Sunday contra dance will feature workshop and cupcake contest

By Staff Reports

The Historic Jonesborough Dance Society will hold a waltz workshop, contra dance and cupcake contest on Sunday, July 22, at the Historic Jonesborough Visitors Center, 117 Boone St. Admission to the dance is $7, $5 for HJDS members and $5 for full-time students. All dances are smoke and alcohol free.

The afternoon will begin with a free waltz workshop for beginners at 1:15 p.m. Scott Baxla from Asheville, N.C., will teach the beginning waltz step and progress to simple turns in the 45-minute session. All are welcome to attend, including those who haven’t yet learned the simple, fun, yet life-changing form of movement and expression known as waltz.

Performing for the contra dance will be Good & Plenty, also from Asheville. This outfit consists of Karen Gaughan on keyboard and Laura Lengnick on fiddle. For the regular contra dance, caller Mark Langner will conduct a class for beginners at 2 p.m. where newcomers and experienced dancers alike will learn the basic steps, formations and flow of contra dance. The contra dance will run from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m.

The cupcake contest idea comes from the enormous popularity of cupcakes, not just on the dessert menu but for any kind of snack or treat time. What was once just a love for the delicious treats has now grown into a national obsession and a legitimate mainstream industry nationwide. “Our dancers love sweet treats at the break after dancing for an hour or so. A cupcake contest will meet our snack needs in a fun and creative way,” explained event organizer David Wiley.

Bake and frost six or more of the cupcakes of your dreams. Bring them to the dance along with someone who has never contra danced before and they get in free to the dance! At the 4 p.m. break, instead of the usual Klondike Bars, attendees will enjoy the contestant’s offerings after judges D.J. and Allison Winfield, owners of the Crazy Cupcake, 135 E. Main St., determine who has the highest level of culinary prowess. The winner and runner-up will be given Cupcake crowns and a gift certificate donated by the Crazy Cupcake.

Contra dances are community events. At almost any contra you will find people of all ages and all dance skill levels, from young to old, beginner to expert. Contra dancers form a very open and welcoming group of people. You can come alone or with others since it is a tradition to dance with a variety of partners throughout the night. It is perfectly acceptable for either a man or a woman to ask someone to dance. It’s a great way to make friends with someone they haven’t met before. You will find contra dancing a great way to make new friends.

For more information, call Wiley at 534-8879 or visit www.historicjonesboroughdancesociety.org and Historic Jonesborough Dance Society on Facebook.