Canterbury’s Dudley Laufman, a nationally acclaimed folk fiddler and folk-dance caller, will lead a community-wide “old-time family country dance” on Saturday, April 2, between 6:30 and 9 PM in the gymnasium of the Andover Elementary/Middle School (AE/MS).
The event is free and open to the public, although “free-will donations” will be accepted. Co-sponsors are the Andover Community Association (ACA) and AE/MS.
Laufman will be joined by Jacqueline, his wife and musical partner for many years, and accompanied by other live musicians. Snacks and light-supper items will be offered for sale by volunteers from the Andover Congregational Church, and getting to know your neighbors and seeing old friends are the reasons for the evening.
Never done country dancing before? “No problem,” said Duncan Coolidge, a member of the ACA board of directors and an organizer of the event. “Dudley Laufman loves to teach folks who are new to this, and he makes it easy for Grandma and the grandkids and everyone in between. We’re delighted to be able to offer this traditional form of New Hampshire entertainment to Andover-area residents and hope folks of all ages and from all over town will join in.”
Echoing Coolidge’s comments, AE/MS principal Jane Slayton added: “As a strong proponent of school involvement in community affairs (and vice versa), I’m encouraging all our students and their parents to join in what should be a time for fun, socializing, and learning.”
A Massachusetts native and longtime Canterbury resident, Laufman has spent much of his life reinvigorating the traditional contra and square dances of New Hampshire. Setting new standards in a centuries-old tradition, he has insisted on live – and lively – music, helping younger musicians learn from older ones the old-time reels and jigs of folk-dancing.
Laufman was honored by then-N.H. Governor Jean Shaheen in 2001 with a Governor’s Arts Award, and by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2009 with a National Heritage Fellowship. He won earlier recognition by bringing New England folk traditions to the Newport, Rhode Island Folk Festival in 1965 via the Canterbury Country Dance Orchestra, which he formed.
In addition, Laufman is an active poet and has published numerous books and broadsides, many illustrated by his wife Jacqueline.
The non-profit Andover Community Association, formed a little over a year ago, seeks to help nurture and enhance a more vibrant, resilient, and sustainable local community and encourage a sense of belonging and personal investment in Andover and its surroundings. Its first-year accomplishments included the launch of a monthly Andover Community Coffeehouse; the Andover Institute; and the Community Communications Group, which recently published an 88-page Andover Business and Resource Directory, distributed free to all town residents.
For additional details, contact the ACA at AndoverCommunity03216@nullgmail.com.