ROMP INFO FOR STAFF ONLY

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Below is some info that staff might find helpful. It's not required reading, just a recap of what was sent by email and a reference where you can find all the details in one place. We look forward to seeing you at the Romp!

• Romp SCHEDULE
• Romp WORKSHOP
• MAP of Potash Hill
• Romp COMMUNITY NORMS
• IN CASE OF EMERGENCY

• 1. About RiverJam Romp
• 2. Staff Roles
• 3. Arrival, Departure, and Housing
• 4. What Happens When
• 5. Concerts, Jams, and Dances, oh my!
• 6. What Else is There to Know?
• 7. Help Us Spread the Word!

Community & Connection: The Romp is about connecting as a community through music and dance by bringing folks of all levels together for a fun weekend. What we feel makes this event special is the connection to our local roots. Although people may travel from afar to attend, you staff are selected because of where you reside and your connection to local traditions.

Enjoying the setting: The Romp has deep roots in our beloved Connecticut River Valley, Southern Vermont, and Monadnock region. The venue where we gather is a place resonant with music, local history, and natural beauty. Potash Hill, the former campus of the storied Marlboro College has hosted the internationally known classical music festival, Marlboro Music, since 1951.

With its world class facilities and stunning views of green mountains, Marlboro is the perfect backdrop for our homegrown New England music and dance weekend. You can find out more about this beautiful setting at potashhill.org. Take full advantage of being at Potash Hill. Walk the trails, relax, explore!

What does it mean to be on staff? Each year, we spotlight a few “full-time” staff who lead workshops and jams, play for dances, performing in a staff concert, and are present on site for the full weekend event. We also have a number of “part-time” staff who fill in the gaps by leading 1-3 workshops, performing, leading jams, and/or other responsibilities, and may or may not be present for the whole weekend.

If you are a “full-time” staff member: Please arrive at Potash Hill between 4:00-5:30 pm on Friday and plan to stay until 4:30 pm on Sunday. There will be a staff meeting at 5:30 in the Staples Room at the back of the dining hall (follow the hallway to the right of the stage.) Comfortable dorm accommodations and meals are provided. We ask that you remain on site for the whole event and attend all meals with participants.

If you are a “part-time” staff member: You’re welcome to join us for as much or as little of the weekend as you wish, but please plan to stay until the end of your last scheduled activity. We hope you will be able to just relax and participate when you're not working!

We also have a few staff members who are doing a single task, such as leading a jam or a workshop or calling dances in exchange for a weekend comp for themselves and/or their family.

Arrival: You can arrive anytime after 4:00 on Friday to get settled, say hello, etc. If you are arriving anytime after 6pm on Friday (or on Saturday or Sunday, please let us know beforehand what time you will be arriving. If you are staying in a dorm, find Amanda at the next meal or

between activities to check in and get your dorm key. Staff Meeting: A short staff meeting for full time Friday to Sunday staff (or any staff who wants to join in) will be at 5:30, just prior to dinner, which starts at 6:00.

Dorms: Staff are automatically assigned a private room unless you are bringing a family member, who will share a room with you. You will get your room assignment and key when you check in with Amanda. There's a link with "what to bring" above that you may find helpful. You will need to bring your own bedding, linens, and pillow. The dorm beds are all Twin XL and none are bunks. The dorm mattresses are made of waterproof, bugproof vinyl, which is great---but not very soft. We recommend bringing your own soft mattress topper for comfort. Most staff are assigned to New Dorm, which is the most private building we rent.

Departure: If you are a “full-time” staff member: Please plan to stay until 4:30 pm on Sunday. We ask that you remain on site for the whole event and attend all meals with participants. If you are a “part-time” staff member: You’re welcome to join us for as much or as little of the weekend as you wish, but please plan to stay until the end of your last scheduled activity. To return your dorm key, just hand it to Amanda, Peter, or Louisa at a meal or between activities.

EVENINGS

On Friday, participants arrive and check in between 4-5:30. 

They usually get settled in their dorms first, if they are staying over, and then some will join the “All-Comers Everything Jam” in the Dining Hall. There will be a low-key host ensuring equitable participation (honoring a range of speeds, tunes, opportunity to lead a tune, etc.). If you are into jamming and want to join, please do! It's totally in line with Romp philosophy for staff and participants to sit down and play together.

There is a staff meeting at 5:30 on Friday.

On Friday and Saturday, dinner is from 6-7.

Then we set up for the dance, which is from 7:30-9:30. The public is invited and will drop in throughout the evening by donation.

From 9:30-10, we have a "social snack potluck". (The potluck part is new this year.)

From 10:00 on, there is late-night jamming.

MORNINGS

On both Saturday and Sunday, coffee and light breakfast are ready in the Dining Hall starting at 7:30 am, followed immediately by hot breakfast that lasts until 8:45.

Breakfast ends promptly at 8:45 so we can be in place and begin the first workshop session from 9:00-10:15.

After a 15-minute transition, the second workshop goes from 10:30-11:45. 

AFTERNOONS

Lunch (12-1) ends promptly so we can transition and begin the third workshop session

from 1:15-2:30.

On Saturday from 2:30-3:45, there are several jams and song sessions, plus open jam spaces where participants can start their own jams. This can also be an opportunity for a nap, if you want one and are not leading something. We created this slot to be an hour of down time, but we've had so many requests for daytime jamming, we evolved it in that direction instead.

