ContraWaltz November 11, 2011

We are having another Contra Waltz. We have these every year or so. Our average attendance has been between 200 and 250. THIS IS A MUST GO DANCE!

syncopathsThe Syncopaths from LA are our band- they are fabulous with a strong Celtic influence.. Highly skilled musicians, enthusiastic, get-up-and-dance music. Always feel good after dancing to their tunes.
Syncopaths video 1 Syncopaths video waltz 2 Syncopaths video 3 Syncopaths demo musici

Ok so what is a contrawaltz? A ContraWaltz is a mashup of contra dances and social couples dances. A typical contra dance is the "Virginia Reel", the kind of dance in "Gone With the Wind". Sometimes there are two rows of leaders facing followers, sometimes they are sets of 4 couples in a square. Common steps are 4 hand in the middle, circle right, circle left, spin your partner, courtesty turn, a 'hay', grand chain
.

So in a ContraWaltz, we alternate contra dances with social couples dances: Contra, waltz, polka- contra, waltz, schottishe- contra, waltz, swing- contra, waltz, salsa. and repeat until the end of the evening. First and last dances are waltzes.

Contra dances are fun for social couples dancers- they usually are mixers where you get to dance with 8 to 15 new partners each dance. And for the regular contra dancers, it is fun to dance a few more social couples dances, especially with new partners who have had lots of social dance experience. It also is a really fun and easy way to meet other dancers.

Ok I know what waltzes and polkas are, but what is contra dancing?

youtube video 1 youtube video 2 youtube video 3



andy wilsonAndy Wilson is our caller tonight. He will also teach a full one hour introductory contra class from 8 to 9pm upstairs. This is very highly recommended for social dancers - with this one hour class, you can start doing the majorify of contra dances anywhere in the country without feeling confused.

An introductory class in Hambo is upstairs from 7pm to 8pm .

Tom Hill teaches an introductory waltz class from 7 to 9 pm . To get the most from this class, try to start at 7pm. Excellent first time class.s

$15 for both the classes and the dance. $10 students. Sorry, due to having a live band, no separate pricing for dance only. No partner necessary. All Ages. Casual comfortable attire. Under 18 must be accompanied by parent or guardian or sign a waiver.

8 gallons of ice cream- rocky road, strawberry, orange sherbert, almond praline, vanilla,

8 pies and cakes- cherry pie, chocolate cake, carrot cake, raspberry cheesecake...

First United Methodist Church, 625 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto, CA. Upstairs, Fellowship hall, entrance on right of courtyard, facing away from street.