SALUDA -- Contra dancer Judy Thompson tolerates no wallflowers. I should know. When I dropped by last month's Blue Ridge Contra group gathering, my “I'll just sit at the table over here and watch” was ...

The caller – Ridge Kennedy – patiently taught the group with demonstrations. He reminded everyone that it’s ‘easy to get started with [contra dancing]’ and that if they kept coming back, eventually, ...

From the time I was a young child and attended high holiday services, I always felt a shiver up my spine during the prayer where the community begs God not to abandon them like the way elders are ...

The sound of lively fiddle music filled the Pacific Lodge Masonic Hall on a recent Wednesday evening as caller Hannah Johlas directed the action through a microphone, telling the two dozen contra ...

The contra is coming to Danbury and dance fans are shaking out their skirts and lacing up their soft-soled shoes. A blend of folk-style dancing from several cultures, contra's roots reach back through ...

MAYBE I WAS the problem. Each time someone asked me to dance at the Emerald City Contra Dance at the Phinney Center on Phinney Ridge, I inquired all friendly-like if he was a regular. In turn, he ...