2-Steppin’ Out

Whether you’re new to the country scene or a seasoned music-and-dance fan, chances are you’ll find something among this week’s entertainment opportunities to suit your tastes and budget.

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Dancers lookin’ for wide open spaces should check out the American Legion Hall in Ventura tonight. Deejay Vince Fiske will put one of the biggest and best ballroom dance floors in the area to good use with lessons in the latest line and couples dances at 7:30 p.m., and with music for open dancing until 11:30 p.m. All ages are welcome. Admission is $3 per person.

The American Legion Post 339 is at 83 S. Palm St. in Ventura. For more details call, 647-1893.

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Up the coast, popular performer Art Green has swapped his Santa Ynez address for a 615 Nashville area code. To fill the void at Goleta’s Galleon Room, one of Green’s sidemen, Mike Shelton, will debut tonight with his own band. Showtime for the long-neck-bottle and hat crowd is 9 tonight and Saturday night.

At the same place, same time on Thursday, Steve Woods and Kerri Wilson will take the stage. The club is at 5925 Calle Real in Goleta. For more information, call 967-0128.

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Starting at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, the Chad Watson band will take a break from its rotation gig at the Cowboy Palace in Chatsworth to perform for the honky-tonk habitues of Mixer’s in Simi Valley. Just follow the music to 2381 Tapo St. Dance lessons are at 7 p.m. For more details, call 520-7787.

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Members of the California Old-Time Fiddlers Assn. meet between 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday in Oak View to play acoustic and amplified country music. People of all ages are invited to jam with their instruments, sing, dance or just listen. This family-oriented hoedown takes place at the Oak View Community Center, 18 Valley Road. For more details, call 646-1583 or 486-8744.

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Seven nights a week, the Borderline in Thousand Oaks offers a veritable smorgasbord of styles and levels of country dance lessons from 6 to 9 p.m. The club is at 99 Rolling Oaks Drive. For a schedule of events, call 446-4435

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Once you’ve mastered basic footwork for two-step, cha-cha and line dances, a midweek best bet is the country-western dance held from 7 to 11 p.m. most Tuesdays at the Rancho Santa Susana Community Center in Simi Valley.

Instructors Joe and Pat Unsworth teach line dance and couples dance the first hour, followed by guided practice of previous dances, especially choreographed couples dances such as the cowboy cha-cha.

You don’t need a partner to participate. But you’ll optimize your time on the dance floor if you bring your own “body double.”

Admission is $5 per session. The center is at 5005-C Los Angeles Ave. off the Stearns Street exit of California 118 in Simi Valley. Call to verify weekly schedule at 584-4400.