Did you know that Brooklyn has a thriving Contra folk dancing community?
Brooklyn Contra, a non-profit organization founded in 2010, hosts two Contra dances each month, where participants enjoy the North American folk dance in which the dancers form two sets of parallel lines which run the length of a hall.
Each dance consists of a sequence of moves that ends with couples having progressed one position up or down the set. As the sequence is repeated, a couple will eventually dance with every other couple in the set. Contra dancing was all the rage in the 1800s.
The organization helps New Yorkers learn Contra in an inclusive space and connects others with folk tradition.
“We’re like the working-class equivalent of sort of what you may see in a Jane Austin movie,” said Joe Rinehart, committee organizer.
The non-profit is almost completely run by volunteers, who work for an hour and then dance the rest of the night away.
The events begin with a 30-minute lesson before the dancing begins, and throughout the night, a volunteer guides people to their next step.
To get into the Contra groove, click here for a schedule and enjoy the video below.
