http://www.timesleader.com/mld/timesleader/living/13561830.htm
Pennsylvania, Dallas
Posted on Fri, Jan. 06, 2006
Spring in their step
Contra dancing, Warringtons are crowd pleasers
By MARY THERESE BIEBEL mbiebel@leader.net
Every January for the past few years, local contra dancers have looked around a hall and blinked in amazement.
ÒWhere did all these people come from?Ó they ask as they notice two or three times the number of folks who made it to the December dance. Or the November dance.
Someone nearby is bound to explain, ÒItÕs because the Warringtons are playing tonight, and all their groupies are here.Ó
Then everybody will laugh, because ÒgroupiesÓ sound like a rock bandÕs followers.
And the Warrington family Ð Jean on guitar, Peter on bass and their offspring Ben on piano, Lucy and Ian on fiddles Ð will play Celtic and English country-style music during their annual contra dance appearance.
The music is gentle when compared to rock, but lively when you consider some of the classics the Philadelphia-based, former Kingston residents have performed in other settings.
ÒWeÕre all used to playing classical music, so IÕm used to being more formal and having a designated audience,Ó fiddler Lucy Warrington said.
At a contra dance, ÒitÕs really fun to have everyone reacting to the music instead of just sitting and listening,Ó she said. ÒItÕs a kind of infectious energy.Ó
If youÕre a first-timer at this SaturdayÕs Chicory House-sponsored contra dance, you might discover some of those infectious steps are similar to square dancing.
You could do si do with one person, circle left with three other people, turn a neighbor by the hand, swing your partner and maybe even promenade with your corner.
And donÕt worry about that last activity Ð even if it sounds foreign. To promenade is simply to walk together, and your ÒcornerÓ is just the person nearest you who isnÕt your partner.
Speaking of partners, organizer Dave Martin said, you donÕt have to bring one. Experienced dancers make a point of dancing with novices to show them what to do, and caller Bob Nicholson will encourage people to switch partners after each dance so everyone can dance with as many people as possible.
ÒNo one is relegated a spectator,Ó Martin said. ÒEveryone is promised an evening of moderate physical activity, energizing music and good company.Ó
The exercise part of the equation might be just what you need after Òall the holiday eating and snacking,Ó Martin said. ÒWhat did I just read? Most people gain 5 to 10 pounds?
ÒInstead of sweating in a gym, watching CNN, here you can interact with other people.Ó
You donÕt have to be especially coordinated or graceful to become a successful contra dancer, either.
ÒIÕve seen a lot of people of different athletic ability having fun,Ó pianist Ben Warrington said. ÒIf you go to a dance you pretty much spin or touch hands with everybody in the room, and that feels pretty good, somehow.Ó
Spoken like a dancer Ð and he is one. The Warringtons try to Òswitch outÓ while theyÕre playing so every member of the band gets to dance.
This weekendÕs event marks the debut of a new venue for local contra dances Ð the Fellowship Free Evangelical Church in Dallas.
Longtime participants will remember that several years of contra dances at St. ThereseÕs Church in Shavertown came to an end when the church was remodeled. Dancers became a roving band in recent months, traveling to halls as far flung as the Bear Creek and Penn Haven community centers, Wyoming Seminary Lower School in Forty Fort and St. Boniface School in Wilkes-Barre.
Organizers searched for a long-term home, daring to hope it might have a floor Òwith giveÓ instead of unbending concrete.
They believe theyÕve found the answer at Fellowship Free Evangelical Church, where the floor was designed for sports.
ÒIt depresses when you step on it,Ó Martin said. ÒYou can push your finger in an eighth to a quarter of an inch. ItÕs quite a bit of Ôgive,Õ compared to hard concrete.Ó
A floor like that canÕt be abused, Martin said. ÒDancers are requested to carry in sneakers or flat or low-heeled shoes with non-marking soles and heels. High heels cannot be used on the dance floor.Ó
ÒLeave your hob-nailed boots at home,Ó he added with a chuckle.
What: New England-style contra dance
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Fellowship Free Evangelical Church, 45 Hildebrant Road, Dallas.
Admission: $7 individual; $18 family.
Directions from Wilkes-Barre: Take Route 309 north to Dallas Shopping Center, bear right toward Tunkhannock. After one mile, turn right onto Hildebrant Road. Go one half mile. The church hall is on the right.
Info: 333-4007 or www.folkloresociety.org
Ian, 25, is in medical school in Boston.
Ben, 22, is studying journalism at Temple University.
Lucy, 18, is a senior at Germantown Friends School.
Jean is working in her own film documentary business and as a community activist in Philadelphia.
Peter practices geriatric medicine at Crozer-Keystone Health Systems.
Return to the articles section of the contradancelinks.com web site.