Barn Dance Caller

Based in the West Midlands, England.

Stephen Woodcock
Well, you have to go over the top on your birthday, don't you?

I have been calling for Barn Dances for over 20 years, and I run my own dance club in Rubery, south Birmingham.

As if that were not enough I am also involved in the Weoley Hill Folk Dance Group and I am available to call for more 'serious' dances too.

Would you like to know more about:

• Arranging a Barn Dance - what is involved?
• Rubery Barn Dance Club
• Weoley Hill Folk Dance Group
• My megaband birthday party
• Other folk resources on the net
• My dances you can come to

Barn Dance DVD

The video "step by step" barn dancing has been digatally re-mastered by Jim Cooper of Titan Films. This was filmed at Stephen's club, with Stephen calling and the Train Band playing. The DVD can be bought directly from Stephen at a cost of �10 including post and packing. Just email your order. If you wish to see a preview of the video, please click here and click play, the video will automatically stream.

How about a barn dance? They are fun for all ages, a great way of solving the problem of what to do to please a wide variety of people, such as at a wedding or an anniversary party.

I can provide recorded music using tapes and records, or live music provided by one of the excellent local bands I regularly work with (see contact links). I will supply all necessary amplification and similar equipment.

The event can be tailored to your exact needs... please email ( danseurrouge@yahoo.co.uk) me with your requirements and I will contact you to discuss it further. If you need an urgent answer, please telephone me on 0121 453 4121 or (mobile) 07973 860 140.

A Barn Dance in action

We meet at the Leisure Centre in Redhill lane, Rubery, on Tuesday evenings from 8pm - 10pm. See map. The club is a very informal meeting of people like you, who want to have a go at a few folk dances, perhaps in a less frenetic environment than a public barn dance. We are a small group, averaging twenty people or so each week, and we try to do a wide mixture of dances ranging from simple fun-to-do dances to more complex dances which need a little more thought and practice.

We do dances from a range of sources: American square dances, Traditional, Playford and Pat Shaw... some that I have collected in France and further afield... the range is endless.

Why don't you come along and join in the fun? All we ask is a very modest admission fee of £2.00 and for that you even get a good cuppa and a biscuit thrown in! (no...not thrown into the cup, I don't mean...)

It would be sensible to email ( danseurrouge@yahoo.co.uk) or call me first, just to make sure of the location of our dance hall, and to ensure that we are not for some reason having a "night off". - telephone 0121 453 4121 or (mobile) 07973 860 140. You might like to write down my mobile phone number in case you get lost on the way - you can phone in for directions.

And. . .

It isn't only Stephen who calls - we have loads of really good callers visit us from time to time: including Barry Jones, Brian Laws, Bill Kinsman, Barbara Dunn, Elaine Williams, Eve Evans and Arnold Grayn.

We even had our picture in the local paper, to commemmorate our 200th meeting.

That, together with the great musicians who come and play for us, makes for a superb evening's dancing, time and again.

Bands include: Cadenza, Fiddler's Elbow, Herbal Remedy, String Fellows, Thirsty Work, Andrew Mycroft, The Late Bloomers, Amaryllis, Spootiskerry and many more

Bromsgrove Advertiser/Messenger July 1998