This week, Mary Wesley talks with Emily Rush, a contra caller, organizer, and DJ from Durham, North Carolina. Emily has been calling since 2013, after Rick Mohr's week-long callers workshop at CDSS Family Week at Timber Ridge. She's especially known for Rushfest—her signature blend of contra dancing to recorded pop music, which she mixes herself—and she has brought it to dance weekends and events across the country. At home she helps run a lively dance community in North Carolina's Triangle region. Emily and Mary talk about how she ended up at the caller's mic, the art of mixing recorded music for contra, working with live bands, and building dance communities that are welcoming, communicative, and fun. There's lots of laughter along the way, because Emily's mantra is simple: we're all here to have a good time - enjoy!
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Sound bites featured in this episode (in order of appearance):
Other things!