension plans, and look forward to working until w're 105.
 
We never set out to be 'Salsa promoters', as such. Like many running Salsa, we are simply enthusiasts, with organisational skills, who want to see the scene flourish. We're not motivated by cash. In fact those entering the scene with cash in mind are in for a big shock!
 
12th Night:
As an old hippie, who grew-up on a commune, I am a passionate believer in the co-operative model: economic; social; & spiritual.
Socialism stifles personal growth and breeds apathy. Capitalism invites the users & abusers to prosper, & breeds self importance at the expense of others. The co-operative model allows for personal growth within the unique atmosphere created when people care for each other, and have a vested interested in each other.
 
12th Night grew out of a basic personality flaw. I've spent far too much of my life, and far too much cash, trying to get people to co-operate. I wish I wouldn't bother! The event was about bringing the region's clubs & teachers together, to work & play in an atmosphere of mutual respect & support. Everyone, who's been to both 12th Night and some other congress, is aware of the unique atmosphere.
 
So! What are the other nails?
 
The bottom line is that Mary & I simply do not have the means to cover a £30K event with ticket sales of £25K, or worse.
Right now, at the of October, we have less than a hundred bookings. It's no good people saying, 'We were going to book'.
We can't take the risk, & I simply won't wait until the last minute before letting-down a lot of people I care about.
 
There are several reasons for poor sales, some of which are disturbing for Salsa.
Firstly, we live in very worrying economic times where many are concerned about their futures.
Secondly, 12th Night was affected by very bad weather last year, & people want to hang-on & see.
Thirdly, and most worryingly, the Salsa scene is becoming increasingly watered-down at the present time. Co-operation is becoming scarcer, and confrontational politics becoming more widspread. It's increasingly difficult to pull people together for a major event.
 
Take York as a little microcosm. Mary & I established the town's first club almost ten years ago. There are currently 14 Salsa groups, that I am aware of, but nowhere near 14 times the Salsa dancers. Few of these offer real quality of experience, but merely serve to dilute the scene. Of these 14, only 3 preserve the old spirit of mutual respect & co-operation. Sadly I see a scene being infiltrated by would-be promoters who are self-important, confrontational, & even aggressive. It's very un-Salsa.
Many of these people pay lip service to 'bringing new people in'. In reality, they steal their competitors' people by focusing their marketing on existing groups, both real & cyber. I see an increasing number of promoters quite happy to walk round, or stand outside, someone else's venue plying their people with fliers.
 
This is only York! Across the UK right now, there are just far too many who think they can run classes, clubs, alldayers, weekenders, holidays.... you name it. Capitalism says that some have to go to wall to rebalance the market. I'm very happy with this. It means that you good people can check everyone out, & you will be the ultimate arbitors, because you will go where you get the best experience.
 
I only hope that you don't get put off the wonderful world of Salsa altogether because, in complete contrast, there are still some wonderful people running Salsa out there.
 
For me, 12th Night, starts the day after the last one finished. It takes hundreds of hours every year to pull together, & never makes a bean! I've never resented the time before, because the atmosphere you good people generate is priceless.
My 'Salsa up North' listings consume another day per week. Again, I've not resented the time as long as co-operation is achieved. The contract is a simple one. I'm happy to advertise everybody's events if, once a year, they support 12th Night.
Sadly, I've a dwindling number of true supporters. I know exactly who they are, and aren't, because the 12th Night booking forms tell me!
 
In the end, I can't concern myself with what other people do, and only try to take care of what I do. My colleagues & I will continue to try and bring the sort of atmosphere you want to the Engine Shed, The Gallery, & Holgate Club.
 
I'm very happy that we are all bound by a law. Newton's 3rd law states that, 'To every action there is an equal, & opposite reaction'. Some call it Kharma. Personally, I don't believe that it was ever stated more beautifully than in the Beatles final line: 'And, in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make. It's just the learning curve!
 
Mary & I send our love to you all, and thank you so much for the love you've show to us. We look forward to sharing many a cracking party with you all.
 
All the best. Tony (& Mary).