However, you still have a problem which no one ever faces up to. Fifteen years ago a large presentation was six people (on an average), now that's a small presentation.
Karen Dick
People figured if a group was good, then a bigger group must be better. Unfortunately, as Bjo Trimble always said, "A group is only as strong as its weakest costume."
I would rather have six killer costumes than 30 mediocre ones.
The logistics of doing groups over ten people become enormous. I was in one group of 22, and one group of 18, both in the early 80's. Both groups were so large that they had sub-factions that didn't get along. Both groups had quality control problems with the costumes (people struggling to finish their costumes on time, and refusing all help). The 18-person group (a media re-creation group) had some "wrong body type for costume" issues because no one was in charge, so no one said "that costume is inappropriate for you; why don't you try being X?" Both groups actually ended up doing reasonably well in competition, but both could have been a LOT better.
I've often thought that a really gigundamundo group should split itself into smaller segments throughout the masquerade and do "Another chapter from..." It would be more entertaining for the audience. You could do more interesting things on stage with each smaller group, because you would have the room to move. You could even try having a storyline, and progressing it in each successive segment; or you could just do a series of "themed" tableaus. Of course, if Segment 6 won a prize and Segment 4 did not, it could get ugly, so I'm not sure how such a thing should be judged.
And then, of course, somebody like Deb Jones or Jacqui Ward keeps cranking out absolutely phenomenal solo competition costumes, just to prove that the group thing is not necessarily the only way to fill a stage...
If you want to get the numbers up then start going back to smaller groups; stop putting all of your eggs in one baskets.
I think it's a "safety in numbers" thing. It's less scary being out there if you're not by yourself. I did singles and couples costumes in the 70's, and groups in the 80's, and when I did a solo for the '88 WorldCon, even though I was over nine feet tall with my headpiece, I felt like I was being swallowed up by that enormous stage. I also felt very scared and alone for the first time in a long time.
It's also fun to do a costume group with your friends, and work on it together, instead of everybody working alone and in secret and then competing against each other. Work parties were very social events for me and my friends for about six years in Northern California in the 80's. We'd sew, maybe watch a video while we were sewing, chat about current events, and do some potluck dinner thing to feed everybody. I feel very isolated now in comparison.
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