Lifetimes of Dance Communities

A discussion with friends today brought up the subject of how to keep a dance community from dying. I remember when Country Western Dancing was popular. There were clubs everywhere and I taught a lot of C/W. All of a sudden there wasn't enough interest to keep the formally thriving clubs alive, and one by one they closed. Now the closest clubs to my area (Oakland) are Fremont and Concord. Even the gay community's stalwart Rawhide II closed and the popular dance is now relegated to twice a week in SF. What happened? It seemed like it was here to stay. My guess is not enough beginners. A dance community has to nurture it's beginners to stay alive. More about this in the next entry.