The Decade in Swing
Tomorrow Night, The Boilermaker Jazz Band!
At the last Jam Cellar of the year, we are proud to present a night filled with wonder. First, there's Jerry's video party where he'll show you clips, and you'll eat snacks you've brought and drink the drinks you bring. Even adult beverages, if you wish. (Drink responsibly.) Then, the incredible Boilermakers will perform for your pleasure.
Next Month's Class: Lindy Hop Performance CHOREOGRAPHY!
Our Jam Cellar Crew (mostly Bobby and Kate) will spend 8-full weeks teaching a performance choreography complete with aerials and other fancy moves. Why learn a performance choreography?!? First off, because you'll perform it. Several times, if you wish, at the Jam Cellar and at Glen Echo dances. Group performances are also a great opportunity to work on your uptempo dancing, learn how to do solid and good looking aerials, and learn how to show off a little. We will also build the sort of team comradery one only finds in combat. This performance should test intermediate dancers and advanced dancers alike. The two months of classes cost only $95, saving you over $25 in Jam Cellar class value. Classes begin Jan. 5th. 8:30-9:30 p.m.
Next Week: No Jam Cellar!
We'll see you Jan. 5.
Inter/Adv Lindy Hop Boot Camp! MOVED to Saturday, Jan. 9. ALL THE DETAILS!
This special 2-hour class was scheduled for Dec. 19, but we had to cancel on account of the sudden blizzard that fell on my car. So, we moved it to Saturday Jan. 9. It's an intense experience that intermediate and advanced Lindy Hoppers have never had before. Run by fancy world traveling swing dance instructors Bobby and Kate, we'll play rhythm games, we'll show you how to critique your own dancing, and talk about the heart of great dancing, things that are rarely done in classes. We'll do drills of all sorts; speed drills, creative drills, aerial drills. We'll show you how to be a better solo dancer, and how to work in a team. We'll show you how to practice on your own, and with a partner. Our goal is to basically make you improve so much during a two-hour group practice session, that you won't be able to wipe the smile from your next partner's face. Saturday, Jan. 9, 2-4 p.m. at the DC Dance Collective (4908 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016–right down the street from Chevy Chase Ballroom. AND BE AWARE, THE STUDIO'S SIGN IS HARD TO SEE AND IT'S ENTRANCE IS BELOW STREET LEVEL. IT'S JUST A FEW DOORS DOWN FROM THE GAS STATION) . Price is $20 per student. If the students can comfortably hang at the inter/adv Jam Cellar classes, they will be perfect for this class. We will NOT be covering swing-out technique, except where it applies to other areas of our discussion. If you plan on attending, email him (robertwhiteiii AT gmail DOT com, you will have to reformat for your email) or sign up at the Jam Cellar.
Clean-up Volunteers needed!
For just fifteen minutes of moderate cardiovascular labor at the end of Jam Cellar, you can receive free admission as well as the love and affection of the Jam Cellar Organization staff, the admiration of all your peers, and an increased prowess among the opposite/same sex. If interested in helping out tonight, contact us.
The Decade in Swing
2000- Guy in letter sweater looks condescendingly upon guy in Zoot suit. At a dance event weekend in Boston, Gary Swooner, dressed in a moth-eaten 1930s red letter sweater, pleaded plaid golf pants, and yellow striped socks chuckled condescendingly at Morris Bigler's purple zoot suit and two-toned shoes. "That thing hurts the eyes."
2001- Divorcing teaching couple makes entire camp of students feel awkward. In the middle of rocky divorce, teachers Jeff and Pam made an entire camp feel awkward when repeatedly using teaching as a chance to attack one another personally. "In this move, guys, you really have to commit. But Jeff can't really talk about that, can you Jeff?" Pam said in once class. They were even able to make the entire dance awkward by selling all their furniture at one of the event's booth.
2002 – Collegiate Shag finally practiced, for, like, for 20 minutes. After working on his Dean Collins whips and Balboa moves, Donna and Mike of Decatur, Atlanta, finally had a few minutes leftover in practice to work on their collegiate shag.
2003 – Guy does first Tandem Charleston in four years. On a dance floor in Washington DC, Bill Jackson suddenly had the urge to do a Tandem Charleston, which hadn't been done in America in four years. Upon entering it, he had to stop however, as the DJ had turned off the music upon seeing it.
2004 – Balboa starts to realize, "Oh wait, I can do something with this." On this date, the Balboa scene as a whole, after practicing the basic for four years, suddenly realized it could actually do something with this, perhaps even dance.
2005- Chaz Erickson creates a personal Lindy Hop style involving jumps and twists that allow him to express his artistic individuality; other leaders immediately feel inspired to copy him.
2006 – Person who snarkily says "Balboa is for people who can't dance Lindy fast," can't dance lindy fast. Emily Shoowalter, a follower of New York, was overheard saying that Balboa was for people who can't dance fast. Her own fast Lindy technique, however, was best described as "an orangutan in keds trying to sprint in circles" and several Lindy professionals confirmed they would prefer root canals to dancing with her.
2007 – Bronzen Banshee's team choreography looks awful lot like "Golden Ghosts" choreography. The "Bronzen Banshees," a choreography team comprised of up-and-coming dancers, performed a routine that looked strikingly similar to the Golden Ghosts' winning routine from the year previous. Out of eight teams, they came in fifth. The Golden Ghosts took first.
2008 – Couple daringly does Lindy Hop for majority of Lindy Hop competition. In a sea of Charleston moves and bouncing, butt-wiggling musicality, a couple at the North-By-Norwest Lindy Fest was seen doing only Lindy Hop for most of the Strictly Lindy competition. When explaining why they did not put them through to finals, one judge said "Something was weird about their pulse." Steven Mitchell, however, put them in first place.
2009 – Collegiate Shag finally practiced again, for, like, for 20 minutes. After working on his speed Whitey swing-outs and complex Charleston variations, Donna and Mike of Decatur, Atlanta, finally had a few minutes leftover in practice to work on their collegiate shag.