By Brittney Johnson
Matthew Kiggen is a Contra Dancer with over a decade of experience. Participants experience a mix of folk, swing and Appalachian style dancing. Much like square dancing without the ‘howdy ya’ll.’
“It’s not like modern dance, in which if you’re not good at dancing you can’t do it…everyone can do it,” he said.
Contra Dancing is a great way to meet people all while experiencing something new. It is like an ice breaker but set to music. Someone (the caller) calls out the moves as the music plays. They are telling each dancer exactly what to do the entire time.
Kiggen compares this style of dancing to Dance Dance Revolution but “olden style” and said “that’s how you can Contra Dance and not be good at dancing.”
Kiggen went to his first Contra Dance as a sophomore in High School and really enjoyed it. “I was really bad at dancing but there’s just this energy. People are smiling and makes it easier to live in the moment.”
Atmosphere is one of the main reasons he has continued to Contra Dance. There’s no pressure just good clean fun. “It’s actually how my fiancé and I started dating. I find it little more wholesome than the stuff you would find in a club setting,” said Kiggen
Student Activities invites everyone to take part in Contra Dance on Monday, March 30, from 5 p.m. to midnight. The trip costs five dollars for students and they must sign up by March 26.