Hi, everyone,

We’re taking a little vacation in August, so I hope you already have plans for this Saturday evening (staying home to relax is a perfectly good plan).

Here’s our schedule for the remainder of 2023:
September 16th (a *third* Saturday) Jeff Walker will call and play guitar, and Kathy Walker play fiddle. They are coming all the way from Poughkeepsie, NY to lead our dance. They specialize in welcoming dancers all experience levels community dances like ours, and say Chorus Jig is one of their favorite dances.

October 14th: Quena Crain will call to music byThree Potatoes Four (Gianna Marzilli Ericson, Rebecca Weiss, and Rebecca Hollingsworth). Quena is a teacher in southern Vermont, and if we’re lucky, she’ll invite her students and their families to join us all at this event.

November 11th: Andy Davis will call, and likely play the accordion. You(!) are welcome to join the open band which will be led by Becky Hollingsworth and Rebecca Weiss. You’re also welcome to dance, watch, or split your time between dance floor and stage in whatever proportions you please.

December 9th: Caller Tony Parkes will come out from Boston to lead our dance; music will be supplied by master musicians Andy Davis, George Wilson, and Selma Kaplan. This is something of a reunion for these four (magnificent) performers, who have enjoyed working together as occaision permits for at least three decades (do I have that right?). Their pleasure in the event will almost certainly give us, the dancers, all a little extra joyous bounce. We know we’ll dance Chorus Jig, and if we’re lucky, we might get some additional old chestnuts beyond that, too. (Monymusk? Hull’s Victory? Lady Walpole’s? They’re all good.)

I hope we’ll see you there!

A few background reminders about our dance: as a community dance in a small college town, we try to be welcoming to and fun for a wide range of dancers. Novices and families with children are encouraged to arrive by 7:30 to participate in the introductory lesson. More experienced dancers can certainly enjoy the first half (simpler dances make socializing easier and more relaxed) , but some may prefer the second half ot the evening when we often shake out somewhat more complex or vigorous dances.
Role Terms: we’re making a slow transition from traditional to gender-neutral role terms, with a preference for gender-neutral. This year we are “caller’s choice”. Most of our callers have chosen to use Larks and Robins when they need to specify roles. Jeff Walker plans to say “the person dancing the gentleman’s [or lady’s] role” or similar, making it clear that these are roles, not identities.

Chorus Jig continues to be our dance of the year for 2023. It’s an “old chestnut” that has been taught and danced since 1820, at least. It has a different flavor from more contemporary contra dances, but is popular at least partly because it’s a very forgiving structure, with plenty of room for mistakes and/or silliness.

We’ve updated our Covid policy as described here (In summary, masks optional, no vaccine requirement, starting in September 2023.)

Location: in the Community Hall of the First Congregational Church, on Main Street, in Williamstown, MA. We hold dances on the second Saturday monthly (most months), and start promptly at 7:30 pm with an introduction for newcomers. From there, the dance runs ’til 10 (or 10:30 on a lively night).

Did I miss anything? If you have questions, please email using the form at the bottom of this page, and let us know!

I hope to see you on the dance floor soon!

-Doone