Bloomington Contra-Dance

The Bloomington Contra-Dance far exceeded my expectations.  I looked forward to the event because I used to take ballroom dance classes and I thought my experience would give me an advantage over others.  Sadly, it took me nearly an hour to get into the “swing” of things.

Contra-dancing made me feel like I was a part of something larger than myself.  People were counting on me to complete each dance step correctly and with enthusiasm.  Knowing that people were relying on me added extra pressure.  At first, this extra pressure made me consistently mess up and throw the dance off.  After I grew more comfortable, I became a dancer my peers trusted in order to complete future steps.  I had such a blast contra-dancing, my professor even asked me if I was drunk.  This was probably due to my light-headedness/dizziness (from being sick and dancing), my errors dancing, and my confusion holistically.  I would also like to believe I was asked this because I was laughing non-stop and having way more fun than anticipated.

Contra-dancing was extremely participatory: we all played roles in creating unity throughout the chaos of dancing.  Compared to a more mainstream forum for public dance, contra-dancing was significantly more inviting and accepting.  The mainstream forums for public dance tend to be more judgmental, where people evaluate strangers on appearance and other (usually more shallow) characteristics.  Contra-dancing was less focused on sexuality, and more focused on socializing.  Everyone asked one another to dance and was tremendously more inclusive, where there was a heavy emphasis on social bonding.

In all honesty, I would attend this event again.  IFS largely taught me about myself.  I had no idea how open-minded I was until I got here, and I am really proud of myself for making every scenario fun! Contra-dancing was definitely outside my comfort zone, but I figured I may as well make the most of it, and I ended up surprising myself with how much fun I had.  I think I would only go again if I had friends coming to dance and laugh along with me.   Unfortunately, my Hollywood 1 class has us watching a movie every Wednesday night during the contra-dance.  Hopefully, I will be able to get out of that at least once.

Participatory music making and participatory social action have countless benefits.  They each serve as an escape from the stresses of everyday life.  Those involved form a strong sense of community, and the differences among one another are irrelevant as the state of flow is created.  The greater the participation, the better the feeling and overall experience.   Humans crave forming connections with one another, and these participatory events are perfect opportunities to form these connections.  Best of all, skill level is not important.  Since the focus is on social bonding, ability in that department can be scattered among participators.  There is still a strong sense of inclusion despite the various levels of expertise.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time at the contra-dance.  My classmates and I left humorously teasing one another and laughing at the experience holistically.  I think we were all caught off guard by how much fun we had.  It amazes me how much keeping an open-mind can shape experiences positively.  With any luck, I will be able to get out of my Wednesday night class sometime and have so much fun contra-dancing that people will think I am drunk.