Plan a recital lineup without quick-change surprises

Every studio owner knows the moment. The running order is finally done, the programs are about to go to print, and someone notices that the same three dancers are in number 14 and number 15, in two different costumes.

A recital lineup is a puzzle with a lot of pieces. Forty or fifty classes, a lot of dancers in more than one of them, a soloist who has to go right before their group, and a handful of classes you haven't decided on yet. Presently already warned you about quick changes once a class was in the order. Now it helps you decide where each class should go in the first place.

Hold classes aside until you know where they go

Not every class gets placed on the first pass. Some you're still deciding on, and some get added late. Classes can now sit in a To be placed list beside the lineup. They're part of the show, but they aren't numbered yet, so they don't trigger quick-change warnings or show up in exports.

Add classes straight to To be placed when you add them to the event, or move a class there from the running order when you want to rethink it. The list stays on screen while you scroll, and you can drag a class from it into any spot. Reports list these classes as "To be placed", so nobody mistakes them for number one.

Find a place: the best spots for a class

This is the part I wanted for our own recital. Pick a class and choose Find a place. Presently looks at every spot in the running order and ranks them by the quick changes the class would cause there, using your event's own rules: whether dancers can go back to back, the minimum number of routines between their appearances, and where the intermissions fall (an intermission gives everyone time to change).

Each spot shows the dancers who would have a problem, so you can decide for yourself. Sometimes one tight change for a dancer you know is fast is better than moving half the second act. Pick a spot and the class goes there, or add it to the end.

Keep a soloist next to their group

Some classes have to run back to back: a solo that leads into the group number, or a small ensemble that opens a larger piece. A class can now be linked to the class it follows.

• Linked classes move together when you drag them.
• They don't warn about the dancers they share, because that's the point.
• Find a place never splits them up.
• If someone drags them apart anyway, the lineup flags it.

Print it for the people who need it

Print is now a menu. Lineup only is the running order you already had. Lineup with class days & times adds each class's weekly day and time, which is handy for teachers working out which dancers to check with, and for the front desk answering "when is my daughter's class on?"

If you're comparing recital tools

1. Does it know who's in each class? Quick-change checks are only as good as the rosters behind them.
2. Can it use your rules? Some studios allow back-to-back numbers and some need three routines between. The tool should follow yours.
3. Does it help you place a class, or only warn you after?
4. Can routines that belong together stay together?

For more on the rest of recital season, see our recital playbook.