Contra dancing continues to change and develop. To get an idea of the type of
dancing we will be doing, please have a look at some of the videos below.
The weekly dances will have an emphasis on teaching as well as dancing. If you have
never done this type of dancing before we will help you to get started so that you can
join in and have fun on your first night.
We will also be teaching all the spins, twirls and variations that Americans put into
their dancing, so, whether you are an experienced dancer or an up-and-coming
beginner, we hope to help you enhance your dancing and add to your enjoyment of the
evening.
We will also be happy to run workshops for any groups that want a taster of contra dancing.
And once we have established a group of keen contra dancers in the area, we will
be booking some of the top bands and callers in the country so that we can dance to
live music once a month on Saturdays.
If you are interested please let us know - send
John Sweeney a note at
info@contrafusion.co.uk and we will put you
out mailing list so that you get all the news about news dances and workshops.
Contra Dance at Warren Wilson College, North Carolina
2008 Youth Dance Weekend Techno Contra
For the full story behind the one below, please see
http://vimeo.com/1786406. This is an extract from that page:
"While the progression is based on contra, a kind of folk dancing, the music is Swedish
hiphop and the dancers pull from swing, hiphop, sexy, tango, dirty... anything goes really,
as long as it is on the rhythm. Mixmashing cultures and styles to our whim is
what we are all about. The basic progression is agreed upon, and every thing
else is improv around it."
While we are not planning to use this type of music initially, we do hope to achieve some
of the styling used by these dancers. And in the future, who knows...
Asheville (North Carolina) Contra Dance Featuring Night Watch
Fiddlegang playing at a Contra Dance in Cecil Sharp House, London
Asheville (North Carolina) Contra Dance - Dancing to Crowfoot
Contra Dance at the Concord (Massachusetts) Scout House
Montpelier (Vermont) Contra Dance
If you like dancing you will love contra dance. If you have never danced before
contra dance is a great place to start.
And if you do dance already, you can use some of your skill and style to enhance your
contra dancing, whether it be barn dancing, ceili (ceilidh) dancing, Irish dancing,
Appalachian clogging, traditional dance, Playford, country dance, Modern Jive, Ceroc, LeRoc,
swing, Lindy Hop, waltz, tango, quickstep, salsa, merengue, round dancing, square dancing,
line dancing, partner dancing, two-step, west coast swing or anything else.
Ashford Contra Dance is the place to learn more dance skills. We will be running workshops
on contra dance and on associated styles such as the freestyle waltz.
The hall in Hothfield has a large car park, and is only five minutes from J9 on the M20,
so it is easily accessible from Maidstone, Sittingbourne, Faversham, Whitstable, Canterbury,
Dover, Folkstone, Hythe, New Romney, Rye, Tenterden, Cranbrook, Staplehurst, Headcorn and all
the villages in between.
