LindyShock 2010

“…Today, I am a full-time traveling Lindy Hop instructor living in Sacramento, California. Ok, “living” might not be quite the right word as I spend about 10 months of each year traveling to different countries in Europe, many of the US states, and also now in Australia to teach the Lindy Hop.

One of my main dance goals is to help Lindy Hop communities around the world to unite and grow the dance. While I do teach at several international workshops throughout the year, I specialize in going to the small Lindy Hop scenes around the world and helping them get started towards building their scene.

Beyond my learning and teaching experiences, I just LOVE to dance. When I go dancing I always want to dance with everyone in the room – leaders and followers – however, this is not always easy to do. So if you see me out dancing, please come ask me to dance!”

Dax Hock is the mastermind behind a few good ideas in the world. He is kind of addicted to finding better ways to do things. Better ways to teach, dance, learn, do, act, visualize, dream, function, live and the list goes on. This is where his brain is constantly at work, he really can’t help it. The hamster is on crack, constantly running. It is just part of his like he says “inner freak”.

He has also been pretty creative in developing simple, effective ideas to help dancers open the cage, discover and tame the Rhythmical Beast that lurks inside. Regardless, his methods are creative and totally unorthodox without trying to be different, just more effective.

Sarah Breck has been training and competing in dance with an emphasis on Vernacular Jazz dance since the age of 10. She holds two titles in the U.S.Open and the Jr. Olympics. She has consistently worked in film; commercial and music videos along side artist such as Benji and Lacey Schwimmer (SYTYCD); Christina Aguilera; Fall Out Boy; Richard Blayne (Project Runway); mariah Carey, Will Smith and Gavin Degraw. She teaches with Dax Hock for Vernacular Jazz and Pete Green from Eagle Rock in West-Coast Swing.

Hasse and Marie are internationally recognized for there high energy and spirit as Lindy Hop dancers and instructors. Their classes emphasize the use of musicality, technique and partner connection. Energy and focus on fun are constant elements to every class.

This couple have a lot of teaching experience, all from beginners to competition couples, and they appear on the teaching line up for many established camps around the globe, including Herräng (Sweden), Camp Hollywood (USA) and Rock That Swing Festival (Germany) just to mention a few.

Hasse and Marie live just outside Stockholm, Sweden. They have been dancing together for many years and are four times Swedish Champions in Boogie Woogie (1998- 2001) and also one time Swedish Champions in Bugg (2001).

Today they are no longer competing together, but every once in a while you´ll see them entering Jackn´Jills, Intergenerationals and balboa competitions – being very successful. They are doing their best to learn more about dancing and to spread their knowledge and passion for Swing dancing to others.

Juan Villafane and Sharon Davis formed their dance partnership in 2006. Together they represent a diverse social and performance dance talent, including not only Lindy Hop, but also Charleston, Cakewalk, Blackbottom, Vintage Jazz, Breakaway, Balboa, Big Apple, Blues, Collegiate Shag, Burlesque and various other performance artforms of the jazz era. Both extremely popular on the social dance floor, they are known for their warm personalities, approachability, and endless passion for vintage jazz dance and music. With strong backgrounds in performance, they are charismatic and entertaining on stage. Their classes focus on developing dynamic connection, natural movement, flow and body awareness as a pathway to individual style, improvisation and musicality.

Juan hails from Buenos Aires, Argentina and has been a leading proponent in the revival of vintage jazz dances in South America. Juan is the organiser behind Swing Brother Swing, Buenos Aires’ original Lindy Hop event, as well as the Buenos Aires Lindy Hop Festival (BALHF). His background in gymnastics, acrobatics and martial arts, as well as his degree in Physical Education strongly influence his dancing and teaching, giving him a unique perspective on body movement and awareness, and a distinct – and often spectacular – personal style. Known for his high-flying acrobatics and eye-catching slides, Juan is a consumate performer, a creative dancer and an insightful teacher.

