Dan Gillespie

My earliest dance memory is of square dancing in elementary school in Maryland in the 1970’s.  Since then, I have enjoyed contra dancing, English Country dancing, Renaissance dancing and Bal-folk.  The first Playford dances that I learned were Black Nag and Hole in the Wall in the Society for Creative Anachronism.

I moved to the Washington DC area in the late 1990’s and have been involved in the Glen Echo dance since that time.  I have been teaching and calling dances in the mid-Atlantic areas since the mid 1990s.

In addition to dancing and calling, I am also a musician.  My main instruments are recorders and the Scottish smallpipes.  The intimate connection between the dancers and the musicians is one of my great joys!

In the scope of English Country dancing, the earliest dances from the 1651 Playford Dancing Master hold a special fascination for me.  They represent the transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque period and beyond.  I also try to feature some of the traditional English repertoire as often as circumstances permit.  And of course, the explosion of modern ECD choreographies is a huge draw.