We believe in a city and world where culture is participatory.
Accessible art and culture.
Our Vision
Brooklyn Contra works to build a New York City community that supports the creation of accessible art and culture. We believe in a city and world where culture is participatory, created by the people who experience it, working with traditions and evolving them across and between generations. We strive to build a more inclusive and cooperative art economy that honors the experiences of all of New York City's diverse population, and actively creates space for all of those populations to thrive physically and creatively.
Our Mission
Brooklyn Contra supports the dynamic cultural evolution of traditional music and dance by hosting a season of fun and accessible dances and exciting special events, as well as engaging educational programs for dancers, musicians, and callers. Brooklyn Contra creates an inclusive and safe environment in order to foster sustainable community growth.
Brooklyn Contra is a 501-c3 non-profit registered in NY State as Traditions Unlimited.
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Brooklyn Contra is an almost entirely volunteer-run organization, which is administered by an Organizing Committee with the assistance of Dance Volunteers and our Board of Directors.
The Organizing Committee commits to at least one year of service with Brooklyn Contra, and they do everything from managing Brooklyn Contra’s social media presence and balancing the finances, to booking the dance hall, bands and callers.
Volunteers help out on a dance by dance basis by helping us set-up/take down the equipment and decorations, and assisting with admissions and refreshments. Our volunteers work just one hour and are granted FREE admission on the night in which they volunteer.
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Contra dance has always been a way to adapt a formal dance culture to be more accessible to everyday working people. Looking back on the time since our founding in 2010, we’ve been thrilled to co-create a community dedicated to sharing the joy of connection through contra dance with as many people as possible, now and into the future, and always mindful of the words of Pete Seeger: “When you bring people together for any purpose whatsoever, you’re in politics.“
For us, that has meant creating “participatory folk culture” as an alternative to the profit-driven culture fabrication of modern capitalism and the more stuffy versions of culture that separate audiences from performers. Throughout these past ten years, we tried our darndest to spread the idea that there is magic in the flow of dancers and musicians and that culture is best made by all those who enjoy it. This has manifested as a welcoming, purposeful aesthetic, a call back to our folksy roots while speaking to modern sensibilities, our collaborations within and outside of the folk dance scene, the progressive political role we play, both explicitly and implicitly, at a time when building community is so essential, and in a host of other ways.
That’s not to say we haven’t faced challenges over the past ten years. Financial, organizational, and individual struggles, and the constant quest for affordable space in NYC have prevented us from doing all we would like. Specifically, we’ve never had the capacity to do all the organizing work we hope to do in our community and across participatory folk culture traditions.
Today, Brooklyn Contra continues that mission by changing with our community. We are constantly rethinking ways in which we can be accessible to people of all social and economic backgrounds, and a warm and welcoming community to all people.
