More pictures coming soon
All ages welcome. Singles, couples, families -- come and bring your friends.
Please bring clean soft soled shoes to dance in. Admission $5, seniors and kids 12 and under $3 what is contra dancing?
Contra dancing is a style in which pairs of couples dance together,
in two facing lines (the contra line),
progressing up or down the line following each musical figure.
So while you and your partner dance together,
you also dance with everyone in the room.
Contra dancing has been around for centuries in various incarnations. Various sources point to the British Isles, Ireland and even Northern France for its origins, but everyone agrees that in some form, contra dancing immigrated to the early United States where it began to take on a life of its own. Or see this longer definition what is contra dancing? what is the music like?
The music is live, and clearly Celtic-inspired, but everywhere has its own flavor added. Most of the bands consist of at least a guitar or piano and rapid fiddle music.
Our band for the night will be the husband and wife team of Jonathan Larkin (accordion and guitar) and Amy Richardson Larkin (fiddle) who play traditional music from Ireland, Quebec, Cape Breton, New England, Appalachia and Louisiana. They recently formed a larger band, Buzzard's Bayou, that plays Cajun and Zydeco, and also play in several other bands. . is it hard to learn?
Not hard at all.
Dances are all taught by a caller who teaches the moves,
and tells you as you go through each dance what to do.
This simple method of teaching makes contra dancing very easy to pick up,
and is especially helpful to seniors or younger children who might find memorizing moves difficult.
Our caller will be Dan Pearl who is a well-known caller throughout New England, and has long volunteered in several roles for the New England Folk Festival Association. what is all ages, really?
Contra dancing is unique in its ability to draw people of different ages together for a fun night.
Contra dancing is energetic and a good source of exercise, but not hard to do or to learn. Adults and children, as well as a growing number of teens, enjoy contra dancing on a regular basis.
do I need a partner?
No.
Contra Dances are "mixers" with frequent changes of partners, and people come either singly, or in couples or groups, sometimes whole families.
why is this event being held?
Who am I, anyway? My name is Sarah Hirsch,
and I am a student at Middletown High School.
MHS Students get to chose a community service project that they feel would change or benefit society in some way.
I have grown up dancing, and would love so much to get a contra dance started on Aquidneck Island.
more questions?
Follow our
Contra Dance Links
to more dances,
festivals,
directories of callers and musicians,
online music,
history,
and other resources.
how do you do it for five dollars?
We don't!
Our caller and musicians,
and the Fenner Avenue Club,
have all made very generous arrangements,
and we have been given a grant.
This dance could not happen without their help,
but we can not count on them for future dances.
Costs for the caller, two or three musicians, and the hall, total in the mid hundreds. Established dances need to draw over a hundred people and charge from five to eight dollars, often with a whole-family price cap. We do hope this one event grows into a series. Offsetting some of these costs for a new dance will keep the price low, making it easier for more people to come try it, especially families and young people. If you're interested in sponsoring, or any further questions, please email me @ sarah_hirsch@hotmail.com or call (401) 849 3466 where else can I dance?
The nearest Community Contra Dances are
directions Yahoo Map to Fenner Hall Your principal landmark is One Mile Corner, a cross-roads on the Middletown / Newport line. Following another fine old New England tradition, the name One Mile Corner is not on the map, but is known to locals, if you should need to ask. However, every road passing through it changes both in name and appearance. Coming from the North, take 24 South from Fall River to the very end of 24, then continue South on RI 114 West Main Road. It joins RI 138 East Main Road in Middletown. Continue going South on what is now 138, to the Newport line. This is One Mile Corner, Heading South, West Main Road narrows and turns into Broadway, but here you turn left onto Miantonomi, Coming from the West, take RI 138 over the Newport Bridge, use the second exit ramp, which continues RI 138. Turn left getting off the exit, go up hill straight through one set of lights, to another set of lights at the top of the hill. This is One Mile Corner, Heading East, Admiral Kalbfus Road narrows and turns into Miantonomi. Go straight through onto Miantonomi. (Miantonomi will become Green End after three more blocks, but you're not on it that long.) You will go East on Miantonomi, for just two short blocks to a stop sign. There are two Inns on this corner, the Agincourt and the Carriage House, both with lighted signs. Here you turn South onto Fenner for two blocks more. Fenner Hall will be on your left. 
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