Susan Marie Frontczak, Storyteller

The Maroon Bells Morris Dancers

The Solstice Sword Dancers

Mudra Dance Studio

Breathless In Berthoud

Bryan Connolly Extreme Juggling

Chris Kermiet, Dance Caller & M.C.

Larry Edelman, Guest Caller

Pat Tognoni, Guest Caller

Our Musicians:

Joel Hayes

Seth Houston

Rodney Sauer

Storysmith® Susan Marie Frontczak brings literature to life, creates stories from thin air, and hones personal experience into tales worth telling again and again. Her stories and living history presentations have taken her to schools, libraries, corporations, and theaters across 34 of the United States as well as Europe. Susan's original stories have been heard on Colorado Public Radio (Morning Edition), at the Colorado Music Festival Young People's Concert, through Story Gleaner productions, and on her CD"The Three Fishes & Other Stories." Susan Marie's motto is: "Give me a place to stand, and I will take you somewhere else." More at www.storysmith.org.

The Maroon Bells Morris Dancers

Maroon Bells Morris is affiliated with the Country Dance and Song Society, and is the oldest of three Morris Teams now dancing in Colorado.The team has been serving the communities in which they dance for over 24 years, encouraging all onlookers to share the joy and luck of the Morris

The Maroon Bells Morris Dancers are a diverse group, hailing from the greater Boulder/Denver Metro area and all walks of life. They are always on the lookout for new dancers to join in the fun. Contact Squire Robin Smith at robins@mesanetworks.net for more information, or visit us on the web at: http://www.maroonbellsmorris.org

The Solstice Sword Dancers

The Solstice Sword Dancers are five members of the Bennett School of Irish Dance: Molly Bennett, Ken Horweige, Bill Bennett, Beckee Laurie & Bill MacAllister. Molly, Ken and Bill are veterans of seven years of dancing rapper swords and welcome Beckee and Bill to their team this year. As exciting as Irish dancing can be, the intricate interlacings of rapper swords adds a whole new dimension to their dancing experience. Their practices have become one of the premier spectator events at the Friendship Irish Dance Center, since nobody can believe that anyone could extricate themselves from the complex tangles of steel that are the heart of rapper sword figures. They always do, however, like so many armed Houdinis, ready to go into the next impossible tangle and amaze everyone by emerging unscathed.

Mudra Dance Studio

The Mudra Dance Studio is a Colorado based dance troupe under the directions of Namita Khanna Nariani, who was born and raised in India. She trained in “Kathak”— the North Indian Classical Dance style that means “dancing a story” and is an expressive dance style that has intense foot work and numerous turns. Namita‘s expertise is also in the diverse folk dance styles from around the country.

Mudra Dance Studio teaches and presents classical, contemporary and folk dances from India, that include Kathak and dances from both north and south India. Started in 1993 by Artistic Director Namita Khanna Nariani, Mudra has performed all over the Colorado Front Range, including the Dragon Boat Festival, Parade of Lights, Boulder Creek Festival, Filipino Festival, Boulder Asian Festival, as well as their yearly dance concerts. Mudra performed in Bombay in 2005 to a sold-out house. The dance company has a diverse student body, ranging in age from 3 to 65.

Namita Khanna Nariani, who is also a local Denver architect, received dance training in Bombay, India since the age of 4, and has performed and choreographed internationally. As a choreographer Namita has worked with "Up withPeople" and was a master teacher at the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance 8th annual Summer Institute. She is also the guest lecturer for the Department of Humanities and the Dance Department of the University of Colorado at Boulder at the undergraduate and graduate level.

Visit the Mudra Dance Studio at mudradancestudio.us.

Breathless in Berthoud (Border Morris)

Morris Dance is an English tradition of dance and music which survives as part of a ritual designed to shake off the dark and gloom of winter and celebrate the coming of spring. While the origins of the tradition are lost in ancient times, the general opinion is that the dance is quite old, possibly derived from pre-Christian rites, passed down by word of mouth (and jingle of bell) from father to son, generation after generation.

Villagers in secluded Bampton, Oxfordshire, say Morris Dancing has been performed at Whitsuntide every year, except in time of war, for over eight hundred years. Even then, there are indications that Morris was a custom "from time out of mind."

Shakespeare mentions the dance in several of his works, and one of his star actors, Will Kemp, was a "Morrice Dauncer."

Border Morris Dancing originated along the border between England and Wales. It is related to the Cotswold Morris Dancing from the English midlands, but a bit less refined, and danced with a bit more gusto. Sometimes performed as a means of earning Christmas money, Border Morris Dancers often wore blackface and passed the hat for donations.

Featured on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Breathless in Berthoud is the only Border Morris Side in Colorado. We would enjoy astonishing you, and would like to take this opportunity to inform you that we are always welcoming newcomers to experience this ancient and mysterious dance form.

For more information, contact Anne or Robin Smith at robins@mesanetworks.net or visit our website.

Bryan Connolly Extreme Juggling

Bryan Connolly has spent the last 7 years of his life developing a unique juggling style that incorporates various acrobatic stunts and other passions of his, such as dance and theatre. Training to join a circus school in Montreal is his current focus, although he regularly performs his fire show at house parties.

