Welcome to the Orlando Contra Dance! We feature high-tempo, community dancing. We are Florida’s only gender-neutral contra series. Dancing is open to EVERYONE and FREE for students, returning beginners (2nd contra ever), and those out of work!
New? Curious? Check out the video below or our What’s Contra? page.
We dance on 1st and 3rd Fridays, usually with LIVE MUSIC! Scroll down for details. Changes happen, so CHECK HERE or our SOCIALS before going:
Email – Two dance announcement newsletter a month. We don’t share your email.
Facebook – Dance announcements and conversation
Instagram – Dance announcements, photos, videos
MeetUp – Dance announcements, brings people here!
YouTube – Videos
Here’s the first dance we did at UCF in Fall 2022. Almost nobody knew how to dance 90 minutes earlier. You can do it, too!
We’re beginner-friendly and we’ll teach you everything you need to know. If you can walk, you can dance! No partner or experience needed. There are more videos on our What’s Contra? page and there’s an FAQ, too.
UPCOMING DANCES
Visit our Dances and Events page for the full schedule with musicians.
| DATE | CALLER | MUSIC | THEME/LESSON/NOTE |
| Fri Feb 20 | Harrington, DeCarlis, Sharpless, & more! | DJ Joe Harrington (Orlando) | Dancing for all at IMMERSE! Street fest, corner of Church and Orange, 6:30-11pm – SEE BELOW! NO WINTER PARK BALLROOM DANCE TONIGHT! |
| Sat Feb 21 | Harrington, DeCarlis, Sharpless, & more! | DJ Joe Harrington (Orlando) | Dancing for all at IMMERSE! Street fest, corner of Church and Orange, 5-11pm – SEE BELOW |
| Fri Mar 6 | Kenny Greer (Berea, KY) | McIntyre (Orlando) | Hey! All the hey variations and flourishes |
| Fri Mar 20 | Ang DeCarlis (Gainesville) | LocoMotion (Gainesville & Tampa) | Demystifying Contra Corners |
Details for IMMERSE! Street Fest
| WHAT?? | IMMERSE! is Orlando’s biggest street art festival (see immersefest.com). 70,000 people are anticipated over two days, to experience bands, circus acts, sculpture, Cirque du Soleil, Blue Man Group… and us! We are running the IMMERSivE Dance Experience, featuring FREE dancing in multiple styles including contra dancing, barn dancing, urban line dancing, fusion dancing, Lindy hop, and West Coast swing. |
| WHO | Everyone! We need new dancers who have never danced before to dance with us. Remember that when you dance, you are the art! We need our regulars to help set up, to dance and encourage others to dance, to show Orlando how friendly our community is, to invite new dancers to come to our regular dances, and to help clean up. |
| WHERE | Seaside Plaza Corner of Church St. and Orange Ave. Orlando, Florida Click for map The plaza is outdoors and concrete. |
| SCHEDULE | Friday Feb 20: 5:00 pm Festival start, setup 6:30 pm Lindy Hop with Vintage Dance Co.’s Amye Francis & friends 7:30 pm Contra, barn, urban line, and fusion dancing with Orlando Contra Dance callers Ang DeCarlis, Joe Harrington, Sam Sharpless, and fusion instructor Kyle Killough 9:30 pm West Coast Swing dancing with O-Town Swing’s Lecie Langille and Jessica Beltran and West Orlando Westies’ Chris Rupp 11:00 pm Festival ends, cleanup Saturday Feb 20: 3:30 pm Setup 5:00 pm Festival start, Lindy Hop with Vintage Dance Co.’s Amye Francis & friends 6:30 pm Contra, barn, urban line, and fusion dancing with Orlando Contra Dance callers Ang DeCarlis, Joe Harrington, Sam Sharpless, and fusion instructor Kyle Killough 11:00 pm Festival ends, cleanup |
| COST | FREE! |
| PARKING | Downtown parking garages |
| CALLING TERMS | Calling (dance instruction) is gender-neutral. |
| ATTIRE | We’re dancing on concrete, so cushion soles like sneakers are great. This is athletic, so you will sweat. Hopefully a lot! Dress lightly and bring a water bottle. Stilettos and very high heels discouraged. |
Details for regular dances
| WHO | Everyone! Contra is intergenerational. We have dancers from 7 to 70+, ranging from first-timers to experts. Typically 20+ people come, including 5+ first-timers. |
| WHERE | Winter Park Ballroom Dance Co. 6904 Aloma Ave Winter Park, Florida Click for map Just East of Jeremiah’s Italian Ice The floor is suspended hardwood with a poly finish. |
| SCHEDULE | 6:30 Door opens 7:00 sharp! Beginner lesson! 7:00 Intermediate workshop – 2nd timers through advanced dancers 7:30 Beginner to Intermediate Dancing 9:00 Intermediate to Advanced Dancing 10:30 Dessert at Jeremiah’s Italian Ice (3 minute walk) |
| COST | $15. Students and out of work: FREE! Your second contra ever: FREE! |
| PARKING | Plenty! Free! |
| CALLING TERMS | Calling (dance instruction) is gender-neutral. |
| ATTIRE | Wear what’s comfortable, see videos. This is athletic, so you will sweat. Hopefully a lot! Dress lightly and bring a water bottle. No perfumes, please. Stilettos and very high heels discouraged. |
| BRING | We encourage bringing snacks to share. This is an alcohol-free event. |
CONTRA KNIGHTS (STUDENT) DANCES:
Contra Knights is UCF’s student contra dancing club, sponsored by Orlando Contra Dance. We are seeking UCF student officers to restart on-campus dances. If interested, email info@orlandocontra.org. Meanwhile, come to our Winter Park dances, where students dance FREE!