Hello Everyone!
First of all, thank you to everyone who took part in the Survey! As a part of our very large dance family, we wanted you to be able to give as much input as possible regarding our event. Below represents the feedback we received from everyone.
Overall, the vast majority of you are absolutely coming back.. 70% (down from 78% last year)! Also, 23% were maybe’s depending on how things go and another 6% only not returning due to other obligations. We did have two who did not have a good time at the event, so sad to hear, but not a bad overall record and appears you were all pretty darn happy this year based on a response rate of 45%. (Which is also quite amazing!) Yeah!!!
The areas of positive feedback getting the most remarks were the event lineup, Event Organization (thank you!), the variety of dances taught, the ballroom temps were great this year, the beginner social dance room was appreciated by newer dancers, the classic dance room, Jill's emciing the demos, the dinner show, and the variety of instructors,.
A few notes of interest.. many of you are suggesting we just do the demos' in advance online so that we can free up more time for open dancing. A few complained it started too late, so I will pass that along to start earlier next year.
OK – that’s all for the changes for now. Now on to the fun part… Announcing our winners for our 2024 Windy City Awards
Favorite International Instructor (Voters were allowed to pick 5)
1. Fred Whitehouse
2 Simon Ward
3. Shane McKeever
Favorite USA Based Instructor (Note – almost everyone got a great sampling here, but these were the top vote getters) - (Voters were allowed to pick 5
1. Jo Thompson-Syzmanski
2. Darren Bailey
3. Joey Warren
Favorite DJ
1. Jill Babinec
2. JP Potter
3. Bob Boyle
So congrats to all of our winners, but again, everyone from this year's event deserves a huge Thank You because each of our instructors' scored well. It will be tough to determine our complete roster because so many scored so well.
As for the dinner places, very few of the respondants tried the hotel dinner but for those who did, they averaged a B rating. The Caddyshack fared the same this year with a solid B rating. The large majority of folks gave the Grab and Go an A rating, which is by far the best score ever. Many however, would have liked to have seen a better selection of menu items.
The dance floors got a much improved A rating this year with 87% giving it an A or B rating. As for the dance show, having outside talent didn't seem to be as well received as not having a dance show at all. 53% want to keep it as is, but many (about 40%) still have concerns that they are overworked and prefer they just have fun dancing with the dancers.
The idea for a technique pass/class was not as well received as I thought it would be. Only 18% thought they were likely to try it, 32% not sure and 35% not likely at all. But given this would be a Premium Pass option, it still might be good for those interested. It's not as if you don't have other room options to attend.
Thank you again everyone for your feedback and all of the wonderful comments. We look forward to seeing you again in 2025 next year’s Windy City Linedancemania. As previously announced, I have passed the baton to John Robinson, but I will definitely still be around working with John to make sure the event continues to function with the areas you enjoy. To register for next year's event, click on the link below.
Windy City Line Dance Mania
John is still working on next year's lineup. A few of our international staff regulars will not be able to join us in 2025, but they have already committed to 2026. John has gotten a lot of great new International Instructors to join.
Please be sure to join our
Windy City Linedancemania Facebook page for the latest updates
We look forward to seeing you all in Oct 2025!
Also, please pencil in the weekend of Feb 12, 2026 for the return of Palm Springs Linedancemania...I've already secured some very hard to book talent and plan to add more..so far we have
Fred Whitehouse
Shane McKeever
Simon Ward
Joey Warren
Maggie G
Gary O'Reilly
Niels Poulsen
Roy and Fiona Hadisubroto
Jill Babinec
JP Potter
More info will be available on my Facebook Page and at http://Markcosenza.com by early next year.
Regards,
Mark Cosenza
