Door County Contra Dance Weekend Overview

The Door County Contra Dance Weekend (part of the Door County Folk Festival) is one of the most fun-filled, enjoyable and educational dance weekends held in the Midwest.  Each year, the Festival attracts hundreds of participants to Door County, Wisconsin, from all around the U.S., Canada and often other countries.  The Contra Dance Weekend begins on Friday, July 14th and will run from through Sunday, July 16th.  This Annual event will continue a tradition of enjoyable, extended July weekends in which one can dance, sing, play, learn, share experiences, eat, party and make new friends in a congenial, relaxed community atmosphere.

The weekend offers a wide range of options for contra dancers, square dancers, clog dancers and musicians of all levels of experience and interest, as well as activities and accommodations for their non-dancing family, friends and significant others.

The Weekend engages many talented callers, instructors and musicians from the Midwest and beyond to lead events. 

The 2017 schedule provides a variety of learning and entertainment opportunities including dance workshops, dance parties and youth activities.

• Calling/teaching staff includes Jonathan Sivier (Champaign), Meg Dedolph (Oak Park), Lynn Szatkowski (Berlin/Princeton), and Paul Collins (Chicago) and others TBD
• Musician staff includes Rare Privilege (Milwaukee & Madison), the Cosmic Otters (Chicago), Jason Businewski (Milwaukee), the Door County Folk Alliance (Sturgeon Bay), and others TBD
• Nine (9) dance workshops (Contras & Squares, English Country Dance & Pat Shaw Centennial Dances, Clog Dancing, American Country Dance)
• Friday evening Family Barn Dance led by the Door County Folk Alliance (Ephraim) (FREE)
• Friday & Saturday evening Contra/Square Dance Parties (Ephraim)
• Saturday evening Traditional Door County Fish Boil Dinner (Baileys Harbor)
• Free Youth Activities (featuring dance, music, singing, nature, creativity, etc.) (Fri-Sat) (Sister Bay)

Other Activities in Door County

The Door Peninsula is mid-America's favorite vacation area and is located in north east Wisconsin between Green Bay and Lake Michigan. 

Door County (often called "the Cape Cod" of the Midwest) has something for everyone, including: sandy beaches, rocky shores, scenic hiking trails & vistas, bike trails, canoeing, sailing & boating, state parks, fishing, "pick your own" orchards, guided and self-guided scenic tours, museums, art galleries, music & theater, water sports, golf, unique shopping opportunities, an outdoor drive-in movie park, and a large selection of restaurants including one with "Goats on the Roof" (which incidentally is the title of a song written by the Festival's Founder, Gerhard Bernhard), and it has the Door County Contra Dance Weekend and the Door County Folk Festival.