Local Country Dance Exhibit to Travel Around the State

PETERBOROUGH, NH- Following a successful run at the Monadnock Center for History and Culture, an exhibit on the long tradition of country dance and music of the Monadnock Region is now travelling to two new venues in the state. Gents Bow, Ladies Know How: Traditional Dance and Music, 1750 – Today, is now on view at the New Hampshire State Library in Concord through November 25. The State Library, located at 20 Park Street, is open Monday– Friday, 8 AM to 4:30 PM. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

 

This winter the exhibit will travel to the Milne Library at the University of New Hampshire in Durham where it will be on display during the Ralph Page Legacy Weekend. The Page Legacy Weekend is held each January to honor the 20^th century caller, musician, and dance historian who was instrumental in preserving and revitalizing the country dance tradition in New Hampshire and throughout the United States. Gents Bow, Ladies Know How will remain on display at the Milne Library through the spring semester.

 

The exhibit traces the long history of traditional dance and music in New Hampshire, especially in the Monadnock region from Colonial times to the present. These dances were primarily contra and square dances, done to traditional Celtic and English music performed on fiddle and piano. The Monadnock region of New Hampshire is one of the few places in the United States where these dances have been done continuously since the 1700s.The exhibit features artifacts, documents, instruments, photographs, and audio recordings.

This exhibit was researched and produced by the Monadnock Folklore Society and the Monadnock Center for History Culture with support from the NH State Council on the Arts and sponsorship support from Animal Care Clinic Monadnock. The Monadnock Folklore Society promotes traditional dance and music in the Monadnock Region through dances, concerts, and educational outreach. For more information visit Monadnockfolk.org. The Monadnock Center for History and Culture is a community museum and cultural center in downtown Peterborough. To learn more about the Monadnock Center, visit MonadnockCenter.org.