Thu 12/26 @ 7PM
Have you tried contra dancing? If not, you’ve got another opportunity coming up the day after Christmas, one of the twice-a-month Cuyahoga Valley Contra dances held at the Boston Township Schoolhouse at Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
Contra dancing grew out of New England country dancing, a form of social activity popular with those for whom ballroom dancing was a little too elite. Like square dancing, it features a caller who signals the moves. Unlike square dancing, it involves lines of dancers who end up interacting with most of the others on the floor.
Local quartet Hu$hmoney, featuring fiddler/guitarist Heather Malyuk, harmonica/fiddler/guitarist David Rice, hammered dulcimer and djembe player/guitarist/vocalist Tina Bergmann, and upright bassist/foot percussionist Bruan Thomas, provide live music for the dancers.
All are deeply grounded in American rural folk traditions. Playing contra dances is this line-up’s raison d’etre, and they’ve played for them all over the region, including Pennsylvania and Indiana.
Don’t have a clue what’s going on? Don’t worry. There’s an hour of instruction at 7 before dancing starts at 8. It runs until 10:30. Wear comfortable clothes, especially shoes. The dances take place on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month.
Admission is $6.
allroadsleadhome.com/hushmoney