Gay Square Dancing

Do thousands of lesbians and gay men know something you don't?

Are you bored with the same old thing?

Want to try something different? ...

When you think of square dancing, you probably think of hillbillies stomping around in a barn shouting "Do-si-do," blue-haired ladies in silly dresses, and horrible times spent in junior high school. Well, it ain't like that any more! We don't dance in a barn, we don't wear silly clothes, and, well, the less said about junior high the better!

Lesbian and gay square dancing is one of the hottest new social activities in our community. From its start with a few dozen people and a handful of square dance clubs in the early Eighties, it's grown into a phenomenon with thousands of dancers and almost 50 clubs throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, and even Japan!

Square dancing is the most traditional American folk dance. But we have made it our own, bringing a level of excitement and energy to the dance floor that is almost unheard of in the square dance community at large. Square dancing is a great way to get away from the pressures of the day, get a little exercise, and just relax and unwind. We dance to a wide variety of music, from country to soul to disco to show tunes to traditional folk. You should see us get moving when our caller puts on "Pink Cadillac!"

Try gay and lesbian square dancing with the El Camino Reelers!

El Camino Reelers is proud of over 13 years of dancing in the South Bay. Our club was founded in 1985 by Marilyn Martinyak and Pat Dixon as an alternative to the gay square dance clubs located an hour away in San Francisco.

Each year we hold a set of FREE introductory sessions to introduce new people to our favorite pastime. Our intro nights are typically in September with lessons starting early October. We'd love to have you drop by, give it a try, and see if you'd like to stick around for some more.

Our regular club dancing is every Wednesday from 7:30 to 9:30 at St. Andrew's Methodist Church in Palo Alto, just 20 minutes away from San Jose. The church is located at 4111 Alma Street. We provide a smoke-free and alcohol-free environment for gay men and lesbians to meet each other and socialize. And while we can make no guarantees, people have been known to find true love at a square dance!

We're also an inexpensive way to have fun. At just $4.00 a night you're likely to spend more money going out for a snack afterwards than you are at the dance! (Yes, it's true--many of us do go out afterwards to replace all those lost calories...)

An International Community Of Square Dance Friends

There are over 50 lesbian and gay square dance clubs around the country and overseas, and many of them are right here in the greater San Francisco bay area. After just one season at ECR, you will be able to travel to any of these clubs and jump right in, have fun, and make new friends.

One of the most exciting aspects of gay and lesbian square dancing is our annual convention. Each year over 1000 dancers from all over the country get together for a long weekend of fun, dancing, and partying. This year's convention was held in Portland with over 50 El Camino Reelers attending. Next year the convention will be held in Los Angeles the weekend of the Fourth of July.

Many clubs take turns offering Fly-ins. These are usually three day Weekends of dancing providing the opportunity to travel a little further for a relatively inexpensive mini-vacation.

C'mon, give it a try!

You don't need a partner, you don't need to know anything about dancing, and you don't need to be coordinated. What you do need is a pair of comfortable shoes or boots and the desire to have fun!