Contra Dance booming in Warren

By Kristen Ray
Posted 8/23/19

They stepped and twirled across the Historic Warren Armory dance floor, their movements in line with the live piano-and-fiddled beat. Over 20 dancers, both young and old, were bright with laughter as …

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Contra Dance booming in Warren

Posted

They stepped and twirled across the Historic Warren Armory dance floor, their movements in line with the live piano-and-fiddled beat. Over 20 dancers, both young and old, were bright with laughter as they hooked arms with their ever-changing partners or couples; just thirty seconds, and they were off once again. Strangers became acquaintances; acquaintances became friends, if only for those three hours that evening.

It was, simply, just another night of contra dancing, hosted by East Bay Contra Dance (EBCD) this past Friday, August 2. Founded in 2013 by Elwood Donnelly, EBCD has been bringing community members together once almost every month for a fun, all-inclusive social night out full of music and dancing. 

The evolution of contra dance

It was back in the mid-1990s while in Kentucky that Mr. Donnelly was first exposed to contra dance—a 200-plus-year-old communal-style of folk dancing, performed in long lines of couples. Traditionally, ‘Gents’ gather on the left, ‘ladies’ over on the right, facing one another as callers prompt them through different figures of dances that last between 10 to 12 minutes. Early versions, called chestnuts, were more formal, considered to be proper; the dress was conservative, the physical contact between couples and partners limited.

“It’s more like flirting; you’re teasing each other,” Mr. Donnelly explained. “It was a place for people to court each other.”

Whereas chestnuts were reminiscent of the Downtown Abbey and Jane Austen-era, today’s contra dance is much more relaxed. Partners will swing with one another, perhaps even do the waltz. Often, figures will include squares, typically circle mixers too.

Since moving to Warren in 2012 and founding EBCD a year later, Mr. Donnelly has offered both varieties of contra dance to the local community. With callers teaching the different figures before each dance begins, all skill levels are welcome, whether they choose to participate in just one or every single dance. 

“It’s fun, it’s easy,” promised Mr. Donnelly. “There’s no experience necessary.”

Fun for all

Not only has the dance itself evolved over the years; more recently, the terminology used to guide participants through the different figures has changed, too. Contra dance groups across the nation have begun shifting away from using the standard ‘gents’ and ‘ladies’ verbiage, opting for gender-free alternatives instead. Though several combinations have been tried and tested, ‘larks’ (for gents) and ‘ravens’ (for ladies) has largely won out, and are the terms that EBCD adopted just a year ago.

“My personal belief is that tradition is always changing to suit culture and society, and I’d much rather be more inclusive than exclusive,” Mr. Donnelly said.

Just as before, dancers have the option to line up on whatever side they want; the only difference now being that there are no longer any gender-specific connotations, allowing for a refreshing and welcoming atmosphere for those who may identify as transgender or simply neither gender at all.

“It’s just plain nice to not have to listen to ‘gents’ and ‘ladies’ all night if you do not identify with either,” Mr. Donnelly said.

That being said, the transition has, admittedly, been somewhat of a learning curve for callers, with the occasional mishap sometimes resulting in incorrectly guiding dancers through their different figures. Additionally, Mr. Donnelly has recognized not all callers are welcoming of the change. At EBCD, he leaves it up to that night’s caller; if they happen to opt-out of using the gender-free terms, Mr. Donnelly makes sure that dancers are notified beforehand.

In the end, though, Mr. Donnelly simply just encourages participants to enjoy their time dancing down the line with all of the different partners they will get to meet—whether they are larks or ravens, ladies or gents.

“Dance with whomever comes your way.”

 

 

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Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.