Chris Kermiet

Chris Kermiet has been calling and teaching traditional American community dances for over thirty years and is recognized as one of the finest callers in the United States. In 2000, he received the Heritage Award/2000 Artist Fellowship from the Colorado Council on the Arts for calling and teaching traditional American dance, as well as the Westword Best of Denver Award for Best Dance Caller. In 2009 he was honored as a "Living Legend of Dance" by the Carson-Brierly Dance Library at the University of Denver. During the last ten years, as well as being in demand as a caller and teacher of traditional dance, he has created choreographies for a number of performing groups and theater companies.

Chris grew up with traditional dance. His father, Paul Kermiet, was one of Colorado's premier old time callers, and ran a summer camp on Lookout Mountain where Chris heard the best callers from around the country. He learned from all of them, and it shows in his teaching and calling, his broad repertoire and familiarity with traditional dance, and the way he puts new dancers at ease.

Larry Edelman

Larry Edelman has been playing traditional music and calling dances for more than 30 years. He calls a variety of dance styles including traditional squares, contras, dances of the southwest, and specializes in community dances. He is an avid dance researcher and has studied traditional dances from various regions of the USA and has written books and produced videos on traditional dance calling.

Larry has traveled widely and has called and played in just about every state in the country as well as the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Russia, Germany, Canada, the Czech Republic, delighting both novice and veteran dancers with his humor, enthusiasm, skillful teaching, knowledge of dance history, and colorful calling. Larry has played and taught at dozens and dozens of dance and music camps and festivals throughout the world.

He currently plays fiddle, mandolin, and guitar with several dance bands including the Percolators, Poultry in Motion, and the Soda Rock Ramblers. He appears on recordings on the Wildebeest, Kicking Mule, D & R, and Yodel-Aye-Hee labels.

Pat Tognoni

To contra dance caller Pat Tognoni, calling, dancing and playing music are very important highlights of life. She says, "I absolutely love seeing people smile and having a great time at the dances.".

During the 1990s Pat performed with the Hoofin' High Country doggers for 12 years. During that time she also went to her first contra dance. She explains, "When I'm dancing, I'm in the clouds. Dancing has always been my passion and love to dance all types including contra, ballroom, Latin, country western, tap, jazz, and clogging. Calling and teaching dance, including contra, ballroom and clogging, allows me to pass that passion on to others."

Pat began calling in the late 1990s when she co-organized the Greeley dance. One night the caller didn't show up because there was a blizzard! After that, she began to call at the other Front Range dances. Over the years she has called across Colorado, and in Kansas, Utah, Wyoming, Pennsylvania, and Maine.

"What I know about calling I've learned from other callers, dancers, musicians an life in general. Sometimes it's exact and oftener than not it changes and morphs. My thoughts on the teaching — be concise and quick. Get the dancers to dance — that's what they came for." Pat's repertoire includes contras, squares, and circles. Along with the CFOOTMAD and FOTD organizations, she also calls for weddings and private parties.

Pat also plays double bass and guitar, and loves jamming with friends. She hosted a jam in Greeley for six years, and just recently started one in Denver. She plays with the group Tuney Loons.

When Pat is not calling, playing or dancing, she can be found doing sprint triathlons, gathering cattle for ranchers, playing in the sandbox with her grandson, advocating for persons with disabilities, hiking, backpacking, and traveling. She advises, "Enjoy life — this is not a dress rehearsal!"

This year's musicians:

Joel Hayes

Joel Hayes’ life as a fiddler began when he took up the violin in grade school, but then it stalled in the seventh grade. Years later, while attending the 1989 Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas, he was inspired by the music of Doc Watson and the bands Hot Rize and New Grass Revival.

The next year of his life was pivotal musically. While living in Lawrence, Kansas, he picked up the fiddle and also discovered contra dancing! When he moved to Greeley, Colorado, in 1991, he began taking fiddle lessons from violinist and fiddler Eric Levine. He attended the “Berea Christmas Dance Week” in Kentucky where Gib Gilbert, the host at the time, nudged him into playing for the late night contra dance (his first!). Not long after that, Joel joined an open mike night at a Denver Contra Dance hosted by fiddler Anita Dolan. On stage with him were musicians Deb Carstensen, Tina Gugeler, Denise Berg and John and Susan Reading. Several of those musicians, including Joel, formed the great band Contrafusion.

His mentors include Eric Levine and Old-Time fiddler Dave Brown. Joel has become one of our “crossover musicians,” able to play both New England and Old-Time musical styles. In his day job, Joel is a lawyer for people with disabilities.

Seth Houston

Visit his web-site.

Rodney Sauer

Rodney Sauer plays piano and accordion in a wide range of ensembles and settings including American, Irish, Scottish and English traditional dancing, ballroom dancing and silent film accompaniment. His multifaceted background makes it possible for him to accompany musicians for a huge variety of dances and performances and he does so with incredible expertise and finesse. Visit his web-site.