This page is devoted to listing contra dances in the Great Plains region of the United States along with bands, musicians, callers, and organizations that are based in the region. URLs and e-mail addresses are listed when available. New entries, additional information, and changes in information are always welcome. Links to other pages in the www.contradancelinks.com web site are listed at the bottom of the page.

New links are simply new to me, not necessarily new to the World Wide Web. Change in URL means that a link has changed its WWW address or URL.

Regional

• No regional links found or submitted.

Iowa

• Roger Alexander supplies information about dances all across Iowa including those in Fairfield and Grimes.
• And he provides information about The Central Iowa Barn Dance Association which holds dances in Ames on the 4th Saturday of each month.
• The Central Iowa Traditional Dance holds a Festival on the 2nd weekend of September in Ames.
• There will be a contra dance this Friday May 21, 2010 in Burlington, IA, right across the Mississippi River from Illinois. The Lemmings are playing, with Dan Moffitt calling. The dance is at Hibernia Hall, 1204 Washington. Doors open for lessons at 6:30, dancing starts at 7. Admission is $5 and will be split between the band and the Heritage Trust, the non-profit historic preservation organization that restored Hibernia Hall (a former church). Links: http://www.myspace.com/thelemmingsroots and http://www.burlingtonheritagetrust.org New entry (May 21, 2010) .
• The Fairfield Folk Arts and Dance Co-op holds contra dances in Fairfield along with a variety of other events.
• The dances in Highlandville are generally held on the 3rd Saturday of each month.
• Living History Farms in Urbandale hosts a variety of events from baseball games to barn dances. The latter occur on 1st Saturdays from May to October. Slight change in URL (January 3, 2010)
• Hey for Forty sponsors a barn dance in West Branch on the 3rd Friday of each month that includes contras (and polkas, square, rounds, etc.).

Kansas

• Kansas Contra Dancing covers that exact topic.
• The Chase County Contra Dance Society hosts monthly dances on the 3rd Saturday (and beginning in January, the 4th Saturday) of each month in Cottonwood Falls. Change in date/slight change in URL (November 19, 2009)
• CrossCurrents Contra Dance Committee hosts dances in Kansas City on the 2nd Saturday of each month. Change in location (January 3, 2010)
• The Lawrence Barn Dance Association holds dances generally on the 3rd Saturday of the month. They also have advanced dances on 5th Saturdays and family dances on 1st Saturdays. This information is provided by Brad Levy.
• The Lawrence Barn Dance Association holds an annual Pilgrims Progression Dance Weekend in mid-November in Lawrence. Brad Levy maintains the page.
• Uptown Hoedown happens in Lawrence with a mix of hot squares, contras and more, generally, but not always, on 1st Saturdays. New entry (May 23, 2009)
• The Big Feet, Little Feet Family Dance occurs in the late afternoon on 1st Saturdays from October to March in Lawrence. New entry (January 3, 2010)
• The Land Institute, as part of its annual Natural Systems Agriculture Graduate Research Fellows Workshop, holds a contra dance in Matfield Green, Kansas in mid-June.
• There are is Old-Time Community Contra Dance in Newton on the 2nd Saturday of most months from October to April. K. Penner supplies the information.
• The Land Institute holds an annual Prairie Festival in Salina in late September which includes a barn dance.
• The Wichita contra dance series is held on the 1st Saturday of each month.

Nebraska

• The dances in Lincoln occur on the 1st Saturday of each month. Butch Krause supports the page.
• There are dances in Ralston (near Omaha), usually on the 3rd Saturday of each month at 7:30 PM at the Seymour Elementary School with an hour of Scandinavian dances starting at 6:30pm.

North Dakota

• North Country Fiddle and Dance puts on a variety of events on the North Dakota/Minnesota border including in Grand Forks. Check the newspaper, Culture Pulse for listings for upcoming events. Also check the Tickwood Stringband site for information about the dances for which they play in North Dakota.

Oklahoma

• Phil Washburn produces a site called Recreational dancing in Oklahoma which includes information about contra dances in the state. Dances in Oklahoma City (2nd and 4th Saturdays) and Tulsa (1st Saturdays) are included.
• The Scissortail Traditional Dance Society sponsors dances in Oklahoma City on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month.
• The Tulsa Barn Dance series, happening on 1st Saturdays, now has its own web site, maintained by Wesley Brown. Change of URL (December 20, 2009)

