English Country Dance Callers
Cathy Campbell (ON)
facebook.com/catherine.campbell.1654700
Cathy Campbell has been calling English Country Dances for fifteen years, mostly in the Toronto area. Her interests also include writing tunes and dances. She has been calling on Zoom weekly since March for the Toronto English Country Dance Assembly..
Carmen Giunta (NY)
web.lemoyne.edu/~giunta/dance
giuntacj@gmail.com
Dancing of all sorts has been an important recreation for me for about 35 years. International folk dancing was my gateway to a world of recreational dancing that has expanded to include New England style contras and squares, Scandinavian couple dancing, English country dancing, and Scottish country dancing in addition to International folk dancing. I've been calling English Country dances in public since 2003 and still more recently writing them.
Sharon Green (CA)
greenerywest.net/sharongreen.html
On March 20, 2020, Sharon Green started adapting English country dances for solo dancers because she couldn't conceive of a world without English country dancing. Since choreographing Maiden Alone, she has adapted or composed over one hundred shortways sets for one or two dancers, programmed BACDS's Virtual Fall Frolick Dance Weekend, and, with Kalia Kliban, co-founded the Odd Sundays English Zoom Dance, which meets on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Sundays of each month. A caller since 1993, in pre-pandemic days Sharon traveled madly, calling and teaching at dance events throughout the United States, in Canada, the UK and Japan. She feels busier now.
Cathy Hollister (TN)
facebook.com/cathy.hollister.77
Cathy Hollister enjoys calling English Country dances almost as much as she enjoys dancing. She has been a regular caller in Nashville, TN for several years and has been a frequent guest caller throughout the region. She loves the full range of dances from new compositions to the old favorites.
Judy Keeling (IA)
I loved sharing my love of music with thousands of families when I had my own business teaching Kindermusik for 21 years. I started Scottish Country Dancing 15 years ago and my passion is now English Country Dancing. I started a Family Dance series before the pandemic hit us. I dance as much as I can throughout both the UK, where I spend half my life, and the USA. I explored the idea of Zoom calling back in March and have been calling for several Clubs in the UK and the USA. I choreographed my first dance for two people LAST year because I wanted to dance with a friend, and have since written another.
Kalia Kliban (CA)
Kalia Kliban has been part of the Bay Area dance community since the mid-80s, performing and teaching morris, longsword, rapper, American clog, English clog, contra and English country dance. Her clear and humorous teaching style has gotten feet tapping at camps and gatherings in California and beyond. In her spare time she is a woodworker of international renown.
Andrea Nettleton (MD)
Caller and choreographer Andrea Nettleton offers choice dances, thoughtfully written/adapted, for maximum enjoyment in a zoom setting. Her clear teaching and melodious prompts lead to an enchanting dance experience.
Midge Olsen (MN)
www.tapestryfolkdance.org/english-country-dance
Midge found her calling as a caller when the pandemic hit. An English Country dancer for more than 30 years, she had always enjoyed dancing too much to leave the dance floor. Intrigued by the early adaptations of dances for one or two people, and the possibilities of zoom, she began calling for her local ECD community at Tapestry Folkdance Center in Minneapolis on zoom. A great joy during the pandemic has been to see the community expand to include dancers from around the U.S., Canada, the U.K, and Australia. She calls dances with minimum adaptation, and aims to convey as much of the spirit of each dance as possible.
Alan Rosenthal (ON)
Contact: http://www.yrecd.ca/contact2.html
Alan Rosenthal dances in and near Toronto, Canada. He enjoys researching old dance and music, and puzzling out old music notation and lyrics. He primarily calls ECD but has also been known to teach Scottish ceilidh dance. He founded the York Region English Country Dancers in Newmarket (50 km north of Toronto), and has been calling over Zoom since May (2020).
Sharon Spangler (NC)
As a weekly caller for Symmetry ECD, Sharon entertains dancers from California to the UK. Here's what the dancers at her zoom events are saying: "She said exactly the words you needed to hear at exactly the correct time ... the one dance I rearrange my whole schedule to not miss ... a brilliant programme. THANK YOU Sharon and all involved in giving us the joy of dancing."
Luanne Stiles (NC)
For over 15 years, I have danced extensively in communities and at camps throughout the Northeast and Southeast as well as California, Ohio, Illinois, and Canada. I had organized dance events in Massachusetts and after moving to the Carolinas my husband John and I led a biweekly ECD in South Carolina. After moving to Asheville, I continued calling (pre-pandemic), locally and recently joined the Symmetry virtual dance community where I lead dances twice a month.
Rebekah Valencia (OK)
facebook.com/rebekah.valencia.7
I've been calling ECD and Contra for Scissortail Traditional Dance Society since September 2017, about a year and a half after I first discovered the world of social dance. I am passionate about developing confidence in other dancers, whether as a caller on a stage, as a dancer on the floor, or a video on a computer screen. I started calling out of necessity for my local dance community, and I have learned many skills as a caller that have also helped make me a better dancer and community member. I strive to be a lifelong learner, and to enjoy the process so that others around me can do the same.
During the pandemic, I've been a central part of our team for Scissortail - not only as a caller, but also as a board member, organizer, and techie. Additionally, since mid-March 2020 I've led weekly Monday night "Living Room" International Folk Dance sessions for our local group, keeping our community's long-standing tradition going during these difficult times. Since I first discovered social dance, I have been particularly drawn to the welcoming and friendly community - that you can arrive a stranger and leave as family.