Square Dance History Project
The rich story of North American square dance finally has a home in the digital age.

Browse Items (42 total)

  • Tags: interview
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Using squares at a contra dance - Beth Molaro

Caller Beth Molaro, of Asheville, NC, is a well-known caller who loves calling both contras and squares. In this clip, talking with Dennis Merritt, she explains some of her thinking that goes into… View item
Document

Ed Gilmore interview, 1961

This interview was recorded in 1961 between Christmas and New Year at the Mission In Hotel, Riverside CA between Ed Gilmore and the then president of the Square Dance Society of New South Wales… View item
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Lisa Greenleaf 6 - the future of squares

Last in a series of six Lisa talks about ways to keep modern square dancing alive in the future. She cites the Pacific Northwest Teen Competition as one promising model to involve young people, and… View item
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Lisa Greenleaf 5 - squares in the contra culture

Fifth in a series of six Lisa is a well-known caller of contras and squares, usually working at events that are advertised for contra dancers. She discusses some of the challenges of incorporating… View item
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Lisa Greenleaf 4 - finding material

Fourth in a series of six In this segment, Lisa offers some advice for individuals interested in learning to call squares. She also discusses where to find new material, and describes the difficulties… View item
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Lisa Greenleaf 3 - modern and traditional squares

Third in a series of six Lisa is one of a relatively small number of individuals who dance both modern and traditional squares. Here she describes what she likes about each form. View item
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Lisa Greenleaf 2 - discovering squares

Second in a series of six Lisa described how she moved into squares, discovering exciting squares at Pinewoods Camp from the calling of Larry Edelman and Kathy Anderson. Later, also at Pinewoods,… View item
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Lisa Greenleaf 1 - working with a contra mentor

First in a series of six. Lisa Greenleaf, a well-known caller of traditional squares and modern squares from the 1950s and 1960s, describes how she got started as a contra caller. She describes… View item
Website

Sammy Spring - fiddler & square dance caller

Sammy Spring (1883–1958) was a fiddler and square dance caller from Otis, Massachusetts, in the western part of the state. This website includes photos of him and a lengthy interview conducted in 1939… View item
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Sandy Bradley 3 - Why'd you stop?

Sandy Bradley was a dynamic and exciting guitar player and caller who gave many northern dancers in the 1970s and early 1980s their first taste of fast-moving traditional western squares. She stopped… View item
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Sandy Bradley 2 - Keeping it fun

"The thing that I thought was crippling people's attitude toward dance was rules. 'You have to do THIS, you have to swing like that, you have to get it right!'" It… View item
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Sandy Bradley 1 - Getting started

Sandy Bradley interviewed by Bob Dalsemer. After a brief discussion of the fun of watching the room come together in a dance, Sandy discusses how she got started as a musician and then a square… View item