A major draw to Pickin' in the Pines 2010 in Flagstaff this coming weekend is the contra dancing. In fact, Pickin' has a special schedule set up around contra dances that includes workshops for beginners. Some folks will be all over that while others are still asking, "What's contra dance?"

 

 

Gary Shapiro, who has been answering that question since 1995, explains that the best way to find out is to jump right in and dance it. He advises that beginners seek an experienced dancer to start, but to be prepared to dance with everyone on the floor. Perhaps this is where contra becomes controversial.

"Contra dance is a form of dance that thrusts a different person of the opposite sex into your arms every 30 seconds or so," Gary stated, tongue in cheek. "Actually, this is only true sometimes. It might be more prudent, but less whimsical, to say that contra dance is one of the few dance forms where by the end of the evening you are likely to have danced with everyone."

As if multiple dance partners wasn't salacious enough, these days women's liberation has fallen upon the contra dance. Women can ask a partner to dance and that partner might even be of the same gender. "Women will sometimes dance with women, and men will sometimes dance with men. In general, especially for the men, this happens only when a gender imbalance exists in the hall (men tend to be real chicken about dancing with other men otherwise)," said Gary.

Fortunately, that's where the controversy ends as Gary dismisses the rumor that contra dancing is in any way funded by Oliver North.

Considering the pleasure derived from contra dancing and the social nature of these line dances, why then do we know so much about square dancing and not so much about contra dancing? Gary explains it this way, "The world of money and power hasn't figured out a way to get more power and control via contra dance. So why should you have heard of it?"

Ah, but what a mistake! Contra dance goes back to when it gained popularity in the 17th Century. James Hutson in his article, "A Capsule Chronicle of Contradancing, Part One", from the Fall 1994 issue of Contra Corners, puts forth the following supposition:

The French, who thought that they invented country dancing (as well as anything else culturally significant), and who were miffed at the notion that the English should receive credit for anything, converted the name 'country dance' to French contredans (which conveniently translates as 'opposites dance'), then turned around and claimed that the English term was a corruption of the French!

Later, the French term evolved in the U.S. to "contra dance". All things considered, perhaps the name should evolve to "freedom dance" to move it forward as one option for the world of power and money to wield the dance for the betterment of all.

 

For further study:

Trad-dance-Callers -- A listserve for traditional dance callers, musicians and organizers, to be used for communication about the craft of leading dances and organizing dance activities. This list encourages the sharing of dance sequences with the provision that correspondents 1) offer information about authors and sources when known and 2) agree to share same when dances are presented.

Flagstaff Friends of Traditional Music -- FFOTTM hosts a great contra dance on the first Saturday evening (usually) of the month from 7:30 until 11:00 p.m., on the hardwood floors of the lovely Ashurst/Old Main Hall on the campus of Northern Arizona University. Additionally, their website maintains a schedule of contra dance events around the region.

Thanks to Gary Shapiro for his help in shaping this article. His website is chimmy chunk full of information and how-to advice for all dancers, from novice to virtuoso. Gary advises that beginners definitely take the beginners workshop at Pickin in the Pines, but to thrust themselves into all the events.

 

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