One Friday night each month, the sanctuary of Grace Episcopal Church in Elkridge is converted from a house of prayer to a disco club. The hymnals are neatly tucked away and the floor is cleared, making room for a crowd of energetic middle-schoolers to dance.

It's becoming a trend in suburbia -- young people hustling to neighborhood churches and community centers to listen and dance to their favorite music, including songs that were hits long before most of them were born.

The pupils are escorted by their parents, some of whom are active members in the organization that plans the dances: the Greater Elkridge Teen Association. The outings have become so popular that several months ago, organizers had to turn away almost half of the children who showed up because the church can accommodate only 250 people.

"When we had to turn the kids away, that was really bad," said the Rev. Michael Russell, pastor of Grace Episcopal Church and an organizer of the dances, whose crowds are drawn largely from Elkridge Landing Middle School.

"We never like to turn away young people who want to come and have fun," Russell said. "We might have to think about holding these dances in a bigger space."

The boys, in baggy pants and tennis shoes, congregate on one side of the room and peer across at the girls on the other side -- afraid, some confessed, to cross over and initiate dancing.

No one is sure who'll make the first move as strobe lights dance on the wall, until the anxiety in the room begins to subside.

Disc jockey Greg Buchman, a 17-year-old senior at Wilde Lake High School, puts the youngsters on one side in motion after playing some tunes from the Spice Girls.

As the music blasts from the mega-sound system, Amanda Bisacre, 11, Kristy Sharpe, 10, and Jennifer Reddinger, 11, all sixth-graders at Elkridge Landing, take to the floor -- and a few boys venture out, following the girls' lead. "These dances are really fun -- there's all kinds of cool music and you get a chance to meet different kids," said Amanda, a regular at the dances.

"There's really nothing for us to do on the weekends except talk on the phone and watch TV," said Kristy. "This way, we can meet up with our friends and have a good time."

As the youngsters spend time dancing and socializing, their chaperones roam throughout the sanctuary and get a bit nostalgic. They remember a few decades back when dances were an integral part of their lives.

These days, the Internet and fancy electronic devices capture the attention of children for hours on end, and some parents expressed concern that the old-fashioned dances were becoming just that.

That's one of the reasons the Greater Elkridge Teen Association was formed -- to provide social recreation and learning experiences for area youths in grades five through eight.

"These community events are so important and we need to offer more," said Alice Dassing, a parent-member of the teen group. "It's important that these youngsters understand how to interact with each other in a social environment."

The group advertises the dances with posters in area middle schools and sends letters encouraging parents to volunteer.

"The parents are pretty good about getting involved. They generally like being able to send their children here and know that when they get here they're safe," Russell said.

Even though the church is host of the dance, Russell points out that it's a nonreligious event: "You don't have to be an Episcopalian to come here and dance. We welcome everyone."

Similar dances can be found at churches and community centers across the metropolitan area -- from Ellicott City to Glen Burnie, Towson to Arbutus. Monthly dances at the Western Family YMCA in Catonsville attract more than 150 youths.

"The idea of having a dance for kids is very important," said Monica Barnes, program coordinator for the YMCA. "There are so many negative things that a child can do. We try to give young people a place to go to instead of hanging out on the street corners," she said.

As the night winds down at Grace Episcopal, it suddenly becomes apparent to eighth-grader Keith Sutphin, 12, that this will be his last year to dance there because the event is reserved exclusively for middle-schoolers. "It's a little sad because I've been coming for so long," he said.

When the adolescents have left the sanctuary, the disco ball that hangs from the ceiling remains in place for next month's dance. "We're probably the only church in the area that has a disco ball hanging from the ceiling on Sunday mornings," Russell said.

The next teen dance will be at 7: 30 p.m. Friday at Grace Episcopal Church, in the 6600 block of Montgomery Road. Information: 410-796-3270.

Pub Date: 3/10/99