Hailing from Perth in Western Australia, Sharon has been performing, teaching and competing in vintage jazz dances since 2001. In Lindy Hop, Blues and Charleston, Sharon is admired for her unique and feminine style, musicality and energy. Sharon has also built an international reputation in solo jazz dances, including 1920s Charleston, authentic jazz, solo blues and burlesque. Sharon has a background in theatre, and is co-founder of Australian burlesque troupe Sugar Blue Burlesque, with which she has delighted audiences with her graceful feather fan dances and sassy showgirl antics. Sharon is an Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown champion, and has claimed numerous awards in Australia and internationally. As an instructor and DJ, Sharon is known for her dedication to the history of vernacular jazz dances and the music they evolved to. With her bright and bubbly personality, Sharon’s teaching style is energetic, creative and fun. Visit her website and blog at sharondavis.com.au.

Kevin and Jo bring a fresh edge to Lindy Hop with inventive aerials, musical routines and high speed dancing. They began their partnership in 2007 and are founding members of the Vintage Jazz Dance Troupe, The Killer Dillers. Together they hold titles at the International Lindy Hop Championships, American Lindy Hop Championship, the Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown, Camp Hollywood and Camp Jitterbug. Since 2000, their professional careers have taken them to over 22 countries on five continents including North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. With clear and humorous instruction, these two creative and versatile dancers will entertain, inspire and help you become the best dancer you can be.

In the words of the Harlem Hamfats….”Let’s Get Drunk and Truck”

Frida Segerdhal is among the most sought after dancers and instructors in the world. Coming all the way from Sweden, Frida will blow you away with her musicality, unique and unpredictable styling, energetic solo dancing and skills.
When 15 years old Frida attended Herrang Dance Camp and fell in love with Lindy Hop. Frida excelled quickly, drawing on her knowledge of body movement and connection that she had mastered studying jazz, modern dance, ballet and much more in other dances. In no time, she was asked to join the world’s foremost jazz dance company, the Rhythm Hot Shots. She has performed and taught at all ends of the world.

In addition to her performance skill, many have rated Frida as one of the best social dancers in the world. Besides her amazing skills in Charleston, Lindy Hop and Jazz Dance, Frida is still a member of the Harlem Hot Shots and now runs the famous Lindy Hop dance camp that she first attended back when she was 15, The Herrang Dance Camp in Sweden.

Skye Humphries is a renowned swing dancer and instructor. He emphasizes fun, energetic social dancing with strong partner connection, solid technique, innovative moves, and musicality.

Skye exemplifies passion for lindy hop and early jazz dances. He is known for his musicality and unique style of lindy hop. He is a versatile dancer who brings a wealth of knowledge about early jazz dances to his workshops.

Skye was a founding member of the award winning Lindy Hop dance troupe Minnie’s Moochers. He has taught and performed Lindy Hop at many major national and international events and dance camps, including the Herrang Dance Camp in Sweden.

Absolute shooting-stars! Masters of movement! Ranked 1st in the American Strictly Lindy Pro Championships 2005, 1st in the Italian Lindy Hop and Jitterbug Championships and 3rd in the World Lindy Hop Championships 2005. Vincenzo and Isabella regularly elicit thunderous applause from their audiences.

Vincenzo Fesi and Isabella Gregorio are well-known international dancers. They teach and perform across the globe exhilarating students and audiences of all ages. They share an authentic and old school idea of dancing. Their motto is: ” The most important thing is the music, the rest will come”.

Vincenzo started dancing Boogie Woogie in 1989 at the age of 9 and shortly there after began winning national and international competitions. When competing at the Boogie Woogie World Championships in 1998 he was exposed to a new style of dancing: not just aerials or fancy figures, but musical interpretation and improvisation. He quickly became a fan of the swing styles of the 1930s and 1940s (Lindy Hop, Balboa, Charleston), and set out to learn them by studying jazz music and watching old films. After much study he won the European Championship in 1995 and the World Cup in 2002 with his former partners, respectively.

In addition to dancing Vincenzo has a big interest in acting and directing. While he is collaborating for RAI Corporation in New York City, an international TV network that broadcasts around the world, Vincenzo is studying the history of jazz and European and American culture from 1910 through 1960.

In 2002 Vincenzo and Isabella started dancing together. Isabella is amazing; she started dancing Lindy Hop just a few years ago and is already ranked one of the top followers around the world. Isabella has been dancing different styles of dance since she was a 9 years old. She has been in the entertainment business for many years dancing as well as singing. She is well known for her crazy style and great expression. Isabella is studying costume history specifically for the time period of the Swing Craze.

