Fifty years ago, Scott Russell and his girlfriend, Susan Davis, saw an ad in Creative Loafing for international folk dancing at Garden Hills Recreation Center. They decided to attend and joined about 20 people dancing to music emerging from a small turntable.
They had no idea then how popular one of these dance forms — contra — would become in Atlanta and how it would spawn a warm and tight-knit community.
Fast-forward to 2025.
Davis, 76, and Russell, 77, who married in 1980, will join more than 250 other dancers for the Atlanta Contra Dance organization’s “Contra Fantasia” weekend at Decatur Recreation Center on Friday through Sunday. Dancers from across the Southeast and as far away as Alaska will swing their partners in both new and centuries-old dances to the sounds of two live fiddle bands, the Dam Beavers and River Road.
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
New York-based Alex Deis-Lauby, 34, one of contra’s new generation of dancers, and the internationally known, Atlanta-based dancer and organizer Cis Hinkle will be the callers. They stand on stage with the band and “call out” instructions to participants before and during each dance.
The weekend is designed for more experienced dancers, but organizers say everyone is welcome and there’s no need to bring a partner. (The group’s regular Friday evening dances are always preceded by a 30-minute lesson for newcomers.)
Hinkle, 73, stumbled into contra in 1980. “I walked in the door, heard the live band and knew I had found my people,” she says. “It’s such a welcoming and accessible form of dance. You can walk in off the street and be dancing in the first few minutes if you are willing to try. Over the years it’s where most of my friends have come from.”
After launching in Garden Hills in 1975 the weekly dance moved to the First Existentialist Church in Candler Park, where it surged in size. Russell remembers as many as 100 people squeezing into the church’s small hall. “We had street presence there,” he says. People in the neighborhood would hear the music and walk over to check it out.
Credit: (Courtesy of Patrick Harrigan)
Credit: (Courtesy of Patrick Harrigan)
The dancers back then were in their 20s and 30s, part of the generation that jettisoned their parents’ Life magazine and Lawrence Welk in favor of Mother Earth News and Pete Seeger. They were drawn to the fun and freedom of contra, a dance form that British colonists brought to New England three centuries ago.
The dance experienced a resurgence in the 1970s and ‘80s throughout the U.S., and Atlanta’s fledgling group soon needed more room. It moved to Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse’s rehearsal space, then to Horizons Atlanta school, followed by Morningside Baptist Church, Clarkston Community Center and, ultimately, to Decatur Recreation Center.
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
Atlanta Contra Dance has a generous spirit: At Horizons school, the group installed a wood dance floor; and anyone from Florida and North Carolina who was impacted by the devastating hurricanes and floods in 2024 could attend last year’s November weekend bash for free.
This year, the organization is offering half-price tickets to metro Atlanta dancers who haven’t participated in the annual fall dance weekend before.
“We want to be as inclusive as possible and don’t want finances to be a hindrance,” says the organization’s treasurer, Joe Dew, 72. “The chance to have bands here who are renowned throughout the contra community is really a thrill. They are so good, and the callers are so phenomenal, and when you watch the dancers from above, which you can at the ‘Dec Rec,’ it looks like a kaleidoscope or a Busby Berkeley movie.”
Credit: (Courtesy of David Frantz)
Credit: (Courtesy of David Frantz)
Historians say more than 16,000 contra dances have been created since the first ones were recorded in the late 17th century. New ones are being choreographed all the time in the U.S. and around the world. “Contra Fantasia” participants will have the opportunity to dance as many as 60 contras, old and new, along with a waltz or two.
Atlanta’s Kimbi Hagen, 68, and her husband, Karl, 70, met at a dance in North Georgia and are among the many people who found their spouses through contra.
Credit: (Courtesy of Brett Erickson)
Credit: (Courtesy of Brett Erickson)
The Atlanta group celebrates these marriages by sewing a quilt for each newly wedded pair. Russell and Davis were gifted one, too. Fifty of these quilts will be on view in the recreation center during “Contra Fantasia.”
Meanwhile, the decorations team has created paper cutouts of dancing hippos and flamingos for the lobby, inspired by the Disney movie “Fantasia.” Guests are encouraged to add to the festive atmosphere by wearing a costume Saturday night.
For the last 20 years, Hagen has been the group’s volunteer scheduler. She spends countless hours scheduling the musicians, callers, sound technicians and hosts and even offers out-of-town band members a place to stay — her home near Emory University.
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
She and other longtime volunteers keep the organization alive, but for all their energy and commitment, they have been worried for many years that the Atlanta dance community is aging out. It’s one reason the leadership has enthusiastically embraced and supported Trolley Barn Contra Dance, a younger group that dances on Tuesday nights at the Trolley Barn in Inman Park.
“Those dancers are the same age we were when we first discovered contra,” Hagen says. “We hope to build a new generation … who will eventually dance at both the Trolley Barn and ACD (Atlanta Contra Dance).”
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
Credit: (Courtesy of Dave Pokorney)
Younger dancers are now taking responsibility for running the group. Jeremy Peterson, 29, joined the Atlanta Contra Dance board just four months after falling in love with the dance form and is now vice president. He’s also part of the Trolley Barn Contra leadership team.
Most current Atlanta Contra board members are under 50, Peterson says, and they’re reaching out to younger generations through social media and bring-a-friend-for-free nights.
“Older members are making a concerted effort to transition to a new generation,” he says. “Kimbi goes out of her way to get younger people involved.” That includes developing the next generation of callers, musicians and sound technicians.
Credit: Photo by Kembi Hagen
Credit: Photo by Kembi Hagen
Everyone is welcome to Contra Fantasia and the regular Friday night dances, regardless of age, gender identity, race or politics.
“It’s an opportunity to smile at your fellow dancers and forget about other things,” Dew says. “That’s the essence of our dances. And when the music is really good, it encourages people who are just exhausted to dance until midnight.”
IF YOU GO
Atlanta Contra Dance: “Contra Fantasia”
6-11 p.m. Friday; 9 a.,m.-11 p.m. Saturday; and 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. $145 for the weekend with a la carte pricing and discounts available. Decatur Recreation Center, 231 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-310-0929. contradance.org/atlanta-dance-weekend.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
