Unique southern contra weekend in beautiful Appalachia

A detailed schedule will be posted by March. The general flow is below, subject to change.

• Thur-Friday: Folks arrive early to get settled in, take advantage of the amazing mountain activities close by, get some rest before the dance
• Friday: There will be many sets played between 7pm on Friday night and 7am on Saturday morning. There will be dancing interludes, along with a bon fire and  celebration when we greet the dawn
• Saturday: The morning and afternoon will be for rest and reprieve or open activity time. Late afternoon there will be workshops and a contra medley session Saturday night
• Sunday: Waltzing in the morning with workshops all afternoon and a farewell contra to wrap up

We are going to try something different. No bands. That's right. Each contra set will be about 1-2 hours and will look and feel different each time. A different lead musician will pick the style and tunes while being joined by an ensemble of other talented musicians. So each set will have a unique flavor to make sure you can keep your feet moving till Dawn! We are still working on confirming everyone. So far, we have Edward Howe, George Paul, Rob Zisette, Mitch Reed, and Sammy Wetstein. More musicians and Callers to come!

You know how when you go to a dance weekend or a festival, and you have these important life conversations with folks, somewhat randomly? Sometimes these unplanned conversations about relationships, life, and struggles can lead us to make different decisions in our lives. We wanted to create a weekend where we dance, eat, and talk together intentionally about things that matter. Workshops will be lead by multiple people to provide a variety of topics to dive into. More details to come.  

Bring your instrument and play some tunes with us for one set of the dawn dance! A tune list will be posted. Come early to practice a little before the dance.  

This event is inspired by the Dawn Dance that was hosted in Battleboro, VT for many many years. Read the interesting and well documented history of the dawn dance here. Here is an excerpt -- "There is evidence of late-night social dancing in America, going back at  least as far as the 18th century. John Quincy Adams noted such events  in his diary in 1787: “…At about seven o’clock we met at the dancing  hall, and from that time till between three and four in the morning we  were continually dancing.” Numerous other references to after-midnight dancing can be found over the next two hundred years."

Come dance till dawn with us! 

The Appalachian Folk School, 3142 Divide Rd, Mountain City, TN 37683. 

Mountain City is situated north east in one of the highest valleys in the state of Tennessee. It has an interesting history. One fun fact is that the town is the site of the first Mountain City Fiddlers Convention, that is considered a landmark event in the modern history of Appalachian music, and contributed significantly to the development of country music.

If you're coming for the weekend, there are a few options on where you can stay:

• Affordable Camping - on site
• Affordable Bunkhouses- onsite, shared space, single bed 
• Cabin - onsite - private, limited
• Local Air BnBs and hotels

We encourage folks to eat locally and to bring your own food to eat potluck style with each other, bring your favorite recipes to share. There are kitchens available for cooking and food storage.

A food truck will have food onsite for some meals. 

Lot's of local, close options. 

We want to create a safe and fun environment. Any concerns can be emailed to waltzforjoy@gmail.com

It takes a village! Help us pull off this event in exchange for a free or reduced ticket. There are many ways to contribute through

• set up/break down
• onsite extra hands
• welcome registration table
• photography
• video
• creative writing
• or any other gifts you can share to elevate this experience for people.  
• https://forms.gle/xZGub9uZTa6k1Dir9