The Sacramento Country Dance Society, building community through lively dances, live music, and friendly people, proudly presents:

Caller: Mike Fynan
Music: Wild Goose Chase (Margo Meredith, Ann Meigs, Kate Dwyer)
Sound: Clark Smith
Date: Saturday, Oct 11th, 2025 (Second Saturday)
Time: 7:00–10:00 pm, with newcomer’s orientation at 6:30 pm
Location: Coloma Community Center, 4623 T St, Sacramento, CA
Cost: $15 for adults; $10 for college students with ID; $5 for dancers under 18; $30 maximum for families (cash or check); If cost is the only thing preventing you from being there, please talk to the greeters at the door.

Clear, clever, and energetic Santa Rosa caller Mike Fynan is always welcome here!

Flown in live from Nevada County, Wild Goose Chase (Margo Meredith, Ann Meigs, and Kate Dwyer) is always a fan favorite!

Newcomer’s orientation is offered at 6:40 pm, perfect for people who have not contra danced before, or who could use a refresher. Experienced dancers are invited to partner with newcomers during the orientation and early dances to help integrate them into the community. No partners are needed, so come by yourself or with friends or with family. Events are accessible to people with disabilities. Potluck snacks are available at the break, and we encourage you to bring something to share.

Food and Drink

Hydration is important while dancing. Dancers are encouraged to bring their own water bottles.

Please bring snacks to share with the community. Dancers may eat in the area near the food table or outside. Please don’t spill food or water on the dance floor.

Contact: For more information, and lost and found, contact Laura Leonelli, 916-549-7093, or email sactocds@gmail.com. Our schedule of future dances is always available at https://sactocds.org/calendar/. You may join our email list on groups.io at https://groups.io/g/SactoCDS/. Please enter your name when joining.

Note: The location of the SCDS dance calendar has changed. If you subscribed to the calendar before January 1, 2023, please unsubscribe from that one and re-subscribe to the new one. On the Calendar page at https://sactocds.org/calendar/, you can subscribe to the calendar so the events show up in your personal Google calendar. Click the plus sign in the lower right hand corner. For iCal users, the link is https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/sactocds%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics. 

The Sacramento Country Dance Society, building community through lively dances, live music, and friendly people, proudly presents:

Caller: Dane Wallinga
Music: The Sactown Revellers (Kathrine Gardner, Cynthia Llano, and Allen Barnes)
Sound: David Wright
Date: Saturday, September 27th, 2025 (Fourth Saturday)
Time: 7:00–10:00 pm, with newcomer’s orientation at 6:30 pm
Location: Coloma Community Center, 4623 T St, Sacramento, CA
Cost: $15 for adults; $10 for college students with ID; $5 for dancers under 18; $30 maximum for families (cash or check); If cost is the only thing preventing you from being there, please talk to the greeters at the door.

Dane Wallinga has quickly become a Bay Area go-to caller, giving dancers a thoughtful program of interesting, fun dances, called with a relaxed style. He has choreographed a number of dances himself.

Rockin’ vintage tunes for your contra dancing pleasure! Kathrine Gardner discovered her life’s purpose playing some of the first Sacramento contras with Cynthia Llano and David Faulkner in the mid 1980s, then went on to further develop her talents playing in the Bay Area and elsewhere before returning to Sacramento. Local Cynthia Llano, renowned for her musicianship and great backup playing on guitar, mandolin and old-time piano, is a member of the Faulkner Family band (with her husband David Faulkner and their son Joaquin), who play for the third-Fridays dance at the Coloma Grange. Talib Huff calls that dance. Allen Barnes of Davis is a multi-instrumentalist and singer who has played a wide variety of traditional folk music styles for over 50 years. In the 1980s he played with the Possum Trot String Band, whose approach to Southern old time music inspired many, including Kathrine. His mandolin accompaniment in the Revelers kicks up the excitement level for the dancers.

Newcomer’s orientation is offered at 6:40 pm, perfect for people who have not contra danced before, or who could use a refresher. Experienced dancers are invited to partner with newcomers during the orientation and early dances to help integrate them into the community. No partners are needed, so come by yourself or with friends or with family. Events are accessible to people with disabilities. Potluck snacks are available at the break, and we encourage you to bring something to share.

Food and Drink

Hydration is important while dancing. Dancers are encouraged to bring their own water bottles.

Please bring snacks to share with the community. Dancers may eat in the area near the food table or outside. Please don’t spill food or water on the dance floor.

