Interview with Caller Chris Ricciotti

What is your background in Contra Dance? When did you start? Did you grow up doing it?

Started dancing a 6 yrs old in Coventry, RI. Coventry, RI at that time had a great, very vibrant dancing community. As a kid, I didn't take well to sports, but when I first heard the music of square dancing and discovered square dancing I was immediately drawn to it. I Started off dancing in competition, and eventually they ask me to call at the competitions. in old time style square dancing.
Started calling in competition. I did a lot of dancing when I was in 4H, and when I got kicked out of 4H, because I was of coarse too old, I wanted to continue dancing

What about the Gender Free Contra Dance?The Community behind it?

I discovered contra dance in 1984, and took to contra dancing in Rhode Island back when there was a dance community in Providence. When I got out of college he wanted to continue in contra dance, I discovered that I wanted to bring together two things about my self, my journey of discovery of being a gay man and contra dance. The Gender Free Contra Dance started in 1987, but it started out as Ladies and Gents. I began it in Providence and then it extended to Hartford. Eventually, the community were dissatisfied with the name of it (Ladies and Gents) and wanted something that would be more encompassing, something that everyone could identify with. That's why it is now called Gender Free. The community really wanted to take hold of how the dance was being defined to better represent themselves.

So is Gender Free Contra Dance only in Jamaica Plain?

No its everywhere, Boston, Atlanta, San Francisco, North Carolina...

Is this all the result of your started of Gender Free Contra Dance?

No, people would always get together and dance. What I did was development a consistent series where we would get together and dance every other week.

Why is Contra Dance important to the community (lgbt)? What draws people to contra dance?

Contra Dance attracts like minded people. It tends to attract people “outside of the mainstream.” It's a subculture, it attracts people within subcultures. a same subculture. It attracts people who put more importance on feeling good from being together rather than feeling good from what you buy for yourself. It's a group participatory event where you can actually touch each other, and its important because in the outside world it's not always safe to do that.

What about the Brown University Contra Dance? History With it?

The Brown University contra dance started with a group of young people who use to participate in the Providence contra dance when it was still running and decided to get together and start one at the university. When the Providence contra dance stopped running, people Started attending the Providence contra dance. I started sometime in the mid ninties. I believe Andy Grover (fiddler with white squall) was one of the students who helped start it. People would come in around 9:15. The more experienced older dancers would come in to dance early on, and as the night progressed the younger crowd would come in. The dance now has really changed. It's grown to be more consistent.

What about NEFFA?

NEFFA, New England Folk Festival, is a free form networking group that networks the different folk dance communities around New England. There are a number of different dance groups around. Boston has a very vibrant history of dance and dance community. Here there is Contra dance, traditional English and Scottish dancing , Scandinavian style dancing they all exist around the boston area. NEFFA happens every year, and it allows the dancing group to market and network with each other. Callers speak with other callers, dancers speak with other dancers, and musicians speak with each other.

For me, I do this, because it is a way for me to connect with people. It builds a community. It allows me to Network and be with people of like mind. Contra dance shows us the values of generations before us, Making own music, your own dancing, providing your own entertainment without needing it to come from somewhere else. In 1993, I got in my car and traveled across the country, and during that time, when I was away from home, what sustained me was meeting up with dancing communities across the country. Everywhere I would stop and meet up with a different group of dancers, and that allowed me to meet new people which has led to me being able to build bridges from across the country.