The synthesis of different styles of dance, their personalities and authenticity have made their style so popular. Vincenzo and Isabella’s specialty is their ability to dance and improvise with superb musical interpretations. They have been called “the phenomenal fast feet”. Their classes and performances are full of energy and fun.

Zack and Maryse hail from Montreal, Canada, where they founded the Swing ConneXion Studios in 2005. Fun-filled and energetic teachers, they always thrive to get every single student to have a good time, all the while learning valuable lessons about dancing and life (actual life results may vary). Their love of dancing has lead them to teach as staple instructors in many places including Australia, Germany, France, England and, of course, the U.S. and Canada. Their approach of dance, and Lindy Hop in particular, is fun and free-form despite their technical prowess, and leave a great place for improvisation, communication between partners and follower input. Most of all though, they love to watch in a student’s eyes the cloud of confusion make place for the glitter of hope, and finally the joy of understanding.

One of the most versatile social and competition couples around, they have won numerous prizes in Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, Collegiate Shag and Blues, and are most notably five times Canadian Showcase Champions. Recently, they have placed in a slew of competitions both in Lindy Hop and Balboa, most notably taking both the Balboa and Open Showcase division at Camp Hollywood 2009, a rare feat. Their team Swing ConneXion is both Canadian Swing AND American Lindy Hop Champions 2009.

Happy parents of the six-year old Camelia, who can already do the pancake like it’s nobody’s business, Maryse and Zack love to spend their free time playing guitar, singing, watching others’ misfortunes on Funniest Home Videos, and facebooking with each other in the comfort of their bed.

For Katja and Ali it’s all about swing dancing. They are actually bursting swing. They say that their passion and goal is to spread swing dancing, both in Germany and around the world. That’s why they are running several online activities, blogs, and discussion groups, free instructional videos that cover all aspects of the life of a dancer.

Fedor started swinging in 2000 after the fist visit of Harlem Hot Shots & Lennart Westerlund in St.Petersburg. Since 2003 he runs the social dance studio “Casa Latina”, focusing on three main tracks of couple dancing: african-american (swing), african-cuban (salsa) and tango. He teaches Lindy Hop, Mambo (salsa on 2) as well as afro-cuban Jazz plastic (elements of rumba and orichas).

Inga joined the dance community in 2003 as a student of Casa-Latina. Recently they begun to teach together.

Katja started dancing at the age of 5 and through the years studied various forms of dance such as Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Ballroom, Gymnastics and Acrobatic Rock and Roll for 9 years. Since 2005 she has focused on early American dances from the Jazz age and Swing era, such as the Lindy Hop, Swing, Balboa and Charleston. Her dance is a reflection of her music taste so the evolution of her life learning various dances was only natural.

Katja currently lives in Ljubljana, Slovenia and travels doing special weekend workshops and festivals. In the past few years she has taught in Russia, Ireland, Finland, Germany, Scotland, including the worlds largest Lindy Hop, Balboa camp, Herrang Dance Camp which is in Sweden. Her dancing focuses on musicality and connection which makes her one of the most sought after followers in the scene. She loves footwork, keeping it smooth and has the ability to dance elegant and still be exciting to just sit and watch!

Nejc Zupan is one of the first new age swing dancers in Slovenia. He is the founder and leader of the performing group Besne gliste and the main person behind the growing popularity of Lindy Hop in Slovenia. He acquired his knowledge at several worldly workshops, where he worked with instructors such as Ryan Francois, Angela Andrew, Hanna Zetterman and Mattias Lundmark (Rhythm Hot Shots), Johnny Lloyd, Max Pitruzzella and Mike Faltasek. His experiences in the field of contemporary motion theater (classes led by well-known instructors such as Ivan Peternelj, Branko Potočan and Louise Edith Frankenhuis), music and classic theater enable him a fresh and amusing approach to teaching and developing the Slovenian swing scene. He pays special attention to Lindy Hop, Charleston, to the jazz movement and musicality, which are a sine qua non in swing.