Greetings, Contra Dance Community!

Please join us Saturday, April 8th, at 7pm for live music and dancing. Our wonderful local Celtic band, The Ballybogs, will be playing this month, Ric Goldman will lead the calling for the evening.

the details:
location: Pine Forest Grange  is located at 63214 Boyd Acres Road, Bend, OR. (Grange halls are alcohol, drug, and smoke free zones- a healthy gathering place for family friendly groups like ours)
cost: $10 (cash, check or venmo accepted)
time: doors open at 6:45; dancing to begin at 7pm until 9:30pm

 It’s a great idea to arrive a few minutes before 7, especially if it’s your first time dancing with us. Regular dancers, we also need you to come at 7 and help the beginning dancers. It makes for a great dance experience for everyone, it gives us time to get to know each other and time to warm up.

The more the merrier, bring a friend or two. We love sharing the dance floor with new friends!
Soft-soled, non-marking shoes are recommended.

– Concerning the spread of contagious disease, we encourage hand washing/sanitizing between dances, and welcome you to wear a mask, if that makes you more comfortable in this situation. As much as we do want you to attend our dances this season, please stay home if you aren’t feeling well.  

As always, we appreciate any help at the end of the evening to help clean up the Grange hall, so it will be ready for the next group on Sunday morning.

We cannot wait to welcome your smiling faces at the doors of the grange hall, and more importantly, share the dance floor with you this Saturday.

Warmly,
Anna and the Bend Community Contra Dance Board

–About Our Contra Dances–

Contra dancing comes to us from New England where it’s been popular since the 1800’s. In a contra dance, couples dance in lines with moves prompted by a caller. If you’ve ever done square dancing you may recognize some of the moves.

What you need to know about our dances:

Beginners of all ages are welcome- come with a partner, with friends, or by yourself. Contra dance is a social dance and you will be dancing with a partner and others around you. Feel free to ask the folks here to dance with you- that’s why we come.

If you’ve never been to an evening of contra dancing, we strongly recommend the dancers’ warm-up at 7:00pm when we run through most of the basic moves you’ll need to know. Each individual dance is taught with a walk-through before the music starts.

During the evening we’ll do several contras, a circle mixer, a waltz or two. There may even be a square dance thrown into the mix.  The live music will be provided by great local talent from Bend or the Pacific Northwest, playing celtic jigs and reels, old-time Southern fiddle tunes, or newer compositions by talented contra musicians. Bands usually consist of a fiddle, mandolin, and guitar or piano. It’s guaranteed to make you want to move your feet!

The location for our dances: Pine Forest Grange  63214 Boyd Acres Road, Bend, OR              MAP

Just off the parkway at the Empire exit, turn north on Boyd Acres Road, go about three blocks, it’s on the right. The dancing hall has good acoustics and ample parking (no stairs to navigate).

Our dances are alcohol and drug-free, clean soft-soled shoes are appreciated.

Admission is $10 per person. Children 10 and under must be accompanied and supervised by a paying adult. Dances are held autumn through spring on Second Saturdays 7 pm to 9:30 pm, beginners instruction and warm up starts at 7:00pm, so please come a little early, we open the hall at 6:45. Our events are open to everyone- invite a friend or two, it’s an effective way to spread the word about our dances.

A Contra Dance Lesson Series found online

We need volunteers to accomplish what we do, can you…
Come at 6:45 to help set up or help clean up afterwards
Become a board member of Bend Community Contra Dance
Organize a fund-raiser
Sponsor a caller or band
Help advertise. Put up posters around the area to promote contra dancing.