Dance socials in Toronto.
8 clubs, and when they meet. Most meet on weekday evenings, around Downtown, Danforth, Kensington Market. Subscribe to this calendar →
What to expect.
These are social dance nights and weekly classes in Toronto: swing, salsa, bachata, tango, folk and contra. Nearly all start with a beginner lesson, and the social dancing after it is the point, so you can arrive alone and dance all evening.
The listing shows the day and start time. If there is a lesson first, the club's own page says when it begins and whether you need a partner, which you usually do not.
All 8 dance socials in Toronto.
A to Z, in each club's own words. Every one links to the club, and every day and time is the one the club publishes.
Weekly Monday European folk dance (balfolk) to live acoustic music, with a pay-what-you-can slow jam for musicians the hour before. In the back room of TacoTaco for autumn/winter, High Park in summer. No partner needed, dances taught.
Mondays, 8pm · Kensington Market · $20 · balfolktoronto.com →Weekly Thursday-night freeform ecstatic dance in the Church of the Holy Trinity by the Eaton Centre, running for over 20 years with 80-100 dancers; no partner, talking or experience needed.
Thursdays, time varies · Downtown · $30 · ecstaticdancetoronto.com →Weekly Wednesday-night milonga with a guest DJ in the upstairs hall of the Bulent & Lina tango studio at Beverley and College. Open to the public; the same studio runs Milonga Ocho twice a month.
Wednesdays, time varies · Downtown · Free · bulentylina.com →Every Sunday at Dovercourt House: multi-level bachata and salsa lessons from 6pm, then social dancing in two rooms until 11pm. No partner needed; same promoter also runs the Friday late-night Latin socials.
Sundays, 6pm · $15 · salsavida.com →Weekly Saturday lindy hop dance party with a live band, preceded by an hour-long beginner lesson included in admission. Rotates between church halls on the Danforth and in the west end and Dovercourt House.
Saturdays, 6:15pm · $22 · swingtoronto.com →Free weekly English country dancing at the Ralph Thornton Centre at Queen and Broadview, every Friday evening; all dances are walked through and no experience or partner is needed.
Fridays, 7pm · Riverdale · Free · tecda.ca →Weekly English country dancing at Willowdale Presbyterian Church near North York Centre, Tuesday evenings, suggested donation at the door. Beginners welcome, dances taught.
Tuesdays, 6:55pm · North York · $10 · tecda.ca →Twice-monthly Saturday contra dance with live bands and a caller at St Barnabas church hall near Chester station; free basics class at 7pm, every dance taught, no partner needed. Sliding-scale admission, kids free.
Monthly, second Saturday and fourth Saturday · Danforth · $7-$35 · tcdance.org →
Questions people actually ask.
Do I need a partner?
Almost never. Social dance nights rotate partners during the lesson and expect people to ask and be asked all evening. If a class is couples only, the listing says so.
I have never danced. Where do I start?
Pick a night with a beginner lesson before the social, which most have, and arrive for the lesson. Flat shoes you can turn in are the only equipment.
What does it cost?
Social nights often run ten to twenty dollars at the door including the lesson. Folk and community dances are often cheaper or free. The cost column has the number.
Every listing links straight to the club. Know a dance social in Toronto we don’t? Add it.