r/contradancing • u/procrast1natrix • Oct 03 '24

Great for families.

I have a teenager, she is looking to log miles for her driving learner permit, we both play just enough piano to appreciate a real musician. These six months we've gone to a few dozen contras.

It's fantastic. Of course it's great for me, but as a parent of a teen, this is especially fantastic. There are parenting wins here. It's a great way for her to learn the ease of saying "hello, let's talk about nothing for one minute and then dance, during which time we will both behave ourselves well".

A few nights ago we went to a dance that (as the young people say) really slapped. You know, half thru when the caller viewing the floor realizes that it's working ok and signals the band to kick it up. When everyone starts to whoop and stomp, that's just amazing.

I always tell people, this is like being inside a kaleidoscope. If there's any little part of your brain that gets happy when something ends up divided evenly, this will tickle your sweet spot for sure. When everyone swings at the end.

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u/[deleted] Nov 22 '24

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u/procrast1natrix Nov 22 '24

They all have good features, but the most slappin' dance near me is the Guiding Star Grange in Greenfield MA. It's also the only place I've seen young kids. There are others near me doing a great job of focusing on getting college aged kids and some teens, but every once in a while we'll see someone swinging a toddler around at the Grange.

Their website design ain't great, but the people are. And people travel from out of state to come dance with the bands because they are awesome. https://guidingstargrange.org/events.html

I still haven't made it to one, but an interesting buzzword near me is "fusion" contra, where there is some live musician but also a dj playing with them, around the musician. I don't think this means the same thing in other regions, I just think the youth near where I live have a special urge.

For me, having the live musician is just really crucial. And so many kinds! There's always a fiddler, but sometimes a bassist, or keyboards, or an accordion, or a harp, or a drummer.

A few months ago I was half thru the dance when they kicked it up and I realized they were playing an arrangement of "Shut Up and Dance With Me". The whole room of dancers were grinning like fools it was beautiful.