In the spring, Haliburton’s Nancy Brownsberger just wanted to dance. Perhaps it was to shake off a long winter, but most definitely to reconnect with joy.
She was aware of a growing movement of women’s dance parties in larger cities and towns and began talking to Melissa Tong about what they might be able to do in the Highlands.
The two came up with The Wildwoods Women: a forest-inspired dance party for women 30 years of age and older.
The dance won’t take place in a forest per se, but in Stone 21 at the Pinestone Resort and Conference Centre June 6, with a forest-inspired aesthetic with candlelight, greenery, earthy textures, and dance floor lighting.
Brownsberger, the owner of Grow Optimism, a counselling, therapy and consulting business, has been watching the movement. Asked what she attributed it to, she said, “the world is a heavy place. We always have these conversations. Is there a way to just bring joy into our lives?”
She noticed the dances were helping women, post-pandemic, to reconnect, and “it just felt fun and celebratory.” She wanted to bring that same energy to Haliburton County.
Tong, of Nuwa Health and Wellness, was a quick ally, thinking, “if you build it, they will come.
“It’s the remembering of who you were before all the restraints of things such as labels, and the idea of getting together and just dancing with your girlfriends. Playing and listening to the music from the 80s, 90s and 2000s; the nostalgia,” Tong said. “To dance with your friends and other women is just a really powerful thing. It’s coming together with the intention of having joy.”
Asked why women only, the two said, “this sacred boundary is central to the experience, creating a container of emotional safety, collective empowerment, and uninhibited self-expression. Within this space, women are free to move without pressure, performance, or the male gaze. Safety, security and playfulness are the goals.”
Importance of joy
The two said people feel helpless and stressed out. They asked themselves what they could do locally.
“We can bring change to our own little world, and I think people underestimate the importance of joy and connection,” Brownberger said.
She talked about ‘nostalgic reset.’ It is a trending wellness practice where you intentionally consume media from your past, such as music, movies, or books from middle or high school to calm your nervous system and reduce stress. It acts as emotional regulation by triggering comfort, lowering cortisol, and providing a mental break from present-day overwhelm.
“When we’re singing the music from our youth, and we’re in connection with people that are sharing that collective joy, it becomes this unconscious connectivity that helps us come back to ourselves. And it’s not about excluding men. It’s about celebrating this specific age group of women and timeline of music of a Gen X’er or Millennial.”
The two added the night is “rooted in forest energy, sisterhood, and the reclamation of feminine power. More than just a dance party, it is a heartfelt celebration of movement, memory, and magic.”
They are inviting women “to dance freely, laugh loudly, sweat unapologetically, and rediscover the wild, joyful parts of themselves that too often get buried under responsibility and routine.”
The event is June 6, 8 p.m. to midnight. (Doors open at 7 p.m. with raffle opportunities) at Stone 21, Pinestone. Tickets: https://TheWildwoodsWomen. eventbrite.ca Instagram: @wild_woodswomen
