Dance Callers

It's the job of the dance caller to connect the musicians to the dancers and build the energy of the dancehall. These are the perfect callers for our Atlantic Stampede crowd.

Becky Hill

Becky Hill is a life-long percussive dancer, who has grown into a renown square dance caller, choreographer, curator, and educator. Becky has worked and studied with an array of percussive dance luminaries and has had her dance choreography featured in various productions and art venues. She holds an MFA in Dance from the University of Maryland College Park. As an avid organizer and teacher, Becky’s work is deeply rooted in the connections between music and community. She expresses her joy through dance and can spread that joy to everyone in the dance hall. She believes there is always more to learn and is dedicated to creative innovative choreography tethered to traditional music and dance. Learn more at Becky Hill.

Janine Smith

Janine Smith calls square, contra, ceilidh, barn, and community dances in the DC Metro area, around the U.S. and internationally. She shares her humorous (OK, sometimes silly) and infectious passion for music and dance generously, allowing you to relax and discover that YOU CAN DANCE! Steady and gracious, she generates an evening of FUN dances, squares and circles and more, bringing the party to any dance space. Favorite food: Coffee. Superpower: "Reading the room" wherever folks are ready to whoop it up!

Penelope Weinberger

Penelope Weinberger is a dance caller and long-time advocate for inclusivity and gender-free calling, bringing a ton of fun and a real knack for including beginners, while keeping an evening enjoyable for all dancers. Penelope’s love of dance and dancers is reflected in their selection of compelling dances and in the compassion that they bring to their lessons, walkthroughs, and calling. Penelope is beyond excited to help bring the Atlantic Stampede dances to World Pride and identifies Queer AF.

Musicians/Vocalists

Great dance musicians and vocalists do more than make music. They monitor the mood and movement of the dancers constantly, choosing tunes, tempos, and intensity that maximize that dancers' bond to the music and each other. We have brought the best to Atlantic Stampede!

David Courret-Knight

David Courret-Knight has been instigating dance up and down the East Coast of the United States and beyond since 1991, primarily fiddling in the Scottish, American, and English dance traditions. He is a music composer, performer, and recording artist. It is his passion to cause people to crave to dance. A native of South Carolina, David lives in Washington DC with his husband Sebastian and their dogs Electra and Marie-Sophie. See more at David Knight.

Helen Kuhar

Helen Kuhar is a rhythm guitarist and vocalist based out of Cambridge, MA. They can often be found playing for contra dances with bands Good Company, Ice Cream Truckers, and Nobody’s Business. Helen also hosts various Irish sessions around the Boston area and in their free time enjoys long bike rides along the Charles River. Visit Helen Kuhar.

Jake Blount

Jake Blount is an American musician and writer based in Providence, Rhode Island. He specializes in the traditional music of African Americans, and his work has been described as "Afrofuturist folklore." Blount, initially recognized for his skill as an old-time banjo player and fiddler, is a versatile multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who has described his music as "genrequeer." His ability to tie together musical traditions, cultural perspectives, and the spirit and mood of the crowd helps to create an energized connection between the music and the dancers. Learn more at Jake Blount.

Kelsey Wells

Kelsey Wells is an old-time fiddler and banjo player from Tennessee. Well-known in the contra dance scene, Kelsey performs with various bands, including the Engine Room, Ice Cream Truckers, and Turnip the Beet. Kelsey lives with a silly, fluffy dog named Isham (who is named after a fiddler, of course!). Visit Kelsey Wells.

Justin Green

Justin Green is an emerging country/western performer who will be featured at the International Gay Rodeo Association reception on Thursday, June 5. Justin boldly follows his passion for music while being true and honest with himself as an openly gay country singer. He's a big hearted country boy, and he brings that to the stage; a crooner and guitarist with a powerful baritone voice, stage charisma and an attitude to boot. He makes you want to dance, want to connect, want to smile. Hard Working, Fun Loving, Justin Green. Get to know him at Justin Green.

The Wild Shoats

The Wild Shoats are an Alt-Folk group whose music is rooted in their Appalachian heritage. Hailing from West Virginia and Pennsylvania, songwriters/musical artists Mary Linscheid, brothers Gus and Huck Tritsch, and Alex Heflin offer a performance drawing from their collective backgrounds in folk songs, honky-tonk, and the Appalachian high-lonesome sound. The Shoats reimagine the songs and sounds of their home through haunting original material and well-loved covers. They also bring an energetic vibe into the Hoedown space that is unmatched in our region. They won the Neo-Traditional Band Competition at the 2023 Appalachian String Band Music Festival, just a few months after the band’s formation. Learn more at The Wild Shoats.

Other

Terry Chasteen – Dance Workshop Team Leader

Terry Chasteen has been teaching nearly every style of social dance since 1974. His first exposure to dance was square dancing & country/western two stepping as a youth in rural Northern Ohio. Terry is a social and competitive dance instructor, choreographer and event promoter and has taught and performed at the Kennedy Center, on Washington DC area TV stations and in the cinema. Terry’s overarching philosophy is that anyone and everyone can (and should!) dance. He has taught dance to newcomers, professional competitors, and everyone in between, knowing that when you love music and can learn to connect that with bodily movement, you can derive great satisfaction in a community of dance. He will be emphasizing accessibility to all our workshop instructors and participants at Atlantic Stampede. Learn more about him at Terry Chasteen DanceSport.

Mike Lentz - DJ / Dance Caller

Mike Lentz is the founding President and current IGRA Trustee of the Atlantic States Gay Rodeo Association. He has a life-long love of music and dance starting as a five-year-old accompanying his grandparents on the square dance floor in rural North Carolina. Mike ventured into the Baltimore/Washington region contra, square, and community dance scene about 13 years ago, and has been fortunate to connect with dancers, callers, musicians and organizers who are a part of a vast network of dance enthusiasts in this region. He is an amateur contra/square/barn dance caller and beginning fiddler and loves mashing musical sets from popular recorded music that can be danced “square” with contra, circle and barn dance forms yielding the “Contra Sonic” experience. His goal is to help “reluctant” dancers become dance floor enthusiasts.

Erik Ewald - Sound Engineer

Erik Ewald has had a passion for music and good sound since he was a kid, listening to his father's and older brother's extensive record collections. After leaving his first career in the bicycle industry, he transitioned to audio, first in sales, and then management at "Washington's Premiere Audio Retailer" - Myer-Emco. He began doing live sound work shortly after his initial immersion in the folk-dance scene seventeen years ago, and it has been a joyful pursuit! He has appeared at numerous venues and festivals around the Capital region. His aim is to connect our audience directly to the voices and music as they were meant to be heard. Erik’s attention to quality sound delivery promises us a grand musical experience during the Atlantic Stampede.