| | Contra dancing across the generational divide |  | |
Amherst area gathering reflects a regional communityJanuary 2012
By Mike Briotta
PRIME Editor
On a cold evening, while most people are congregating at local malls for last-minute Christmas shopping, dozens of folks instead make their way up the steps of the Masonic Lodge in downtown Amherst. This is a different type of gathering. It's a contra dance, and in Amherst it's a midweek opportunity to step out for an evening of face-to-face communal joy.
Contra dancing stands in contrast to the digital age. In many ways, it's the opposite of Facebook "friending" on your iPhone. In an era when social networking is something conducted through a computer screen, spending time with real people — rather than their avatars — is fast becoming a radical concept. However, few people outside of Hampshire or Franklin County fully understand its allure.
"This is a revived series," says organizer Will Loving of the Wednesday night dance events. "There seemed to be a space for a weeknight dance. I wanted to make it accessible to people who don't have transportation, so it's on the bus line. Our crowd is very intergenerational. We have dancers from ages 16 to over 80, and every generation in-between." The midweek dance in downtown Amherst has been in existence for about one year.
Loving continues, "The music ranges from traditional contra to 'techno contra' with black lights and lasers; Lady Gaga to whatever. Traditionally, the music is very much a fiddle-based framework." Playing on this night, the band Arigana Highway is compose...
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