About

Indy Contra, aka Indianapolis Traditional Music & Dance Group, hosts contra dances, to live music, mostly 7:45 – 9:45 pm Tuesday nights (see calendar info, below) at Zion Evangelical United Church of Christ in downtown Indianapolis.

Contra is a traditional community / social / folk North American dance form, with a long history of being open to everybody, with no lessons, membership, or partner required.

You must (it’s in our lease) CARRY IN clean shoes with a non-marking, soft sole. Loafers, bowling shoes, walking shoes, sandals, pumps, …most types are fine. No cleats! A sole with lots of ridges & a grip (like lots of sneakers & boots) can stick to the floor enough to make your knees and hips sore; smooth soles are more comfortable!

Contra is collaborative, cooperative, and social, not competition dancing. There’s no smoking or drinking, we swap partners every dance, and anyone’s welcome to dance together, regardless of age, experience, gender, preference for dogs or cats, etc.

We provide a brief new dancer intro / refresher / warm-up starting at 7:30, with dancing for everybody 7:45 – 9:45 p.m. (sharp!).

(We’re on Eastern Time. Google calendars  compensate for time zones, so visitors from Kentucky & Illinois may see 6:45 – 8:45 pm., because your computers are on Central.)

We recommend bringing a water bottle and casual, light weight clothes (skirt or shorts/slacks, and an extra shirt if you sweat a lot). Please do come to (and bring friends to) the brief intro at 7:30,  listen to the caller and the music, and watch the other dancers. The caller will tell you what to do, and the dancers will show you. Almost everybody learns contra from dancing, not lessons, videos, books, or instructions on websites, but dance communities have a few tips here, here, and here.

Admission is generally $5, $4/members, $3/under 25. When the band and/or caller travel from more than an hour away we usually ask for $1 more per person. These events have ALL CAPITALS in our calendar. All events are “more if you can, less if you can’t,” meaning we won’t turn away people who need to pay less than the stated cost (and won’t refuse extra money from those who want to contribute). We offer free admission to those who help with several tasks like setup & cleanup; please talk to any board member if you can help!

Weather? Snow? Storms? We cancel if Indianapolis Public Schools cancel evening activity. Check via WIBC, the Indianapolis Star, or http://twitter.com/#!/IndyContra

Zion EUCC, our new location!

Join us at  Zion Evangelical United Church of Christ (just northeast of the Murat).  This map shows location, one way streets, & what’s nearby.

After dancing, folks often go to MacNiven’s Scottish American Restaurant & Bar for drinks & snacks. Everyone 21 and over is always welcome! Especially those who stay at the dance site for a few minutes to help with cleanup. If you’re under 21, we’re glad to move to another location any time you want to go out; please mention it to a board member.

We also have occasional weekend dances, including Gypsy Moon Ball (October 2012) and Beach Party (February, 2013).

We’ve been dancing contras in Indianapolis since February, 1980! A partial schedule of our past bands and callers is available at Ted Crane’s DanceDB.

Add our calendar to yours (click on  “+ Google Calendar” in the lower right of the whole calendar) or add individual events (open an event and click on “copy to my calendars” at the bottom). A short link to our calendar is http://bit.ly/wSZCjB .

Please email indycontra@gmail.com or call (317) 759-4863 with questions, comments, or feedback.