Contact: For more information, and lost and found, contact Laura Leonelli, 916-549-7093, or email sactocds@gmail.com. Our schedule of future dances is always available at https://sactocds.org/calendar/. You may join our email list on groups.io at https://groups.io/g/SactoCDS/. Please enter your name when joining.

Note: The location of the SCDS dance calendar has changed. If you subscribed to the calendar before January 1, 2023, please unsubscribe from that one and re-subscribe to the new one. On the Calendar page at https://sactocds.org/calendar/, you can subscribe to the calendar so the events show up in your personal Google calendar. Click the plus sign in the lower right hand corner. For iCal users, the link is https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/sactocds%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics. 

We’re all dancing at the Echo Summit Dance Camp. Join us on September 27th, when Dane Wallinga calls to the music of the Sactown Revellers (Kathrine Gardner, Cynthia Llano, and Allen Barnes)!

But next month you’ll get to choose between the Echo Summit Dance Camp on the weekend of September 12-14 (http://registration.sactocds.org) and the September 27th dance, where Dane Wallinga calls to the music of the Sactown Revellers (Kathrine Gardner, Cynthia Llano, and Allen Barnes). Or better yet, do both!

And beginning in September, college student admission (with student ID card) will rise to $10, and the admissions cap for families will rise to $30.

The Sacramento Country Dance Society, building community through lively dances, live music, and friendly people, proudly presents:

Caller: Erik Hoffman
Music: The Community Band (Directed by Claudia Kirkpatrick. To play in it, contact her at kirkmusic@hotmail.com)
Sound: Clark Smith
Date: Saturday, August 9th, 2025 (Second Saturday)
Time: 7:00–10:00 pm, with newcomer’s orientation at 6:30 pm
Location: Coloma Community Center, 4623 T St, Sacramento, CA
Cost: $15 for adults; $8 for college students with ID; $5 for dancers under 18; $25 maximum for families (cash or check); If cost is the only thing preventing you from being there, please talk to the greeters at the door.

In 1980, Erik was invited to a contra dance. It was love right out of the starting block. The live traditional fiddle music, the way you danced with lots of people, and the joy of the dance community won his heart. As he participated in his hometown dance, his desire to know more blossomed. There was the teaching, calling of the dance, and there was the music.

Thus, at dance camps, Erik took calling classes, and learned to play the music. In 1985 he started calling at small practice gatherings. As his ability grew, he started calling at the local contra dances.

Over the years Erik has been sought out for calling and playing at various dance camps as well as touring throughout the U.S. and internationally, in England, Denmark, France, and Italy.

Erik’s love of the tradition shows every time he calls, plays, or just joins in the local dance.

Newcomer’s orientation is offered at 6:40 pm, perfect for people who have not contra danced before, or who could use a refresher. Experienced dancers are invited to partner with newcomers during the orientation and early dances to help integrate them into the community. No partners are needed, so come by yourself or with friends or with family. Events are accessible to people with disabilities. Potluck snacks are available at the break, and we encourage you to bring something to share.

Food and Drink

Hydration is important while dancing. Dancers are encouraged to bring their own water bottles.

Please bring snacks to share with the community. Dancers may eat in the area near the food table or outside. Please don’t spill food or water on the dance floor.

Contact: For more information, and lost and found, contact Laura Leonelli, 916-549-7093, or email sactocds@gmail.com. Our schedule of future dances is always available at https://sactocds.org/calendar/. You may join our email list on groups.io at https://groups.io/g/SactoCDS/. Please enter your name when joining.

Note: The location of the SCDS dance calendar has changed. If you subscribed to the calendar before January 1, 2023, please unsubscribe from that one and re-subscribe to the new one. On the Calendar page at https://sactocds.org/calendar/, you can subscribe to the calendar so the events show up in your personal Google calendar. Click the plus sign in the lower right hand corner. For iCal users, the link is https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/sactocds%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics. 

Contra will be back on August 9th — Join us then for Erik Hoffman, calling to the music of the Community Band, directed by Claudia Kirkpatrick. If you’re a musician and would like to play for that dance, contact Claudia at kirkmusic@hotmail.com.

English Country Dancers will be dancing on August 3rd, in Room 10 at Sierra 2, 2791 24th Street, Sacramento. Alan Winston will be calling at 2:30 to the music of Quite Carried Away.

