When I moved here 20 years ago, there was only one place to go latin dancing: Amelia’s in Galtier Plaza on Thursday nights. Now there are quite a few venues, although I just heard that Babalú closed its doors. I recommend the Social Dance Studio if you want to learn salsa for club dancing. 4 Seasons Dance Studio and Cinema Ballroom studio are also good value for group classes. Ingrid, The Dancers’ Studio is a great place to learn ballroom or social dances like salsa or swing–I took lessons there for 3-4 years and I love the teachers there!

It has been a while since I’ve been able to do any serious social dancing, but it used to be: swing/rockabilly, any Trailer Trash gig at Lee’s; lindy, late-night swing at Tapestry on Thurs night; Cajun-zydeco at Half-Time Rec on Sunday. The tango crowd has its own milonga circuit, as do the West Coast Swing people; they both tend to be somewhat insular groups, and I don’t always enjoy dropping in, but when I can hook up with a group for West coast/two-step/variety dance, Becky Thompson and Old school is a great band for dancing. They used to play at Lee’s every Monday night, but I’m not sure if they still do. For sheer exercise value, you can’t beat contra dancing at Tapestry, but the relentless smiling sometimes makes my face hurt.
Dang, I gotta get back out there.

And that’s final.

Dance Troupes? C’mon Scott.