Philadelphia Thursday Night Contra Dance Schedule

Every Thursday night at the Commodore Barry Club
Third Saturdays at Summit Church

FUN. EASY. CHEAP. CONTRA.
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8 to 11 pm every Thursday Night ~ Instruction at 7:30pm
FIRST TIME FREE for new contra dancers!
Local bands: $8, $5 students with ID
* Touring bands: $12, $8 students with ID
Free admission for children 12 and under.

Mar. 7	Maia McCormick	Raise the Roof - Mat Clark (fiddle), Bob Pasquarello (bass), Judi Stellar (hammered dulcimer), Kathy Talvitie (guitar) Maia McCormick will call using the terms "Larks" and "Ravens" after the break.
Mar. 14	Scott Higgs with other callers	ACED - Adlai Waksman (keyboard, accordion), Carol Carpenter (flute, piccolo), Enid Diamante (fiddle), Doug Healy (guitar, percussion, mandolin)
Saturday Mar. 16	Six callers: Anne Lutun, Jan Alter, Donna Hunt, Ridge Kennedy, Greg Frock, and Sue Gola	MARATHON MEDLEY - Dance 'til you Drop! - Location: Summit Church Four bands: Alias, Live Wire, Full Sail, and Raise the Roof Potluck supper at 6:30 - bring something to share with hungry dancers! Non-stop dancing from 8 to 11 Admission $15 / $10 students. This is a FUNdraising event for PATMAD.
Mar. 21	Donna Hunt with other callers	Full Sail - Adam Oleksa (fiddle), Rick Mohr (fiddle), Chloe Mohr (piano)
Mar. 28	Rick Mohr	Free admission - a sponsored dance celebrating four birthdays! Happy birthday to Chris, Lisa, Maggie, and Phil! Music by Coracree - Jane Rothfield (fiddle), Bill Quern (mando, banjo, melodeon), Sarah Gowan (guitar), Allan Carr (bass)
Apr. 4	Angela DeCarlis	Chimney Swift - Zoë Madonna (accordion), Cecile Leroy (cello), Daniel Raine (cittern, guitar), Yaron Shragai (percussion, whistles)
Apr. 11	Anne Lutun with other callers	SPUDS - Philadelphia's Phabulous Pickup Band
Apr. 18	Rich Goss	Lake Effect - Matt Sloboda (fiddle), Chuck Abell (guitar), Harry Aceto (bass)
Saturday Apr. 20	Bob Isaacs	Double dance - Location: Summit Church Afternoon dance with challenging contras and squares starts at 4:30. Potluck supper at 6:30; newcomers' lesson at 7:30; evening dance at 8:00. New Brew - Jane Knoeck (piano, accordion), Eileen Kalfass (fiddle), Tom Santarsiero (guitar, mando)
Apr. 25	Sam Rotenberg with other callers	Mad Katters - Marnen Laibow-Koser (violin, viola), David Knight (violin), Kirsten Erwin (flute, whistle), Adlai Waksman (piano)

(Continued in the full calendar)

We dance every Thursday night (except Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve) in Mt. Airy at the Commodore Barry Club, 6815 Emlen Street, Philadelphia, PA 19119 (directions). The Third Saturday Contra Dance is at Summit Church, also in Mt. Airy. We thank the staff of Glenside Memorial Hall for supporting our dances for nearly 20 years.

FIRST TIME FREE!

Any Thursday night, people new to contra dancing get in free!
"If you can walk and count to 4, you can contra dance!"

Not your first time? Bring your friends and let them too discover the joy, energy, swirling awesomeness, and just plain fun of contra dancing!

As contra dancers, we need to always be recruiting in order to grow our dance and have more fun. Now is the time to start talking to that friend who you think would love to dance with us. Bring them for free on any Thursday night.

The best way to get people to try something new is to personally ask them: share your love for dancing, bring them early, teach them how to swing, et cetera. The more we grow our dance, the more fun we can all have. Who will you recruit? Will it be someone from work? Someone from your place of worship? Someone from your knitting group or Zumba class? A stranger on the street?

See you and your new dancer friends soon!

Want to Know More?

See Welcome Information for more about the volunteer-run Thursday Night Dance and general information about Contra Dancing. See also the article "Mt Airy Contra, Dancing with your Neighbor" (by Kae Kalwaic, with a video clip). See our contact page to get answers to your questions or to volunteer.

Weather-Related Cancellations

In case of inclement weather please check this website or our Facebook page.

SPUDS

The Summit Pick Up Dance Society (SPUDS) is open to all musicians who wish to participate, and has musicians of different levels of ability among its members. Since it is a contra dance band, the tunes range from reels and jigs to waltzes. We play for the Thursday night dance about seven times a year and occasionally for other events. For more information on how you can take part, including jams and rehearsals, visit the SPUDS website or contact SPUDS Coordinators Kim Neubauer and Bill Quern.

Links

Third Saturday Contra Dance at Summit Church in Mt. Airy
The Seven Day Dance Guide for links to dances in the Philadelphia region
Ted Crane's Dance Database
Contra Dance Links
Germantown Country Dancers
Mostly Waltz
ContraCopia
Join us on Facebook
Join us on Meetup

PATMAD

The Thursday Night Contra Dance is sponsored by Philadelphia Area Traditional Music and Dance (PATMAD), a Pennsylvania non-profit corporation that is an affiliate of the Country Dance and Song Society. PATMAD also sponsors the Third Saturday Contra Dance, SPUDS, and Allons Danser. PATMAD's non-profit filings are available from foundationcenter.org.

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