The Sacramento Country Dance Society, building community through lively dances, live music, and friendly people, proudly presents:

Caller: Mark Goodwin
Music: The Cain Raisers (Erik Hoffman, Stefan Curl, and Craig Johnson)
Sound: Ken Britten
Date: Saturday, July 12th, 2025 (Second Saturday)
Time: 7:00–10:00 pm, with newcomer’s orientation at 6:30 pm
Location: Coloma Community Center, 4623 T St, Sacramento, CA
Cost: $15 for adults; $8 for college students with ID; $5 for dancers under 18; $25 maximum for families (cash or check); If cost is the only thing preventing you from being there, please talk to the greeters at the door.

Mark Goodwin began calling contra dance in Chico in 2001 and has called for local regional dances, including Nevada City and Newcastle. His aim is to call programs that bring everyone along for the ride, with dances that are memorable, have intuitive transitions, and weave familiar and interesting elements into a variety of dancer interactions.

Erik Hoffman on fiddle, Stefan Curl on banjo, and Craig Johnson on piano and accordion — you can bet they’ll be raising cain!

Newcomer’s orientation is offered at 6:40 pm, perfect for people who have not contra danced before, or who could use a refresher. Experienced dancers are invited to partner with newcomers during the orientation and early dances to help integrate them into the community. No partners are needed, so come by yourself or with friends or with family. Events are accessible to people with disabilities. Potluck snacks are available at the break, and we encourage you to bring something to share.

Food and Drink

Hydration is important while dancing. Dancers are encouraged to bring their own water bottles.

Please bring snacks to share with the community. Dancers may eat in the area near the food table or outside. Please don’t spill food or water on the dance floor.

Contact: For more information, and lost and found, contact Laura Leonelli, 916-549-7093, or email sactocds@gmail.com. Our schedule of future dances is always available at https://sactocds.org/calendar/. You may join our email list on groups.io at https://groups.io/g/SactoCDS/. Please enter your name when joining.

Note: The location of the SCDS dance calendar has changed. If you subscribed to the calendar before January 1, 2023, please unsubscribe from that one and re-subscribe to the new one. On the Calendar page at https://sactocds.org/calendar/, you can subscribe to the calendar so the events show up in your personal Google calendar. Click the plus sign in the lower right hand corner. For iCal users, the link is https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/sactocds%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics. 

The Sacramento Country Dance Society, building community through lively dances, live music, and friendly people, proudly presents:

Caller: Tanya Merchant
Music: Wild Goose Chase (Margo Meredith, Ann Meigs, and Kate Dwyer)
Sound: David Wright
Date: Saturday, June 28th, 2025 (Fourth Saturday)
Time: 7:00–10:00 pm, with newcomer’s orientation at 6:30 pm
Location: Coloma Community Center, 4623 T St, Sacramento, CA
Cost: $15 for adults; $8 for college students with ID; $5 for dancers under 18; $25 maximum for families (cash or check); If cost is the only thing preventing you from being there, please talk to the greeters at the door.

Tanya Merchant learned to call dances while sheltering in place during the COVID-19 pandemic and has been calling contra and barn dances since venues re-opened in 2021. Dancers praise her clear, warm, and energetic calling style.

Flown in live from Nevada County, it’s Wild Goose Chase! Anne Meigs, and Kate Dwyer, and Margo Meredith bring a special flavor of music that’s always a crowd favorite!

Newcomer’s orientation is offered at 6:40 pm, perfect for people who have not contra danced before, or who could use a refresher. Experienced dancers are invited to partner with newcomers during the orientation and early dances to help integrate them into the community. No partners are needed, so come by yourself or with friends or with family. Events are accessible to people with disabilities. Potluck snacks are available at the break, and we encourage you to bring something to share.

Food and Drink

Hydration is important while dancing. Dancers are encouraged to bring their own water bottles.

Please bring snacks to share with the community. Dancers may eat in the area near the food table or outside. Please don’t spill food or water on the dance floor.

Contact: For more information, and lost and found, contact Laura Leonelli, 916-549-7093, or email sactocds@gmail.com. Our schedule of future dances is always available at https://sactocds.org/calendar/. You may join our email list on groups.io at https://groups.io/g/SactoCDS/. Please enter your name when joining.

Note: The location of the SCDS dance calendar has changed. If you subscribed to the calendar before January 1, 2023, please unsubscribe from that one and re-subscribe to the new one. On the Calendar page at https://sactocds.org/calendar/, you can subscribe to the calendar so the events show up in your personal Google calendar. Click the plus sign in the lower right hand corner. For iCal users, the link is https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/sactocds%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics.