Now & Then & Etc

My place to narrate happenings and thoughts now, or to post from writing archives my experiences then. (Also, a calendar of big-floor dances in and near Port Townsend.)

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PT DANCE CALENDAR

What is this page? Big dance floor dances and dance lessons in Port Townsend, Sequim, and Bremerton that are coming up soon.

20 June (Sat.) Salish Swing Lindy Hop Lessons and Dance, Port Townsend

1:30 – 4:00 pm intermediate-level workshops; 6:30 pm beginning lesson then 7-10 pm dance.

20 June (Sat.) Tango in Silverdale

20 June (Sat.) USA Dance Kitsap, Silverdale, monthly dance

(3rd Saturday)

21 June (3rd Sundays), Buck Ellard Band at Sequim Prairie Grange

290 MACLEAY RD SEQUIM, WA

5 pm eat (potluck), 5:30 band starts playing

23 June (Tue.), Loft Dance (every Tuesday), Port Townsend

Suggested donation is $10 to $20. Pay what you can, no one is turned away.
Where: Brigid’s Loft, 280 Quincy Street (2nd floor)
6:00-6:30 PM, nothing but waltz
6:30-7:15 waltz lesson by Janice Eklund
7:15-8:30 dance mix
— source: Loft Dancers email notice, 31 May

21 June (3rd Sunday), Buck Ellard Band at the Sequim Quimper Grange

24 June (Wed.) Rumba lesson and Variety Dance, 6-9 pm, Port Townsend

Where: Brigid’s Loft, 280 Quincy Street (2nd floor)
– featuring Rumba lesson. Playlist includes all dance genres plus requests.
— source: 8 June email from instructor Jean Bettanny

26 June (Fri.), 8 pm, Honky Tonk Polka Dot Dance, Port Townsend

USO Hall, Fort Worden            
— source: Leader 1 Apr. 2026, “Spring 2026 Centrum” insert, p. 4. For more information and tickets, please go to Centrum.org or call 800-746-1982.

28 June (Sun.), Dance and Student Showcase, Bremerton Elks

28 June (Sun.), 6-8:30 pm  Sequim Elks dance (2nd and 4th Sundays)

141 Port Williams Road, Sequim
band: Orcastraitors
— source: Sequim Elks calendar for 2026, dated 16 Nov. 2025

29 June (Mon.), 6:30 pm, Review and Practice Night, Silverdale

USA Dance Kitsap is offering a review of West Coast Swing, East Coast Swing, Night Club 2 Step. This is occurring because their lesson series are 4 weeks and there are 5 weeks in June.
Where: Jackson Hall, 9161 Washington Ave., Silverdale

6 July (Monday) USA Dance Kitsap, Viennese Waltz lessons start, Silverdale

A 4-week series, each Monday night from 6:30 – 7:30 pm

source: 16 June email from the USA Dance Kitsap president

7 July (Tuesdays) Salsa and Waltz lesson series start in PORT TOWNSEND. Hosted by Sequim Ballroom

[Note: Yes, I realise that the above schedule conflicts with the Loft Dances at Brigid’s Loft (which are every Tuesday night from 6:00 to 8:30 pm). I hope to find out soon from the Loft Dance organizers if the Sequim Ballroom lessons are slated to replace the Loft Dances for the month of July . . .or more. Also of note: The Sequim Ballroom lessons are excellent. More to follow.  MRM]

29 July (Wed.), Blues Dance, Port Townsend

Fort Worden McCurdy Pavillion
     7 pm: Warm-up with Damon and Kelsey Lynn Stone
     7:30 pm: Blues Dance with Traditional Blues Band
— source: Leader 1 Apr. 2026, “Spring 2026 Centrum” insert, p. 5. For more information and tickets, please go to Centrum.org or call 800-746-1982.

     Note: During this Blues time there are four days of dance instruction offered. For more information, please see https://centrum.org/program/traditional-blues/ (last accessed 5 Apr. 2026)

31 July – 2 Aug. Salish Sea Butoh Festival, Port Townsend

This is a Japanese festival to which the public is invited. There also will be a Japanese dance, to which the public is invited.

— source   https://ptal26.org/calendar/ (last accessed 21 Mar.) and a 5 Feb. discussion with the American Legion manager.

2 Aug. (Sun.) – 9 Aug. (Sun.) 2026, Centrum’s “Dance This Youth Program,” Port Townsend

     source:  https://centrum.org/program/dance-this-youth-program/ (accessed 5 Apr. 2026)

https://www.nbcnews.com/sports/soccer/iran-oppressed-team-world-cup-coach-says-ordered-us-tie-new-zealand-rcna350238?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us

3 Aug. (Mondays) USA Dance Kitsap, Intermediate West Coast Swing lessons start, Silverdale

A 4-week series, each Monday night from 6:30 – 7:30 pm

source: 16 June email from the USA Dance Kitsap president

5 Sep. (Sat.), 6-9 pm, Dance at the Port Townsend American Legion

Band: Sound Advice

7 Sep. (Mondays) USA Dance Kitsap, Intermediate West Coast Swing lessons start, Silverdale

A 4-week series, each Monday night from 6:30 – 7:30 pm

source: 16 June email from the USA Dance Kitsap president

5 October (Mondays) USA Dance Kitsap, Slow Waltz lessons start, Silverdale

A 4-week series, each Monday night from 6:30 – 7:30 pm

source: 16 June email from the USA Dance Kitsap president

For recurring events, please see

Recurring Dances and Lessons

We Dance

We dance—
we live, learn, and love
play and cry

Life is a dance—a swirling of people and events
colors and feelings
creating beautiful togetherness

We fall, we rise
sometimes rough, sometimes flair
life’s lessons learned

The beat carries laughter and tears
the rhythm flows on, a river to the sea
we spill into eternity.

Be on the floor when the band plays
as songs once sung forever disappear
melodies infusing life into souls.

We journey
with streams of people
circling around the ballroom floor

Till the night is finished
and the quiet forces us
to remove our felt-bottomed shoes

The dance is over
but we were there
we danced—and so we are

MRM