Spurs Nights brings queer line dancing to Jardins Gamelin every week this summer

Spurs Nights, a series of queer line-dancing events, have become a weekly summer ritual at Jardins Gamelin, drawing 70 to 100 participants each week who come for the choreography, the social connection, and what organizer Noël Vézina describes as "a space of freedom and expression."

The events started three years ago under organizer Kathleen Munroe and continued through his leadership since December 2023. When Munroe relocated to Toronto to run similar events there, Vézina took the reins. What began as monthly gatherings has escalated into a weekly fixture as word spread.

Vézina, who has worked in contemporary dance for nearly seven years, stumbled onto the first Spurs Night by accident while searching for dance classes. "I decided to go with one of my best friends, just to see," he recalled. "And dès the first dance, we were hooked." He was drawn to the structured choreography—learning "a good puzzle and playing inside it"—and the social warmth of the group.

Line dancing itself is highly accessible: most dances are simple enough for beginners, and regular dancers actively help newcomers learn the steps. "It's very easy to feel integrated," Vézina said. "Everyone shines their own light. In unity, but not uniformity."

During each night, Vézina or another "caller" names the steps for each song, and participants learn five or six dances before breaking into freestyle practice. "The aspect social has also been very important," Vézina noted. "It's very assembling to decide together to exert ourselves to understand and learn a few steps, then share a dance for a few minutes."