Mad River Theater Works (MRTW) and The Big Family Business present ‘Trad Romp Wknd’ featuring Evie Ladin and The Mammals

A weekend long gathering around old-time music and dance. Join us for some or all of the Friday, Saturday and Sunday programming!

Friday – Friday evening concerts by Evie Ladin, The Family Business (Rick Good, Sharon Leahy, Linzay and Emma Young) and Bob Lucas and Chris Westhoff.  

Saturday – Saturday afternoon music and dance workshops in clogging, body music, banjo and fiddle styles, harmony singing, and protest songs (see schedule w/ times below).  Saturday evening square dance with The Corndrinkers. Evie Ladin and Sharon Leahy calling.  Dance starts at 7PM.

Participatory Workshops in the Main Theater

• 1 – 2pm Clogging Basics – Sharon Leahy: Learn and practice the basics of percussive dance to old-time music
• 2:15 – 3:15pm Body Music/Rhythm Training: Clap, Step, Sing – Evie Ladin: Explore rhythmic music in hands, feet and body, harmonic music in the voice, moving in space. Fun and challenging, the style allows for levels of participation everyone can enjoy.
• 3:30 – 4:30pm Fiddle Stylings – Barb Kuhns, Linda Scutt, Linzay Young, Bob Lucas: Experience a diverse of range of American fiddle styles including Cajun, Appalachian, Old-time and Honky-tonk

Demonstration Workshops in the Experimental Theater

• 1-2pm Banjo Summit – Rick Good, Bob Lucas, Tom Duffee, Geoff H: Enjoy the different approaches and stylings of our regional banjo masters
• 2:15 – 3:15pm Protest Songs – Rick Good, Chris Westhoff, Tom Duffee: Hear original versions of new and old songs that speak truth to power
• 3:30 – 4:30pm Harmony Singing – Rick Good, Sharon Leahy, Emma Young: A participatory workshop to learn the structure of 3-part country harmony

Sunday – Sunday afternoon concert at 4pm with The Mammals.

Banjo player, singer, songwriter, percussive-dancer, choreographer and square-dance caller, Evie Ladin grew up steeped in traditional folk music/dance, and brings a contemporary vision to her compositions and choreography.  Evie’s performances, recordings and teaching reconnect Appalachian music/dance with other African-Diaspora traditions, and have been heard from A Prairie Home Companion to Lincoln Center, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass to Celtic Connections, Brazil to Bali. A longtime former member of Rhythm In Shoes, based in Oakland, CA, Evie tours solo, with Keith Terry and her Evie Ladin Band; and has produced numerous CDs and instructional DVDs. In the percussive dance world, she directs the moving choir MoToR/dance, co-founded the International Body Music Festival, and is an ace freestyle flatfooter. In the trad world, Evie teaches banjo at the infamous Freight in Berkeley, online at Peghead Nation and many camps. In the songwriter world, she just writes great songs. A highly entertaining performer, Evie enjoys facilitating arts learning in diverse communities.

A natural entertainer with a gift for infusing folk practices with contemporary verve – San Francisco Chronicle

“Some of the best folk-rock music you will ever hear.” – TapeOp

The Mammals – Indie-roots trailblazers, high-octane Americana from rafter-raising to hear-a-pin-drop balladry

The Mammals are an indie-roots band from New York’s Hudson Valley led by singer-songwriters Ruth Ungar and Mike Merenda. With their genre-blending mix of fiddle, banjo, guitar, organ, and drums, they’ve spent over two decades crafting socially conscious, emotionally rich folk-rock hailed as “some of the best songwriting of their generation” (LA Times). Their forthcoming release, Touch Grass Vol. 1 & 2 (2025), is a double album that rages, reflects, and rejoices—equal parts protest and balm, recorded at their own Humble Abode Music studio and mastered by Greg Calbi. Whether playing international stages or hosting their semi-annual Catskills festival, The Hoot, The Mammals bring warmth, defiance, and harmony to every performance.

“Some of the best songwriting of their generation.” — LA Times
“A party band with a conscience.” — Boston Globe
“A national treasure.” — Anaïs Mitchell