Merri's Workshops

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Contra Dance Workshop: Timing is Everything, Better Never Than Late! Contra dances thrive on the dancers' collective synergy. Learn new ways to be there, be ready and be part of the joyous whole.

 

Contra Dance Workshop: Finding your Inner Babe. Flirting is the skill of making each and every dancer you meet look and dance their best. Explore dance nuances to help you "flirt without intent" but with abandon. Learn to find those "moments" that make dance sublime.

 

Contra Dance Workshop: Lead Me Only With Thine Eyes. Dancer communication and connections enhance the dance experience. Learn verbal and non-verbal cues to tell your partner what you want and need. 

 

Contra Dance Workshop: Dancing the Other Half. Let the women be the men and the men the women. Learn to dance each other's roles, focusing on "leading" and "following." This will allow you to dance every dance, no matter how many extra men or women are present, and to see how the other half lives on the dance floor.

 

Contra Dance Workshop: Dancing Transcendently. Nuance is the key to making dance sublime. Sometimes the art of dancing can be lost in all the twirls, flourishes, and rowdiness. This dance workshop will focus on making you stand up, stretch out, lean back and discover an elegance, grace, and beauty you never knew you had.

 

Contra Dance Workshop: Contra Connections. The dance line shines when each dancer does his or her best to make the partner and the rest of the dancers move beautifully. Practice eye contact, etiquette, and teamwork to enhance the dance experience.

 

Contra Dance Workshop: The Dizzy and the Flow: a Tribute to Gene Hubert and his Dances. Involvement with your partner is one of the key elements in Gene Hubert's dances. One of the finest dance composers in modern history, Gene wrote 100's of flowing dances, as well as three volumes of "dizzy dances," before his untimely death in 2006.

 

English Dance Workshop: Finding Your Inner Queen/King. Travel back in time 400 years to discover the elegance, grace, and regal coquettishness you never knew you had. By dancing through the ages, we will explore the history and nuance of English country dance, as well as the connections that English dance has to contra dance. (This workshop is used when only one English workshop is offered during the weekend.)

 

English Dance Workshop: Elegant English, A Proper Primer (Part 1 of 2). Contra dancers who think English country dance is "slow, boring contra dance" will change their tune after skipping and flirting their way through this introduction to English country dance.

 

English Dance Workshop: Digging Deeper into English, By George, I Think I've Got It! (Part 2 of 2). Experience the different music tempos that English country dance involves. Explore more thoroughly this sprightly dance form and enjoy leading with your heart toward the beautifully haunting music.

 

Callers Workshop: So You Wanna Be a Caller? (for beginners) Dip your calling toes in the water. Hands on workshop will have the group up and calling together as well as learning to communicate with the band.

 

Expanded Callers Workshop: Calling Basics for beginners (requires 2 hours minimum or 2 sessions) Learn how to time your calls to the music, touch on teaching with brevity and clarity, figure out what you need from the musicians and how to ask for it, and briefly consider programming an evening dance.

 

Callers Workshop: Teaching a "New Dancers Class." Get 'em Up, Get 'em Moving, Get 'em Smiling. Learn techniques and quick teaching tips to make new dancers feel welcome and at ease.

 

Caller/Band Workshop: Working with Real, Live Musicians. Live music is the great energizer of dance. This hands-on workshop will help callers better communicate with musicians and allow musicians to share their "wish lists" with callers.

 

I'd be happy to develop any other workshop you might like your dancers to experience.