All Soles Columbus Contra Dance

Please join us on the beautiful wooden dance floor at First UU!
Homebaked snacks, free childcare , and warm, welcoming dancers.
No partner needed!
[A suggested donation of $7 ($4 for those under age 25) will be asked to fairly compensate our talented bands and callers.]

This is an intergenerational, beginner-friendly, welcoming dance community. Please join us!

2008 DANCE SCHEDULE

• Friday, Jan. 25 – Carol Kopp, premiere Cleveland caller, will call to the high-energy, old-time tunes of Clearfork Valley String Band, featuring Bill Miller on upright bass; Drew Clark on fiddle/mandolin; Ron Emoff on fiddle/mandolin/guitar; Mike Martin on guitar/mandolin; and Bill Van Horn on banjo. Mike and Ron are new additions to the band for this date, but long-time jam friends. Ron is head of the Music dept. at OSU-Newark and a fine Old-Time player. Mike is formerly of the Bluegrass band Faces Made For Radio and also a fine, enthusiastic Old-Time player.

• Friday, Feb. 22 – Hot old-time tunes will be provided by Oxford band Full Moon Country Dance Orchestra, always a hit in Columbus. Eric Conrad, veteran Columbus caller, will share the mic with Cincinnati’s Josh Moses, a new star on the calling horizon!

• Friday, March 14 – Making their long-awaited debut in Columbus, Ann Arbor band Golden Griffon Stringtet features hammered dulcimer, fiddle, guitar and bass.  They’ll be joined by callers Kate Power and Dave Sebolt.

• Friday, April 25 – Strings & Things, longtime favorites of the Cleveland contra dance scene, will light up our stage as caller Eric Conrad weaves dances with humor and creativity. The band features Tina Bergmann on hammered dulcimer, guitar, vocals and fiddle, David Rice on harmonica, guitar and fiddle, Bryan Thomas on bass and foot percussion, and Heather Malyuk on guitar, fiddle and vocals.

• Friday, May 30 – ZESTY Contra Dance , a special evening of challenging dances for those who are confident of the basics, and ready to spice up their contra-life! Caller Kate Power will entice dancers to stretch their comfort zones with unusual formations, no-walk-throughs, and brain-defying “end effects”! Spicy tunes for this thrill ride will be provided by DeBand , featuring Jim DeGrand’s sizzling fiddle and Mark DeLozier’s genius on piano. DANCING FROM 7:30 to 10:30. (There will be no beginners’ workshop.)

SUMMER SATURDAY DANCE DATES FOR YOUR PLANNING CALENDAR!

JUNE 28 - JULY 26 - AUGUST 16

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All Soles Contra Dances are sponsored by the Social Committee of First Unitarian Universalist Church, and attract from between 50 to 100 dancers, one evening a month (the evening varies, so check the dance schedule above). Contra dance is a highly social form of early American folk dance in which partners change frequently, no special dress is required, and almost all ages can learn. It is said about a contra dance that by the end of the evening, you will have danced with everyone in the room!

If you'd like to know more about contra dance, follow this wonderful link: http://www.childgrove.org/gregsarticle.htm

For a photo gallery of contra dancing, check this out: http://www.dougplummer.com/dance/index.html

No partner is required, and all dances will be taught -- no special dance skill or background needed. Dress in lightweight clothing because things will heat up! Please wear clean, non-marking shoes to protect the beautiful new wooden dance floor.

More opportunities to contra dance in Columbus! Big Scioty Barn Dance is a larger, established contra dance community, dancing on the first and third Saturdays from September through May in downtown Columbus. Visit their website to see the schedule of live bands and callers from all over the midwest: http://www.bigscioty.com

For a wealth of information on contra dancing, and a nice tribute to the First UU leadership for supporting the creation of All Soles, visit the new website of First UU's own Kate Power at http://www.powerkate.com

Children who are interested in and able to join in the dancing are welcome.

Childcare is provided for the very youngest at no charge.

Questions: call or email Kate Power -- 614-789-0652 (kate@powerkate.com)

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Last update: 2008-01-12 0938 (kco)