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Promoting traditional English and American music and dance

Today's Dances & Events

Round Top String Band
Robin Fischer
Friday, January 17, 2025: SQUARE at Hillside Club in Berkeley. Robin Fischer with Round Top String Band: Nick Lofaro, Rowan McCallister, Dan Kluger, Allegra Thompson
Old-Time Square Dance at the Hillside Club! This dance is in the year 2025. No experience necessary. Kids welcome. BYOB--beer and wine only; no hard liquor. Doors open at 7:45. Please pay in cash or venmo. Bring dance shoes if you have them; no stiletto heels allowed. Regarding the style of dance: this is not a modern or club square dance; it is a traditional or old-time square dance. That said, square dancers of all stripes are welcome! More Info

Upcoming Dances & Events

Bruce Hamilton
Bill Jensen
Elizabeth Ingber
Saturday, January 18, 2025: Making Music Visible (An English Country Dance Workshop) (SPECIAL/ENGLISH/WORKSHOP) at St. Mark's Church in Palo Alto. Bruce Hamilton with Bill Jensen, Elizabeth Ingber
A workshop for intermediate dancers: everyone should be comfortable with standard figures and their common variations. Bruce will focus on music’s role in dance—hearing more of what it has to say, matching figure to phrase without counting, and enjoying the character of different types of tunes. More Info
Bruce Hamilton
Bill Jensen
Robin Lockner
Elizabeth Ingber
Tuesday, January 21, 2025: ENGLISH at All Saints Episcopal Church in Palo Alto. Bruce Hamilton with Elizabeth Ingber, Robin Lockner, Bill Jensen More Info
Corwin Zekley
Grace Fellows
Wednesday, January 22, 2025: CONTRA at The Polish Club in San Francisco. Music by Corwin Zekley & Grace Fellows [London]: Corwin Zekley, Grace Fellows
Contra - beginner lesson at 7:30, dance 8:00-10:30 More Info
Bruce Hamilton
Charlie Hancock
Jon Berger
Thursday, January 23, 2025: ENGLISH at Christ Church East Bay in Berkeley. Bruce Hamilton with Jon Berger, Rob Powell, Charlie Hancock
English dancing for all - newcomer lesson at 7:25; dance 7:45-10:00 New Voices Night: Bruce Hamilton with Emily Senturia, Daniel Smith, Janet Stephens and Alan Viola. More Info
Corwin Zekley
Grace Fellows
Saturday, January 25, 2025: CONTRA at First United Methodist Church of Palo Alto in Palo Alto. Music by Corwin Zekley & Grace Fellows [London]: Corwin Zekley, Grace Fellows More Info
Celia Ramsay
Anne Goess
Craig Johnson
Erik Hoffman
Saturday, January 25 - Saturday, 25 January, 2025: NORTH BAY FAMILY DANCE (FAMILY/SPECIAL) at Unitarian-Universalist Congregation of Marin in San Rafael.
Join us at UUCM in San Rafael (240 Channing Way) from 2–4pm as Celia Ramsey teaches easy-to-learn dances from US and British Isles traditions. Music by Anne Goess, Craig Johnson and Erik Hoffman. A fundraiser for BACDS Family Week in late June, suggested donation $10/adult or $20/family. For families of all ages and sizes. During the break, in addition to snacks, there will be crafts, stilts, a sing-along, and an “instrument petting zoo”.
David Newitt
Charlie Hancock
Christopher Jacoby
Valerie Rose
Saturday, January 25, 2025: ENGLISH at Christ Church East Bay in Berkeley. David Newitt with Charlie Hancock, Valerie Rose, Christopher Jacoby More Info
Ric Goldman (Portland, OR)
Craig Johnson
Erik Hoffman
Stefan Curl
Thursday, January 30, 2025: CONTRA at Christ Church East Bay in Berkeley. Ric Goldman (Portland, OR) with The Cain Raisers: Craig Johnson, Erik Hoffman, Stefan Curl More Info
Bay Area Country Dance Society
Friday, January 31, 2025: ENGLISH at St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Palo Alto.
We expect dancers attending these sessions to be comfortable with heys for 3 and 4 in different configurations, double figure 8s, and double Mad Robin figures. Dances might include Shetland or dolphin heys, likewise double progression dances and triple minors. Dancers should also be able to maintain their sense of orientation within the set. (This is not the time to bring your friends who are new to English country dancing, although we’d love to see them at other BACDS dance events.)
Lise Dyckman
Patti Cobb
Cat Taylor
Tuesday, February 4, 2025: ENGLISH at All Saints Episcopal Church in Palo Alto. Lise Dyckman with Cat Taylor, Paul Kostka, Patti Cobb More Info

Special Events

Bruce Hamilton
Bill Jensen
Elizabeth Ingber
Saturday, January 18, 2025: Making Music Visible (An English Country Dance Workshop) (SPECIAL/ENGLISH/WORKSHOP) at St. Mark's Church in Palo Alto. Bruce Hamilton with Bill Jensen, Elizabeth Ingber
A workshop for intermediate dancers: everyone should be comfortable with standard figures and their common variations. Bruce will focus on music’s role in dance—hearing more of what it has to say, matching figure to phrase without counting, and enjoying the character of different types of tunes. More Info
Celia Ramsay
Anne Goess
Craig Johnson
Erik Hoffman
Saturday, January 25 - Saturday, 25 January, 2025: NORTH BAY FAMILY DANCE (FAMILY/SPECIAL) at Unitarian-Universalist Congregation of Marin in San Rafael.
Join us at UUCM in San Rafael (240 Channing Way) from 2–4pm as Celia Ramsey teaches easy-to-learn dances from US and British Isles traditions. Music by Anne Goess, Craig Johnson and Erik Hoffman. A fundraiser for BACDS Family Week in late June, suggested donation $10/adult or $20/family. For families of all ages and sizes. During the break, in addition to snacks, there will be crafts, stilts, a sing-along, and an “instrument petting zoo”.
HEY DAYS 2025
Sunday, June 15 - Sunday, 22 June, 2025: HEY DAYS 2025 (CAMP/ENGLISH) at Green Mountain Retreat in Los Gatos.
Hey Days (BACDS English Dance and Music Week) June 15-22 – a residential camp in the Santa Cruz mountains with English Country Dance, longsword, border morris, singing, a music track, storytelling, and more. Staff includes Joanna Reiner-Wilkinson, Andrew Swaine, Rachel Pusey, Daisy Black, Jan Elliot, Shira Kammen, Jim Oakden, Lisa Scott, Chip Prince, Michelle Masek, Rebecca King, McKinley James, Sound engineers Christopher Jacoby and Alicia Cover. Advance registration required; registration opens January 2; postmark lottery deadline February 1. To get periodic announcements about Hey Days click here
Anne Goess
Craig Johnson
Jeff Spero
Sunday, June 22 - Saturday, 28 June, 2025: BACDS Family Week (SPECIAL/CAMP) at Monte Toyon Camp in Aptos.
It's Family Week’s 32nd year. The camp is a special place for families of all sizes, ages, and configurations. Bring your kids, your grandkids, your mom, or just yourself! Activities include circus arts, crafts, maypole dance and parade, Teddy Bears’ picnic, theater (maybe even a mummer's play…), instrumental and singing sessions, and of course, lots of dancing! Registration is now open at our newly revised website (https://bacds.org/familyweek/), which has all the information about this year’s amazing staff, pricing, COVID policy, work-trade discounts, and of course, what sort of wonderful activities to expect. We can also be contacted at familyweek@bacds.org if you want to chat with someone about the details of our camp experiences.

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