Inclusive, Happy Dance

Please come dance with us at North Berkshire Dance’s monthly contra dance on Saturday, February 8, at the Williamstown Community Preschool. Caller Andy Davis will open with beginners’ instruction at 7:30, leading right into our inclusive, happy dance from 7:45 to 10:30 p.m. Fiddler Annika Amstutz and pianist Becky Hollingsworth will lead an all-comers band. This month, the evening will start early with an optional potluck dinner at 6:30 PM. Bring a dish to share (no nuts, please).

We are lucky to have the guidance of people who know the music in their bones and love passing it on. Andy Davis calls traditional New England dances, plays accordion and piano, and composes his own tunes. Andy’s specialty is calling for community events which are welcoming to dancers of all ages and abilities.

Annika Amstutz co-directs the Fiddle Orchestra of Western Massachusetts with David Kaynor and plays with bands throughout the valley with buoyant energy. Becky Hollingsworth has been the backbone of many open bands and encouraged many emerging musicians with her calm presence and warm sense of humor. Musicians and aspiring musicians with some experience in the New England contra dance traditions are welcome to join. If you have a tune list, please bring it to share. (If you don’t have a tune list yet, all it takes is a pencil and a piece of paper.) Annika and Becky will lead “by-request”, favoring common repertoire tunes suited to the dance of the moment.

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NBCD will also hold a snack potluck halfway through the dance, and everyone is welcome. (The school is a no-nuts zone.) Monthly dances continue on second Saturdays. Admission is $12, or $5 for students and children, and $25 for families. For more info, visit us at northberkshiredance.org, or call 413-663-4479.

Becky and David