“My greatest thrill is to watch people’s delight as they learn to do dances that have delighted generations before them. Once the fear falls away, they fairly explode with the joy of it all!”

For the past decade, Marian Rose has devoted her professional life to reviving the venerable tradition of folk and social dance through school programs, teacher workshops and community parties. Armed with a bejeweled accordion and a well-honed, theatrical teaching style, she works magic in a crowded dance hall or elementary school gym, turning everyone into confident, enthusiastic dancers in an astonishingly short period of time.

Marian grew up in a rural prairie town where youngsters learned to dance by imitating the adults at weddings and socials. Born into a musical family, she began playing for dances at the age of twelve and has continued (with the traditional sabbatical for teenage rebellion) until the present day. Click here to see a shot of the Rambling Roses in the late 1960’s.

Through years of travelling and research, Marian has amassed an eclectic repertoire including folk dances, singing games, squares, contras, and couple dances, with a special interest in Canadian dances, which she regularly teaches in both English and French.

In addition to her dancing expertise, Marian is sought after as a performer, recording musician and accordion teacher in her home town of Vancouver, B.C. For six years she served on the board of the Massachusetts-based Country Dance and Song Society and is the author and publisher of the popular ‘Step Lively’ series of dance resources.