Contra dance at Brewery Arts Center good fun, good exercise

On the fourth Saturday of the month from September until April, folks gather in the Brewery Arts Center ballroom and bring to life a fun, healthy tradition that goes back hundreds of years.

It's called contra dancing.

"Most people don't know about it, even though it's been going on for 400 years," said Chris Bayer, who plays fiddle at the Pioneer Family Dances organized by his wife, Darla.

"We're all doing this because it's fun and good exercise," she explains.

A group of her regulars gave a demonstration Sunday. Their next dance is Saturday night.

Contra is French for "country," she explains. It came to the United States via the French, who got it from the English, who in turn got it from the Scottish. Americans adopted the dances - similar to square dancing with swings, promenades and allemandes - around the time of the American Revolution.

"One of the nice things about it is, you can screw up and not get yelled at," said Pioneer Family regular Pierre Hathaway. "That's one of the reasons I stopped square dancing - people were taking it too seriously."

Another difference between square and contra dancing is a square dance set is comprised of only four couples, whereas the number of couples in a contra set is limited only by the length of the hall.

Dancers form two parallel lines. Couples move up or down the set with each move. They'll eventually dance with every couple in the set.

Another regular, teacher Linda Witkop, has so much fun with contra dancing that she shared it with her fourth graders.

"They had a blast," she said. "'Let's do it again! Let's do it again!' they said. I was exhausted, but they loved it."

Dee Dee Foremaster likes being able to spend time with her daughter.

"I can come here for the evening and have fun with my child, and that's really important," she said.

"It's fun for all ages," Hathaway said. "You can dance with somebody who's 8 and somebody who's 80 in the same dance."

It's also a way to have fun without alcohol, Darla Bayer said.

"We had a guy in here one New Year's who said, 'I never knew you could have this much fun without drinking,'" Hathaway said.

For the recent New Year's dance, 105 people showed up in the brewery's ballroom.

The room is well-suited for contra dancing, Chris Bayer said.

Dancers from California who use a school gymnasium in their hometowns are impressed by the wood floor and tall ceiling of the ballroom.

"This is as good as it gets," he said. "These kind of rooms were constructed for the kind of dances we're doing here. They had a caller, they had a fiddle - it was considered the height of social elegance in the 19th century."

You don't have to be a good dancer for contra, nor do you have to have special shoes.

"There is no fancy footwork; it's just walking to the music," Chris Bayer said. "The only required costume is a pair of comfortable walking shoes."

Contra dancing in Carson City used to be organized by Eddie Mayo, Darla Bayer said. She and her husband took over three years ago.

Sometimes there are more women than men or vice versa, but that's OK, she said.

"Yeah, the best dance I ever had was with Eddie," said Hathaway with a snort.

Live music is provided by the band Wild Sage. Bayer plays fiddle and concertina, Cory King plays guitar, Jack Shipley plays hammer dulcimer, and Margy Verba plays cello.

All dances are explained and "walked through" first, so no experience is necessary.

The Bayers encourage parents or grandparents to bring their young ones, but all ages are welcome.

"If young people ever figure out how much fun this is, we'll have tons of people here," Chris Bayer said.

Contact Karl Horeis at khoreis@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1219.