New Years Eve got me thinking about what it was like on any given New Years Eve Night at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, New York (Home of the Happy Feet), so I thought I would flick through one of my Swing Music Bibles that I visit from time to time: Simon Says (See pic below) still get 2nd hand copies on Amazon… I look for a specific write up about a New Years Party with the best bands, the most dancers on the floor and the greatest of vibes.. there was none… WHY? Because EVERY NIGHT at the Savoy Ballroom was like New Years Eve. The Battle of Bands, The Greatest of Musicians, the most dancers and the evolution of music and dace (namely Lindy Hop) was happening ALL the time… Oh what a wonderful thought if our scene was big enough and a venue was brave enough to dedicate a ballroom for musicians to play and dancers to dance… Anyway, not to romanticise that period in time which was definitely not all peachy, Frankie by his own account did say it was the greatest time in history for Swing Music and Dance. True That!
In this Newsletter: Some Fun Facts: Some Dancing: Some Dates for your Diary:
Some Fun Facts:
The Savoy earned the nickname “Home of Happy Feet” from Lana Turner who remarked of the dancers, “What happy feet these people have”
Unlike many ballrooms such as the Cotton Club, the Savoy always had a no-discrimination policy. Generally, the clientele was 85% black and 15% white, although sometimes there was an even 50/50 split. Lindy hop legend Frankie Manning noted that patrons were only judged on their dancing skills and not on the color of their skin: “One night somebody came over and said, ‘Hey man, Clark Gable just walked in the house.’ Somebody else said, ‘Oh, yeah, can he dance?’ All they wanted to know when you came into the Savoy was, do you dance?”.
Some Dancing: – Highlights of A Very Swellagant Affair
Some Dates for your Diary:
READY TO GET BACK INTO IT YET?
Monday Nights are back on starting THIS Monday… See you there:
Your Monthly Swing Social Dance STARTS – FRIDAY 6TH OF JANUARY 2017, Nerang Community Hall starts at 8pm
2017 Class Start Dates:
Gold Coast – Tuesday 17 January
Bangalow – Wednesday 18th January
Toowoomba – Thursday 2nd of February…
Sunday 26th of February 2017
REWIND – A Retro Revival Festival – FREE
Til then,
Be Safe, Be Kind, Be Passionate and DANCE!!!
Chrissy & Ray xx
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Swing On In is awesome! Chrissy and Ray are excellent teachers and superb dancers, no matter what dance level you are at they are very welcoming. Highly recommended!
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Started Lindy Hop with Chrissy and Ray many years ago and they gave me the foundation on which to build my Swing dancing. Lindy Hop has taken me all over...
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Awesome peeps and great Lindy hop dancing for all ages!!!
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With out a doubt the best dance group in Australia!!
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Love going to class each week with Chrissy and Ray. Such fun, great exercise and you get to meet some wonderful people.
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Great teachers and great fun. Highly recommended!
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Excellent classes, it's amazing what you can learn in one or two lessons, even with two left feet! Very welcoming and warm and as fun as you make it.
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Expert helpful instruction, loads of fun, beautiful people, great exercise - what's not to love! And thanks for the inspiring clips from the original swing era.
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Fantastic........Chrissie and Roy are the Best! Always happy, always patient, a lovely friendly atmosphere and a pleasure to look forward to every week........Betty
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