Our second dance of the season was a rousing success! A huge turnout, including college students new to the area looking for something to do, made for a fun an energetic October contra dance.
For many, the on-stage talent was the draw. Quena Crain from Brattleboro was calling, keeping everyone moving and taking breaks only to waltz. You'll find her calling next on October 19 at the Peterborough Fall Ball.
Providing the tunes for the Worcester dance was the always-energetic Free Raisins, a dynamic trio from Boston consisting of Audrey Knuth on fiddle, Amy Englesberg on piano, and Jeff Kaufman on mandolin, and trumpet. Their CD album sold well at intermission, though it's not too late for you to get yours!
Our thanks to everyone who came out on a cool April night to enjoy some fine contra dancing in Worcester! The turnout, the music, and the dances were all fantastic, thanks in no small part to talent that consisted of Quena Crain calling for the Free Raisins, with Mari Black filling in for Audrey Knuth. What a masterful and motley crew!
A roving photographer snapped these shots of everyone having a grand time. Feel free to tag yourself in the Facebook album!
Erin and Mac.
Erin and Mac.
Where'd Jeff pull that out of?
Where'd Jeff pull that out of?
Tah-dah!
Tah-dah!
Passing messages!
Passing messages!
Marvelous musicians.
Marvelous musicians.
A staged shot.
A staged shot.
This photo is pretty much everything you need to know about Jeffrey.
This photo is pretty much everything you need to know about Jeffrey.
Be sure to sign up for our email list and join our Facebook group. We're soliciting volunteers to doorsit at our future dances in exchange for free admission, so watch for those opportunities for our May 11 and June 8 dances!
Thanks to everyone who made our latest dance a success! With calling by Rachel Shapiro and music by Cedar Stanistreet, Max Newman, and Julie Metcalf of Agnostic Fiddle Insurgency, Worcester's October contra dance was great fun for all those who attended, with several first-timers joining our ranks. Perhaps because nearby WPI was on their fall break, the crowd wasn't quite as big as usual, but everyone who showed up had a good time, with many staying until the end and helping to clean up — many hands make for light work!
Just when I thought the Worcester dance couldn't get any more AWESOME! Andrew Grover and Max Newman totally rocked the house — it was hard to believe that sound came from just two people! Dave Eisenstadter gave us a perfect mix of dances. And the halftime participatory demo of Worcester-style tango from Krista Baker and Sarah Brooks was just one more indicator that this is THE place to be for dynamic and creative dancing. Thanks to everyone for such an excellent evening!
Are my feet ever going to be sore tomorrow — and it was totally worth it! Caribou and Reed totally rocked the house, I don't think I've ever whooped so much at a contra before. And so far this year we've had 100 dancers at every Worcester dance: the energy was tremendous, and I'm only sorry I have to wait a month till the next one.
If you are ever in need of a remedy for jetlag, I recommend the music of Dueling Whiskey Factory. My body was still on Barcelona time when I showed up to this past Saturday's dance, so they had me dancing flat out until what my body thought was 5 AM. Rachel Shapiro's calling was excellent, particularly in providing strong (and reassuring) guidance for a larger-than-usual turnout of new dancers, and particularly of kids, which is always great to see. Also, props to the new dancers — by the end of the evening, you were doing some pretty challenging stuff. And it was nice to see a contingent from Heifer Project in Rutland, one of the gems of Central Massachusetts!
Ever wonder what a Worcester contra dance looks like but haven't had the opportunity to check it out yourself? Thanks to Ken Bennett of the Northboro contra dance, you can see what you missed this past Saturday with this video of Worcester's February dance. With Bill Fischer calls to music by Riverbend and Friends, this circle dance is not a typical contra, performed as it is in a circle instead of a line. But it's still great fun and a nice change from the usual routines!
Watching contra is never as fun as dancing it. We hope to see you at the next dance on March 10, with Rachel Shapiro calling to music by Dueling Whiskey Factory!
