Charleston Folk
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Charleston Folk presents a Virtual Contra with Tea & Whiskey and Drew Delaware!
Saturday, February 6, 2021 at 7 pm
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84761069538
Join the event any time between 7:00 and 7:30 pm Eastern on Saturday.  New to Virtual contra?  Join the New to Virtual Contra workshop.  This breakout room will open at 7:15. 
​There will be a Charleston Folk Reunion breakout room from 7 to 7:30 so you can catch up with old friends.  Dancing starts at 7:30
.  We’ll have a waltz at the break, and some social time, and wrap up the dance by 9 pm.

Two lead fiddlers from the Charleston music scene unite to unleash mad music and dance! With Karin McQuade on vocals and fiddle and Andrae Raffield on electric guitar and beats, Tea & Whiskey combines tradition with wild trance and electric sounds.

Drew Delaware is an energetic and empathetic caller; you can’t help but enjoy yourself when he’s in command of the hall. His warm voice will charm you, and his clear instructions will make for a great night of dancing.  Based in Toronto, Canada, Drew calls virtual dances all over North America and is graciously donating his time and talent to the contra community. 

​We ask dancers and listeners to please 
make a donation to the band, Tea & Whiskey.  Recommended donation is $10 (more if you can; less if you can’t).  T&W PayPal: kmcmonkey@gmail.com  T&W Venmo: @Karin-McQuade

Paul and Lucy from Charleston Folk will be our hosts and emcees for this virtual Charleston dance!  Join at this link https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84761069538

​Have you tried VIRTUAL CONTRA??  Since we can't physically get together to dance, this may be the next closest thing...  On Zoom, there is a band, and a caller, and lots of other dancers.  You dance alone (or with your home partner) in your living room.  It feels strange at first, but as you go through the steps, you have the muscle memory of the moves, you enjoy the music, and you can almost feel that you are at a dance.  Give it a try! The nice part is that you can dance anywhere in the country from the comfort of your home  ; ) 

Virtual contra dances require knowledge of contra positions and choreography. Dancers will be interacting with imaginary people or their partners in their homes. It is assumed everyone is a reasonably experienced contra dancer.  The good news is that when you dance alone, the contra line is exactly where you imagine it, and unexpected moves become glorious new choreography!  And if you don’t feel like dancing, you can sit back and enjoy the music from the comfort of your living room.  
For those new to Zoom, we recommend watching a Zoom tutorial before the dance. Basically you just need to click on the dance link at your computer (a computer screen works much better than a phone) and you will be in the dance meeting.  Your microphone will be muted most of the time so we can hear the caller.  You can switch back and forth from Speaker view to Gallery view to see who else is there.  Here are some groups that offer Zoom contra and English County dance:
Atlanta DistDance  https://www.facebook.com/AtlantaDistDance
Gainesville Oldtime Dance Society https://www.facebook.com/groups/godsdance
Toronto Contra Dance  https://www.facebook.com/TorontoContraDance
 
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Let's keep the Contra Dance community spirit and connection going! Share your thoughts! 
Please share your ideas and feedback via our Facebook page or email us at charlestonfolkcontraclub@gmail.com
Your Charleston Folk Board 

​
Thanks for coming to our Virtual Contra Dance with ContraForce and Emily Abel on Saturday, November 21, 2020 -- What a smashing success!!  See photos below.

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FRIDAY NIGHT DANCE INFO AND PRICES:  
We generally dance the 1st and 3rd Fridays of the month. Admission is $8 (cash or check) and the dancing begins at 7:30 pm with a beginners' walk-through.  Children aged 6 to 12 accompanied by a paying adult dance for half price ($4). Children 5 and under are free.
Children must be supervised by an adult at all times. Children who are not able to participate in the dance must stay off the dance floor.  Teens 13 and over pay full price, still a deal at $8. 
Family rate: $25 for up to 2 adults and all your children under 18.

A TIP FOR NEWCOMERS: Don't dance with another newbie.  Ask an experienced dancer to show you around.  Anyone can ask anyone to dance. It is customary to ask a different person for each dance.  By the end of the evening, you will have danced with everyone in the room, and you will see why contra dance is so much fun.  : )

More advanced dances will be called as the evening progresses!
SNACKS!  Our dance community takes turns bringing finger-food snacks to each dance.  Please consider bringing something to contribute to the snack table at the back of the hall.

Please note: Due to our concern for the environment, Charleston Folk will not provide glowsticks at our dances.  In lieu of glowsticks, we suggest the use of neon body paint (if desired) for techno contras, and festive clothing.  Thank you, and our planet thanks you!

Charleston Folk is a non-profit, CDSS (Country Dance and Song Society) affiliate organization with a mission to promote, sponsor, and encourage participation in American folk dancing and music traditions  among people of all ages in the South Carolina Lowcountry.

To get on our email list, send an email to contra-charleston+subscribe@googlegroups.com  (no message needed) and then click on the link in the email confirmation you receive.

Learn more about contra at ABOUT CONTRA DANCING  or LOTS OF TIPS

Join our
Facebook group to receive updates and event invitations!


If you are interested in playing or calling at a Charleston Folk dance, here is more information for Bands and Callers.

If you want to nominate yourself, or someone else, for the Meet Your Fellow Dancer series, please send an email to Russ Leckie at
rleck46@gmail.com. 

To suggest a theme for a future dance, please contact Paul Mount at charlestonfolkcontraclub@gmail.com.

Love dancing and want to dance some more? Look here for a list of other nearby dances. 
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