[Bards] Apologies

[Alden Drake]

Esther wrote:
> As you no doubt noticed, I was unable to come to the event today. Me 
> and mine are all fighting off colds, and I no longer have the Viking 
> kit to endure the wet with a wind chill of 0.
>
> I would like to say, that perhaps now is the time to consider turning 
> Eisteddfodd into its own event, rather than attaching it to something 
> else. Whatever the issues are, they can be overcome. If it's money, 
> I'll lead the fund-raising myself. If it's lack of attendance, that 
> can be overcome with advance planning and some rah-rah.
>
> In great disappointment,
>
> Emma
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Emma,

You've touched on one of my hot buttons.  Eisteddfod actually *is* the 
event - it is a recognized kingdom calendar event.  Other groups tack 
their event onto IT.  The problem I've found in the few times I've been 
to Eisteddfod, is that Eisteddfod seems to be relegated to a peripheral 
activity at the combined event.  As I see it, the reason for this is 
largely because both the bardic community and the non-bards generally 
view Eisteddfod as just a championship, not as an event.  We need to 
make Eisteddfod a grand event.

Some of my ideas towards this:

Pageantry - Start things off with a procession of heraldry and regalia, 
introducing the competitors.  Many hold branch championships - play them 
up.  Get the branches behind the bards they sponsor. 

Specialty Competitions - In addition to Kingdom Champion, give smaller 
side prizes for things like a) best of the round, b) best poem, song, 
story, interpretive dance, c) best use of a side theme, d) best 
documentation.

Performance Honors- "The Bardy's" - like the Grammy's.  Create 
categories of awards and have nominations and voting, then have a little 
awards show to recognize bards for what they've done throughout the 
year.  I could add something for this on the webpage.

Make Eisteddfod a camping event - Move it to the Spring/Fall and make it 
a camping event.  Hold the competition at night with a roaring fire, 
afterward, have a huge bardic circle and plenty of libations - camping 
means the party doesn't have to stop because we have to be out of the 
hall by a specific time.

Classes - We haven't had an Ansteorran Bardic Collegium in the past two 
years.  Maybe add some classes in the morning before the competition.

A killer feast - Get the cooking artisans on board to show off their 
talents.  If Eisteddfod is a smaller event, it might encourage some 
cooks to do some really good stuff, that might not be as easy to do for 
a larger feast.

Cheers,
Alden