South Dakota

Bands

• Acoustic Mayhem, based in Iowa City, Iowa plays rollicking tunes, dancing tunes, sing along songs, and a repertoire that ranges from country to Cajun to classical this band entertains everyone from 3 to 103. Change of URL (January 3, 2010)
• Arabesque plays Arabic and Irish acoustic music on flute and various string instruments for dances and other events in Oklahoma and elsewhere. MySpace page.
• Since its inception in 1991, The Barn Owl Band, its mainstay gig has ben playing for dances in Ames, Iowa, but it has brought its new sound of the traditional American string band to other locales and included new compositions that add to the tradition.
• Calliope House is rooted in Celtic, old-time and folk traditions and banded together in 2003 in Oklahoma City.
• Wayne Cantwell of Del City, Oklahoma, occasionally plays at contra dances. MySpace page.
• Euphoria Stringband from Two Foot Falls, Kansas, specializes in Old-Time music.
• Finnegan's Awake is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma and plays a fine blend of acoustic music with flavors of Irish, Celtic and a pinch of folk.
• The Flatland String Band plays at contra dances and other events in Kansas.
• Flying Pig Fiddle & Banjo play Old-Time Southern Appalachian String Band Music on fiddles, banjo, washtub, washboard, pitchfork, fiddlesticks, feet, and more in and around Iowa.
• The Gilded Bats are an Iowa City area old-time string band who have been playing together since 2003.
• Based in Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, Instant Grits play high energy old-time and bluegrass at contra dances.
• The Plaid Family from Kansas, plays a medley of barn-dance tunes to a turn-of-the-century cakewalk to a new emu-herding song.
• The Porch Stompers play for dances in Iowa and sing some fine country harmonies.
• The Prairie Acre is based in Lawrence, Kansas, started up in 2002 and brings together elements of traditional bluegrass and old-time to create a unique sound and fuel their highly contagious positive energy. New entry (May 16, 2009)
• The Oklahoma group, The Prairie Land String Band plays at an occasional contra dance along with playing the traditional music of post-civil war era, but also Cowboy, Blues, Celtic and American Folk music ranging from songs of the sea to traditional murder ballads.
• Eric Ryan-Johnson plays traditional Irish fiddle in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He can be reached at ericryanjohnson@cox.net or 918.592.4260. Added MySpace page (March 9, 2009)
• The band, Scenic Roots, from Kansas, occasionally plays at a contra dance. They mix bluegrass, folk, celtic, folk, and gospel for their unique sound. MySpace page.
• The Scissortail Mega Band is a group of volunteer musicians who fill in from time to time for The Scissortail Traditional Dance contra dances in Oklahoma City.
• The Suspicious Contra Band includes Ian Bittle, Wayne Cantwell and Malia Bennett and features Old-time American traditional music as well as Celtic Tunes. The band is based in Oklahoma. MySpace page.
• Three Bean Salad, from Lawrence, Kansas, plays a blend of New England Dance, Celtic and other traditional and contemporary styles. MySpace page.
• Two Dollar Shoe Revival Story plays bluegrass but also plays contra dances in Kansas.

Callers

• Roger Alexander calls at many of the dances in Ames, Iowa.
• Jill Allen calls at the many of the dances in Lawrence, Kansas.
• Wesley Brown is a caller from Tulsa, Oklahoma and calls at dances throughout the Great Plains. Change of URL (January 3, 2010)
• Enid Cocke calls on a regular basis at the dances in Kansas. Change of URL (January 3, 2010)
• Lisa Harris from Lawrence, Kansas calls some of the dances in Lawrence, Kansas, and Kansas City areas, and several dances outside the local region. (e-mail only)
• Marcia Minear calls at many of the dances in Ames, Iowa. (e-mail only)
• Lonna Nachtigal calls on a regular basis in Ames, Iowa. (e-mail only)
• Terry Rouse calls in the Lawrence, Kansas area. (e-mail only)
• Jim Williams calls at many dances in Kansas. (e-mail only)

Organizations

• Based in Manhattan, Kansas, the Lloyd Shaw Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to recalling, restoring and teaching the folk dances of the American people. The Foundation engages in a wide array of activities, including the:
  • The Lloyd Shaw Dance Archives, located in Denver, Colorado;
  • A magazine, American Dance Circle;
  • And dance weeks in several locations.

  Marnen Laibow-Koser maintains the LSF web site.

• The Missouri Valley Folklife Society is an all-volunteer not-for-profit Kansas City regional organization committed to bringing high quality folk music and dance performances to the Kansas City area.
• The Kansas Folk Music and Dance Resource Center acts as a source of information about folk music and dance in the state of Kansas.

This page is part of the Contrdancelinks.com web site. For more information about contra dancing, visit these other site pages:

http://www.contradancelinks.com/greatplains.html
Produced by Charlie Seelig
Last updated on May 21, 2010