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All the Cats Join in Workshop Weekend
NEW DATE: 24-26.01.2025
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Intensive Week with Ana&Alberto
09.09.-14.09.2024
Workshops
Lindy Hop – Easy, Hard, Hello challenge, Teachers &
Authentic Solo Jazz – open level
A total of 4.5 hours workshop per level, spread over two evenings and Saturday.
Venue: Tangobaustelle
Price: 60€/Level
Please register using this registration form.
Saturday evening Party
with live Musik
Schedule
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10.00-11.30 | Teachers | ||||||||
| 11.45-13.15 | Authentic Solo Jazz | ||||||||
| 14.15-15.45 | Hello Challenge | ||||||||
| 16:15 - 17:45 | Easy | 16:00-17:30 | Hard | ||||||
| 18.00-19.30 | Easy | Hello challenge | Authentic Solo | Hard | Hello challenge | ||||
| 19.45-21.15 | Hard | Teachers | Easy | Teachers | Authentic Solo | Party with live Music | |||
| 21.15-22.00 | chill & dance | chill & dance | chill & dance | chill & dance | chill & dance | ||||
Teachers: Ana Maeso & Alberto Meucci
Ana Maeso is a social dancer, teacher and choreographer of various dance styles in the swing family, a guest in African-American dance and culture. She has competed and taught in different countries and currently owns, teaches at and directs her own swing school, “Rayuela Swing”. Ana’s main values are respect for the history of the music and the dance, connection and communication amongst dancers, and self- expression. In her classes, Ana strive for personal feedback, material that can be used way beyond the hours shared in the classroom, and creating an environment where fun, growth and vulnerability can co-exist.
Born in Italy, Alberto Meucci discovered Swing dance in 2015, and he hasn’t stopped since. Shortly after beginning his dance journey, Alberto started traveling to various festivals across Europe, where he learned from different artists and participated in competitions. Following a couple of residencies in Budapest and Vilnius, he has now made Warsaw, Poland, his home/dance base, teaching at the dance school ShimSham.pl. While he still enjoys competing and ‘throwing down’ on the dance floor, his favorite moments are undoubtedly spent social dancing. Alberto finds inspiration in every lindyhopper he meets, as each encounter on the dance floor brings something new. Dancing fuels his energy and curiosity, driving him to continually explore the history and culture of the dance. His pockets are filled with rhythmic variations and…jokes 😉
Lindy Hop Levels
Easy: Your feet start to twitch and move when you hear Swing music and you already made the first steps on the dance floor? In this level the basics we’ll focus on your basics to make the experience on the social dancefloor even better.
For this level you should be dancing Lindy Hop for at least two month, you are familiar with the basic moves and you participate in classes and workshops regularly.
Hard:Lindy Hop became a part of your life and the socials are fixed dates in your calendar? In this level, the learning tempo is higher and the content is more challenging. This level is just right for all swing-oholics, who regularly participate in international festivals and still want more.
Hello challenge: A life without swing is just not worth it! If you know the basics by heart, are confidently dancing to music with higher tempo and are quick with picking up stuff in classes, this is the level for you, minimum of 4 years of Lindy Hop dancing Teachers: Lindy Hop means more to you than a hobby. You not only visit international festivals and workshops but are also active in your local scene beyond dancing at socials and attending workshops: as an instructor, organizer, or you are part of a performance group. You are basically able to lead and follow. You feel experienced and confident in your dance and at the same time regularly take the time to work on your basics.
Please note that this level is INVITATIONAL. You can register, but our team has to confirm your registration first. Send us a video or an email describing your experience and we will contact you as soon as possible.
“Teacher to be” Workshop
Would you like to pass on your Lindy Hop/Balboa/Shag knowledge and teach others? Then this is the right place for you. In this two-part workshop you will learn what is important when teaching and you will also have the opportunity to try it out yourself.
Date: 23. und 30.09.2024 from 6:15 – 8:00 pm
Venue: BRG Kepler, Keplerstraße 1
The workshop is free for you, but please register with this registration form.
Lindy Hop Workshop Series
Lindy Hop Workshop series with the levels Beginner, Intermediates, Focus Tracks
Dates: 14.10., 21.10., 04.11., 11.11., 18.11., 25.11.2024
6 classes a 75 minutes
Fees: 50,- € Contribution to expenses + 10,- € membership (to be paid once)
Venue: BRG Kepler, Keplerstraße 1
Registration starts at September 4th
Beginner *Time: 6 – 7:15 pm
Intermediate *
Time: 6:15 – 7:30 pm
Fokus Tracks
replaces the levels Intermediate/Advanced * & Advanced *
A life without swing is unimaginable for you? Are there signs of swing addiction emerging? Then this is the right course for you! This track is not only suitable for more experienced Lindy Hop dancers, but for anyone looking to intensively improve their dance skills and expand their repertoire.
The focus tracks always revolve around a defined theme. Several of these tracks are offered in parallel. You have the choice and can determine which direction the next steps of your Lindy Hop learning journey will take.
Requirements: Participation in workshops at the Beginner, Improver, Intermediate levels, or equivalent courses, and regular dancing at socials (at least 1.5 years of regular Lindy Hop dancing.)
Swing out, swing in – Tina & Luka
By laying the foundations and getting to know the different techniques of the most popular figure in Lindy Hop, we will build on fluid dancing, find our own dance style and ensure that every swing out is followed by a swing back in.
Swing out Madness – Julia und Csaba
If you‘re already know the basic foundations of swing outs quite well and you want some extra challenge, this is the track for you. We‘ll work on different swing out styles, variations and we‘ll also speed up the tempo.
