Contra dancing is a friendly, multigenerational activity that promotes cardiovascular health and lots of laughter. Modern contra dancing evolved from 19th-century English and Scottish country dance, but it's earliest roots go back much further (Mozart wrote several contra dances). All of our dances are held in safe, smoke-free, alcohol-free environments. You do not have to bring a partner, and we always welcome beginners. At our dances you can expect to see teenagers, retirees, and all ages in between. Many of the moves resemble those found in square dancing, but contra dancing is much more freestyle and is done in a long line instead in squares. Contradancing has zero kinship to country-western line dancing.

At contra dances, women ask men to dance almost as frequently as men ask the women. Each dance lasts approximately fifteen minutes, during which time you and your partner work your way down a line of other couples. As you move down the line you dance with a new opposing couple every 30 or 40 seconds. By the end of each dance you will have spun briefly with every other man or woman in your line. Dancers (and frequently do) change partners every dance. Dances range from moderately aerobic to extremely high-octane depending on the band, the caller, and the experience of the dancers. You can expect live music at each dance.

Wear comfortable clothing and nonmarking shoes. Then relax; there are no judges here. Contra dances tend to be whimsical, friendly, playful affairs. We always hold a beginner's session before the main dance starts, and the caller walks everyone through the patterns before each set. Once you've got a few basic moves down, you can dance most of the dances out there. The open structure of the dance allows people to improvise as much or as little as they wish. Footwork is largely unimportant as long as you land in the right place at the right time so that your partner is not left abandoned. It is recommended that you pair off with an experienced dancer until you get the hang of the basics (which usually only takes a few hours). There is a great writeup of contra dance technique here.

This is not a complete list but it should get you started in the right direction.

• Mecklenburg County, NC (Charlotte, Davidson, UNCC, and neighboring communities): ContraDanceCarolina (CDC) helps organize and promote high-energy contradances in different locations around Charlotte. CDC dances are currently held on the second Friday of each month, but we will be adding additional dances and locations as spring turns into summer. We are a group member of the Country Song and Dance Society.
• Downtown Charlotte, NC: Charlotte Dance Gypsies and the Charlotte Country Dancers. The Country Dancers are dedicated to preserving old-time music in a traditional learning environment, and hold dances at 8 p.m. each Monday night . The Dance Gypsies hold larger dances on special occasions, such as their Gypsie Meltdown dance weekend each spring at Camp Thunderbird in SC.
• Asheville, NC: Old Farmer's Ball and the Harvest Moon Folk Society
• Boone , NC: Boone Country Dancers
• Chapel Hill, NC: Triangle Country Dancers
• Columbia, SC: Columbia Traditional Music and Dance Society
• Greensboro and Winston-Salem, NC: Fiddle and Bow Country Dancers

• Dance Your Way To A Better Body at the Medical News Today web site.
• Let's Dance to Health at the AARP site.
• Don't Be a Square - Dance! at WebMD.

This particular video is of a Vermont dance, as we ourselves do not have any video equipment. We aren't this huge yet, but we have aspirations! If you have trouble getting the video to play, try here instead. Special thanks to Molly for permission to use her video.

You can expect to see some rather artful dancefloor flirting among the more experience dancers. Indeed, wholesome flirting is an old contra dance tradition that has been studied in anthropology reports and college dissertations. Given the cynical age in which we live, though, it is not surprising that some newcomers can be caught offguard by this tradition. Just keep in mind that contra flirting is a whimsical and fun part of the dance tradition. A good dancer is sensitive to their partner's comfort range and level of experience, and will try to make sure that a newcomer does not feel uncomfortable.

Most contra dance music is very up-tempo and derived from traditional folk music, often with Celtic, New England, or Appalachian roots. Depending on the band, the music may be strictly "old-time" or considerably rocked-up. You can expect at least one or two waltzes during the evening. Different dance groups have different musical preferences. If you would like hear some snippets of music that you might hear contra dancing, try the following links.

• Crowfoot music here
• ClayFoot Strutters music here.
• Elftones music clip here
• Nightingale music clip here.
• Notorious
• House Red music here
• Jeremiah music here
• Syncopaths music here
• Wild Asparagus music here.