Folk School Barn Dance

March 7, 7 PM – 9 PM. Beginner Lesson at 6:30 PM

Twin Lakes Gilbert Lodge – 6800 N Long Lake Rd, Traverse City, MI 49685

Swing, promenade, and allemande to the dulcet tones of live fiddle and guitar by Laurel Premo and Michael Beauchamp-Cohen.

Join us on Friday, March 7, at Gilbert Lodge at Twin Lakes for our first barn dance! Experience the joy of traditional dance forms like contras, squares, and lines, all set to beautiful live music and instructed by welcoming callers.

Pat Reeser of the Bayside Travellers will provide instruction before each dance, but if you’re new to square dancing, join us for a beginner lesson at 6:30 PM, where we will walk through the basic steps.

No experience is needed. No partner, no problem. All are welcome!

Suggested donation of $10-$20 to cover the cost of the musicians and venue, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds!

Let us know if you’re coming! RSVP below.

About the Musicians

Laurel Premo has spent her life immersed in American and Nordic folk traditions. Now both new compositions and arrangements of older music are held in a living relationship with tradition, musically revealing a bloom of underlying harmonic drones, minimalist repetition, and rich polyrhythm. The deep relationality comes through lived experience as a woman raised by the beings, land, and folk culture of the Upper Midwest. From Finnish dance halls to square dances to time spent locally and abroad with elders, this understanding now pushes itself out, not as separate roots but a combined voice. In addition to being a teacher, performing and recording artist, she takes great meaning from being a functional musician – helping to lead and create the energy for dance and ritual with music.

Michael Beauchamp-Cohen is a Michigan-bred songwriter, musician, and performer. He writes lyrically dense, unconventional folk songs that explore personal subjects made universal through the process of their transmission. He picked up the guitar at age thirteen, and alongside his songwriting, has grown a reputation as a go-to rhythm guitarist to hold down dance bands, and has played all over the state for dances with the quartet Bowhunter.

Laurel and Michael were both board members of Square Dance Kalamazoo and helped to put on downtown dances for that SW Michigan community for 6 years. Together the two musicians collaborated on the project Red Tail Ring which brought their concerts to three continents and the best of America’s folk music venues and festivals. As relatively new members of the Northern Michigan community, they’re so pleased to put down roots again making music for dance.

Good to know before ya go

What is contra dancing?

Contra is a type of traditional folk partner dancing, similar to square dancing in many ways (and we usually throw a square dance or two into the mix!)

I’m new here! Is contra and square dancing tricky?

Please come and bring other new friends! All levels of dance experience are welcome. If you can walk to a beat, you can contra dance. We teach the basics for you to get started, and after that, you can make it as simple or as intricate as you like! Join us at 6:30 PM for a beginner lesson to go over basic steps.

What should I bring?

Consider bringing a pair of clean, dry shoes so the dance floor stays clear of snow. A donation of $10 – $20 to cover the cost of the musicians and venue is suggested but not required. Come with your friends, family, or a big group—the more the merrier.