Sundance @ The Castro Street Fair
Sunday, October 6 • 11 am – 6 pm
Parking lot behind the Castro Theater, San Francisco
Country-western dancing returns to the Castro Street Fair for one the highlights of our year! We’re delighted to be back at our favorite location in the parking lot behind the Castro Theater! This is always a fantastic day of two-stepping and line dancing.
We’re planning some quick novice lessons throughout the afternoon. And we’ll have our boot-check available so you can check your bags, clothes, or street shoes while you dance.
We need volunteers! Shifts are available for load-in, boot-check, wranglers, and tear-down. Note that this year we do not have to build the dance floor!
Sundance Saloon is OPEN after the Castro Street Fair with our usual lessons and dancing – and ice cream!
Ice Cream Social / Birthday Dance
Sunday, October 6
Sundance Saloon
An annual tradition at Sundance Saloon! After the Castro Street Fair on Sunday, come on down to Sundance Saloon and cool off with a nice helping of free ice cream from Mitchell's, starting at Sundance Saloon at 7:00 pm! Yes, we're open with our usual hours, 5:00 pm to 10:30 pm for lessons and dancing!
And, as it's the first Sunday of the month, we'll also have our October birthday dance at 8:30 pm. If your birthday is in anytime in October, this dance is for you. We'll see you there!
Thursday Two-Step Mini-Privates
Thursday, October 17 • 6:45 – 7:30 pm
Sundance Saloon
You're invited to another session when we'll have a number of Sundance Saloon instructors on hand, and you can pick one to hoard all to yourself for 10 minutes. This experience is appropriate for all dancers from the beginner-plus to intermediate level. You can choose any style of dance your instructor is comfortable with. On this night we'll have Sheila Schlicht, Ron Jenkins, Charles Sterck, and Ingu available at your service.
Just show up, and sign up for a session. Slots will be available on a first-come, first-signed-up basis. Doors open at 6:30 pm. If time and space allow, you may be able to sign up for more than one session. There is no additional fee for this experience.
West Coast Swing with Michelle Kinkaid
Sunday, October 20 • Beg-Plus 5:15 pm • Int 6:15 pm
Sundance Saloon • Loft
Four-time US Open Swing Dance Champion Michelle Kinkaid will teach West Coast Swing at Sundance!
Beginning-Plus WCS - Oct. 20, 5:15-6:10 pm. Requires familiarity with WCS basics such as underarm turns and 8-count whips. $10. Advance registration required.
Intermediate WCS - Oct. 20, 6:15-7:10 pm. Please be completely experiences and comfortable with WCS basics such as underarm turns and 8-count whips. $10. Advance registration required.
"Mini-private lessons" - Oct. 20, starting 7:30 pm. You can have Michelle Kinkaid all to yourself for 10 minutes for $10. Register here.
Musicality • Special Workshop
Thursday, October 24 • 6:45 – 7:30 pm
Sundance Saloon
Ingu will lead a special workshop on Musicality on October 24. Musicality is about listening with intention to the music you're dancing to, and adjusting your style of dance and your dance moves to what you are hearing. Incorporating musicality into your dancing could completely transform how you dance, taking it to another level.
There are no prerequisites for this workshop, but you will get more out of it if you are fluent with two-step and waltz. While music terminology will be used during the workshop, you do not need any advance knowledge of music theory.
Halloween at Sundance Saloon
Sunday, October 27
Sundance Saloon
Celebrate Halloween with Sundance Saloon! Costumes highly encouraged. Enter our costume contest, and win cash prizes: 1st place = $100, 2nd place = $50, 3rd place = $25.
We'll still have dance lessons as usual from 5:30 to 7:15 pm; then open dancing and ghoulish fun until 10:30 pm. Admission will remain the same as our usual: $7.
Night Club Two Step w/ Ron &Photis
Beginning: Oct. 27 • 5:30 - 6:30 pm
Intermediate: Nov. 3 • 5:30 - 6:30 pm
Sundance Saloon • Loft
Sundance Saloon presents two special Night Club Two-Step (NCTS) workshops with Ron Jenkins and Photis Pishiaras.
Beginning NCTS - Sunday, October 27, 5:30-6:30 pm. No knowledge of NCTS necessary, but we ask that you are comfortable with partner dancing (two-step, waltz). $10. Advance registration required.
Intermediate NCTS - Sunday, November 3, 5:30-6:30 pm. You must be *completely* comfortable with Night Club Two-Step basics. This is NOT merely a continuation of the previous week's beginning Night Club Two-Step workshop. $10. Advance registration required.
Sundance Swing!
Thursdays • 6:30–8:00 pm
Sundance Saloon • Loft
On Thursdays Sundance Saloon presents open non-stop West Coast Swing dancing in the Loft from 6:30 to 8:00 pm! You can dance to a mix of country and non-country music (no lessons - just dancing). And of course, this project being part of Sundance Saloon, we cater to the LGBTQ community, but all are welcome. We'll have our usual mix of two-step and line dance lessons downstairs during this time.
Line Dance Pro
Sundays (except 1st Sun of month) • 5:00–6:30 pm
Sundance Saloon • Back Room
Can't get enough line dancing? Line Dance Pro is an opportunity to increase your line dance abilities and challenge yourself with new line dances not included in our regular Sundance Saloon repertoire.
Our Line Dance Pro sessions run every Sunday in the Back Room of Sundance Saloon (except the first Sunday of the month)! Includes lessons starting at 5:15 pm, except the last Sunday of the month which features a line dance marathon. Check the Sundance Saloon instruction calendar for the schedule.
Sundance CW Dance Weekend 2025
at the World Gay Rodeo Finals
October 9–12, 2025 • Reno, NV
Mark your calendars now! Sundance is going to host a full-fledged country-western dance weekend in conjunction with the World Gay Rodeo Finals in Reno, Nevada, next October 9–12, 2025. We'll have four nights of dancing in up to two rooms, three days of dance workshops in up to three rooms, and dance exhibition performances.
The host hotel is a complex of three adjacent casino resorts known as "The Row." Reno is conveniently served by an airport that is minutes from The Row, and an Amtrak station just two blocks away, or it's a four-hour drive from San Francisco.
If you want to be involved with the planning, email us now! You can help us make this a weekend to remember.
Volunteers Needed
Please help us! Sundance Saloon is a community effort, dependent on lots of people chipping in a little bit. We are always looking for more help, and this has never been more true. If you have not volunteered in the past, this is a great time to think about stepping in. You can become an integral part of what makes Sundance so special.
Our needs at Sundance Saloon include set-up, front door, and coat-check. Shifts are generally one hour. No experience necessary.
Supporting Sundance
As an all-volunteer, member- and community-supported organization, the Sundance Association depends on your support to keep thriving. The pandemic put an extra burden on our finances, and our needs are never-ending. There are many ways to help us, and not all of them involve monetary contributions:
- Become a member of the Sundance Association by pledging an annual tax-deductible donation.
- Come on down! Support us just by showing up.
- Introduce someone new to Sundance Saloon.
- Use our coat-check on Sundays.
- Put a dollar or two in one of our tip jars.
- See if your company offers matching donations or grants for volunteer time served.
- Remember Sundance in your estate planning.
- Volunteer!
- Social media! Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Instagram. Share our posts. Share your own posts. Review us on Google, Yelp, Facebook, and Tripadvisor.