On Sunday from 2:30-4:00 *and* Saturday from 4:00-5:30, we have Staff Concerts featuring half of our staff on each day (sometimes split between the two days). This is a fairly casual, intimate concert, not formal or stiff. Everyone is pretty relaxed about it. We LOVE to see staff collaborate, so if you feel like making that happen, please do!

On Sunday at 4:00, we end the concert with a farewell song and say goodbye. Everyone packs up, cleans up, and we encourage people to check out and be gone by 4:30.

Louisa will give you your paycheck after you return your key. If you leave earlier or miss her, she’ll mail your check the day after the Romp.

On Sunday afternoon from 1:00-4:00, the public is invited to drop in. We piloted this for anyone with a connection to Marlboro during the last two years, and it was very successful. This year, we have decided to open it up further to the general public (free or by donation, like the dances).

"Free Sunday" folks will arrive at 1:00 to check in, in time for the workshops that begin at 1:15. They are invited to stay for the Staff Concert at 2:30. Our intent is to give back to the community, to create an opportunity for even more community connection-making, to give some of our staff an even wider showcase, and to provide potential future Rompers with an entry point to get a sense of whether they might want to come back for a day or a weekend in a future year.

Concerts! We divide staff performances into two afternoon concerts. We have time for each person to play a 10 minute (or less) set. As you know, that tends to be 2 songs or tune sets, but please be mindful of time if you decide to perform an epic set of lots of fiddle tunes and weave vivid stories in between 🙂.

And we always welcome collaboration among staff members, if that sounds exciting to you! To find out who will be playing on which day, ask Peter or email riverjamromp@gmail.com.

Late-Night Jams: We will need a few staff members to host the beginning half hour of a "Late-Night Jam" on Friday or Saturday night. We host from 10-10:30, and then you can leave anytime after that; just make sure someone takes responsibility for shutting off lights and closing up the room. There is a Slow Jam, Fast Jam, and some kind of Song Session on both Friday and Saturday. Please let Peter or Amanda know if you are willing to host one of these jams. If needed, we may ask for your help.

Evening Dances: If you normally play for dances, please plan to play in the Romp Staff Dance Band on Friday and/or Saturday evenings. If you are a full-time staff member and this is your normal thing, we're counting on you for this. If you're a part-time staff member or a full-timer who doesn't normally play for dances, you're enthusiastically invited to join. The Dance Band is a staff-only band. We do this because we want the spotlight on our staff and we want to maintain a high quality. In past years, we've made space for a quiet Back-Row band. This year our "stage" will be in a different spot, so it remains to be seen if that will be possible.

Announcements: We have staff stand up and introduce themselves quickly (your name, what workshops you're teaching, optionally one sentence about what you’ll be covering) at breakfast around 8:30 am and again at lunch at about 12:30 pm. If you are teaching a morning workshop, please be present for breakfast announcements. If you are teaching an afternoon workshop, please be present for lunch announcements. This is the quickest and best way for people who have just arrived -- or staff who have just arrived -- to recognize each other and be reminded of what is happening in the next hour or two.

Bring your family! If you haven't already told us they are coming, we need to know no later than Labor Day. Email us before then so we can give you the correct registration form to fill out. It's important for us to have everyone register because it tells us (among other things) key demographic info that we need for grant-raising, along with dietary needs, emergency info, etc.

Participants: You may want to know who will be attending and what their interests may be. No obligation, but if you’re interested, this ROMP PARTICIPANT SPREADSHEET gives a rough sketch of experience levels and which instruments and genres folks are into. This might help you get a sense of what your workshops could look like.

Materials: We can make copies of teaching materials if you’d like us to. Please email them to us no later than Labor Day. We’ll estimate how many copies you’ll need for your workshop(s) and give them to you at the Romp.

Health: Sorry about this *not* fun topic- If you’re not feeling well, please stay home. We have a strong enough local community that we can make some calls and fill the gap to make whatever you were going to do happen and bring you back another year. Don’t wait until you feel very

sick to tell us! The lead time will be helpful.

Previous staff members suggested that you might also like to know these things:

• there is a refrigerator in New Dorm
• yes, you do need to bring your own bath products and linens
• bringing hangers would be a good idea
• there is a blink level 2 EV charger in the visitor parking lot (closest to the Dining Hall)

Please help us out by sharing info about the Romp with your students and fans. We rely on word of mouth to grow our community and bring in new participants who will enjoy the Romp.

Here’s a blurb you can cut and paste if you want:

I’ll be on staff this year at RiverJam Romp from September 11-13, 2026 in Marlboro, Vermont. Join me at Potash Hill (the former Marlboro College campus) for a fun, intergenerational weekend that has something for everyone. All-star local staff and participants celebrate our favorite New England music and dance traditions with jamming, singing, workshops for all levels, concerts, evening dances, cider-making, local food, and so much more. Pricing is accessible, financial aid is available, and everyone is welcome. Find out more at theromp.org.

Are you on social media? If so, it will help if you like and follow @riverjamromp on Facebook and Instagram so we can tag you in our posts and help the algorithm get the word out. In addition, please friend @amandawitman and @peterasiegel on Facebook; it makes it easier for us to tag you and tell folks how excited we are that you're on staff this year!

Did we forget anything? Email us at riverjamromp@gmail.com and let us know!