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I offer my heartfelt thanks to The Reel Thing for offering a unique historical music entertainment, which offers one a rare glimpse of social grace during the 17th & 18th century.  Your unique reenactment, period dress, dance and music enhance and add zest to history by making history come alive.  You make history fun!

Our homeschooling group hired Patricia and The Reel Thing for our fall family barn dance. When I ran into Patricia at a networking event years later (having not seen her since the barn dance in 2003), I instantly recalled her by her warm and personable character. During the dance, she was able to capture the attention of a diverse range of age groups (3-years-old through adult), and engage us all in learning and executing the dance steps. Laughter was heard throughout the evening as all who participated enjoyed the educational aspects of what Patricia does, and the entertainment provided by the freedom dancing brings. If you are seeking a knowledgeable and engaging professional to teach your group about traditional dance forms or to lead your next dance event, there is no one better that you could find than Patricia Campbell and The Reel Thing.

It was a wonderful evening!  So much great energy in that room.  Thank you for managing our overflow crowd so nicely, and thanks, of course to the musicians. Thanks again for everything.

Patricia is always well prepared to lead her dance sessions with a variety of dance traditions. She is gentle and patient with new dancers, while at the same time being interesting to more experienced dancers. Her extensive background, and her commitment to grow and improve as a leader, result in wonderful dances, such as the Barn Dance she recently led for us at Country Dance Stafford (CT). She works often with her seasoned band, The Reel Thing, You will not be disappointed.

It is easy to see Patricia’s passion for traditional music and dance. She creates a fun and lively atmosphere and her experience as a teacher/caller makes it easy to learn the dances. We have shared and learned dances together at two dance leader’s workshops. While in town, I joined one of her dance sessions with the Bethel Senior group and we all had a lot of fun. Patricia is very versatile, being able to work with all ages from school children to older adults. I am impressed with her wide repertoire of music and dance.

Patricia’s energetic, clear, and authoritative dance instruction made our event come alive! Our guests were a bit tentative about participating in 100-year old dances at first, but shyness quickly fell away as Patricia took the mike.  We all joined hands and had a great time with the lively and fun dances of the Victorian period. What a fun evening!

Patricia has taught my children a wide variety of dance styles in numerous classes over the years. They love her because of her gentle and friendly style. She is knowledgeable and makes learning fun for the kids. We have also attended public venues where Patricia has been the dance caller. The evenings are always fun. Patricia brings authenticity to her dances calls. She loves dancing, loves to teach it and makes it easy to learn new dances do all can participate. I highly recommend Patricia.