Cha Cha Cha – Charming Charleston Challenge – Alena & Manuel
We will immerse ourselves in the lively world of Lindy Charleston. After a short refresher on the basics and the most important steps, we expand our repertoire with charming and cool new moves. Rousing music, dynamic moves and plenty of kicks – come and master the Charleston challenge!
Lindy Hop OPEN ROLE
Beginner
You cant’ decided wether you want to follow or to lead? Good news: in this class you don’t have to!
You’ll learn all the basics of Lindy Hop in both roles…so nothing can stop you from dancing!
Dates: 02.12., 09.12., 16.12.2024, 13.01., 20.01., 27.01.2025
Time: 7:45 – 9:00 pm
Registration starts at October 20th.
COLLEGIATE SHAG-WORKSHOP
Beginner
Dates: 03.10., 10.10., 17.10., 24.10., 07.11., 14.11.2024
6 classes a 75 minutes
Time: 6 – 7:15 pm
Fees: 50,- € Contribution to expenses + 10,- € membership (to be paid once) – please indicate credits when registering
Venue: Tangobaustelle, Brückenkopfgasse 2, 8020 Graz
Attention, the dance room may not be entered with street shoes. It is best to bring indoor or dance shoes, thank you very much!
Registration starts at September 4th
Beginner +
You’ve caught shag fever and you enjoy the footwork of the double rhythm shag. You have mastered the heel-up and double-kick basic step, can lead or follow simple figures and are looking forward to more…
Dates: 21.11., 28.11., 05.12., 12.12., 19,12.2024, 09.01.2025
Registration starts at October 20th.
BALBOA-WORKSHOP
Beginner
Dates: 04.11., 11.11., 18.11., 25.11.2024
Time: 6:15 – 7:30 pm
Fees: 35,- € Contribution to expenses + 10,- € membership (to be paid once)
Venue: BRG Kepler, Keplerstraße 1, 8020 Graz
Registration starts at Oktober 1st
Intermediate
You know the basic moves of Pure-Bal and Bal-Swing (Up Hold Basic, Down Hold Basic, Come Around, Throw/Toss Out, Lollies, Out-And-Ins) and have a good sense of rhythm for faster music. In addition, have you already attended a Lindy Cats beginner and improver workshop or equivalent workshops? Then this is the right place for you.
Dates: 14.10., 21.10., 04.11., 11.11., 18.11., 25.11.2024
6 classes a 75 minutes
Time: 19.45 – 21.00
Fees: 50,- € Contribution to expenses + 10,- € membership (to be paid once)
Venue: BRG Kepler, Keplerstraße 1, 8020 Graz
Registration starts at September 4th.
PEASE NOTE:
We are currently in the process of changing our payment system for the workshops, in future it will only be possible to pay the workshop fee online. All vouchers and credits will of course remain validity – please contact us to redeem them at registrierung@thelindycats.at
In all our workshops the dance partners are changed regularly!
The number of places is limited. If smaller groups than expected are allowed, first come, first served.
In the unlikely event of problems with registration, please contact registrierung@thelindycats.at.
Dances of the Swing Era
Lindy Hop
Lindy Hop is nowadays the most well known and most wide-spread among the swing dances which are experiencing a comeback since the end of the 20th century. Created in Harlem, New York, in the Roaring 20s, it soon became due to legendary performance groups such as „Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers“ the most famous dance of the Swing era.
Building up on its own technique, the dance allows a lot of room for improvisation and interpretation of the music it is being danced to. Thus, every dancer can bring her/his own style into the dance and develop it with their dance partners.
We offer regular Lindy Hop workshops in six levels. Here is a playlist with songs especially suitable for beginners.
Collegiate Shag
Like the Lindy Hop, Shag has its roots in the 1920s and 1930s, particularly favoured and wide-spread among College Kids – hence the name.
„…Collegiate Shag exudes youthful exuberance. Its bouncy hops and purposefully gawky, whimsical style give it a fun-filled flair.“ Tamara Stevens „Swing Dancing“, 2011, p. 120
A little bit of history… from swing dance historian Peter Loggins. Here is a playlist with songs especially suitable for beginners.
Balboa
Balboa was created in the 1920ies, concurrently with Charleston and Lindy Hop. The dance is characterized by the close dance pose, and the dance experience is originates from subtle weight changes and playful footwork. It is danced primarily to fast music and due to its space-efficient nature it is well suited on crowded floors. Through combination with moves from Charleston and Lindy Hop, Balboa is transformed into Bal-Swing. Watch this video if you want to learn about Balboa’s history. Here is a playlist with songs especially suitable for beginners.
Authentic Solo Jazz
From the flying feet of the Flappers to the famous choreos like The Big Apple, you can dance to jazz! The jazz music of the 1920s to 1940s and solo moves, that’s what Authentic Jazz is all about. This includes technique, rhythm, improvisation and styling as well as choreography to give the moves their own accents and to experiment with them. Authentic Jazz is an ideal addition for all those who have already had a taste of swing dance and want to get really creative.
Charleston
The „iconic“ dance of the 1920s, the Charleston still enjoys great fame for its kick steps, crazy knees and other „wild“ moves. You can dance it both solo and in pairs, it is rather well suited for fast music.
Solo Charleston is usually being thaught in choreographies but the different steps are very useful, if you don’t have a partner at hand or wish to dance alone.
Slow Drag/Authentic Blues
Slow Drag is a couple dance from the early 1930s with African-American roots. We dance to slow blues and jazz music. Historically seen, this dance is considered one of the origins of all swing dances. The dance is strongly connected to the music and is danced individually very different, like the music is played in many ways. With the mostly slow music there is plenty of room for individual expression in the dance. There is a lot of call-and-response, the roles can be changed, every dance partner can take the lead. Here you will find a playlist of beginner-friendly songs.