Welcome, 2009. Prepare to meet your death.
Tonight, DJ Allen Kerr!
Happy New Year to all. The Jam Cellar crew was busy over the holidays, teaching and dancing at gigs in Asheville, Boston, and even Sweden. For some travel notes, see below. Otherwise, here's what we got coming up this month.
LINDY IN THE FAST LANE starts tonight!
Need to get your Lindy Hop up to speed? The focus of January's Int/Adv course is all about getting faster and doing it with ease. We'll focus on the basics and cutting away the extra work when you crank up the tempos. Add to that speed drills and some great moves that work well when the song is blazing and you've got Lindy in the Fast Lane. $60, dance admission free with class.
BLACK AND WHITE INAUGURAL BALL Jan. 20
That's right! On the night we welcome in the new president of the United States, Jam Cellar will be hosting an inaugural ball. Please wear black and/or white, with special props for classy dressin'. Though their attendance is not confirmed yet, I'm excited to say we have invited Borack Obama and family (assuming he's still on the Jam Cellar email list). $10 for dancing, or $3,000 for a dinner plate.
The Boilermaker Jazz Band performs Jan 31!
The Jam Cellar is excited to bring back our regular favorites, the amazing Boilermaker Jazz Band, to the Glen Echo Spanish Ballroom! $14 Admission; Beginner Swing Lesson @ 8PM (Free with admission). Dance From 9PM - 12AM. Presented in cooperation with the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts & Culture, Inc., the National Park Service and Montgomery County, MD. Thanks for your continued support Glen Echo!
Random Notes from Asheville
Kate and I (Bobby) recently came back from a set of New Years dance gigs, both of which were a blast in completely different ways. First was Lindy Focus, a roughly 27-day camp in the mountain city of Asheville, NC, and the second was New Year's Dancin' Eve, a Westie-Lindy combo event in Burlington, MA. Here are some random travel notes from our trip.
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Lindy Focus was such a great event that we enjoyed it even though halfway through I threw out my back and Kate got the Consumption. The event has been a staple in the South East for several years now, and in the past was known regionally for putting a spotlight on local instructors and one or two national couples, and generally showing people an incredible time. This year, however, they added a full line-up of internationally known instructors, and kept the hospitality. (Many of the regional talents still taught taster classes). I wager that Lindy Focus will soon be many Americans' New Year's Eve event choice.
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Me throwing out my back is an embarrassingly stupid story, but one that bears mentioning as a warning to those of you who have tricky backs and who like to wear their pants high around the waste. Kate and I were part of a performance of a recreation of the clip "A Day at The Races." The last few weeks my back had been straining me a bit, which is the equivalent of "my corn's hurtin', must be rain comin' in."
Anyway, the jam we were doing didn't have aerials so I didn't think it would be a problem. The problem, however, was this: Before we ran through it, I felt my jeans riding down around my hips. To free up some leg movement, I pulled up my pants and tightened my belt, a little too tight. During one of the Jam's back-bending movements, my back didn't have the flexibility it needed, and the muscles spasmed and I was out for the count for four days. The sad thing was that, beside that, it was the best we had ever done the Jam.
Actually, no, the sad thing is that it's the second time a tight-belt has been the cause of my back going on. From now on, suspenders. I am officially getting old. And am an idiot.
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In the advanced strictly lindy comp at Lindy Focus, I saw the rare moment when a modern couple transcends "trying to be incredible dancers" and simply "becomes incredible dancers." Terrace (from Atlanta) and D.C.'s own Ann Mony totally destroyed their spotlight jams in the finals of the competition. They were the rare blend of skill, genuine love of the music, and being completely in the moment.
Ann had graciously asked me if I wanted to do the comp with her earlier, but I had to turn her down because teachers weren't allowed to compete. I remember watching them dance and thinking how glad I was that she got someone like Terrace to show her off; there's no way I would have been able to compare to the dancer Terrace was on that dance floor that night.
They ended up getting second, though I strongly believe their spotlights are what most of the audience will remember from that competition.
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One of the trickiest things I've had to learn in swing, aside from remembering to loosen my belt, is judging. And, I imagine its one of the most overlooked skills an instructor should have. I, by no means, have it down yet. I started off with an intricate code of symbols involving smiley faces, musical notes, and rudimentary stick figures. I then tried to scientifically pin-point all the plusses and negatives in each couple, which I found impossible to do in a one-minute song. (Though the contestants appreciated it; Anyone who asked me for feedback got a fifteen minute in-depth conversation.)
Disliking such an analytical approach, I recently have been trying to listen more to my gut feeling on things, and figure out why I feel that way in the seconds we have between songs. Which has lead to better judging in a lot of ways, I think, but can make it awkward when people want feedback and I haven't had time to sort out my thoughts. ("Well, you were great, you just didn't do it for me. Know what I mean?")
Then there are the weird rules other judges have. Some people count off for mistakes, which in my opinion is a sure-fire way to ensure that the classic swing dances become perfectly executed and boring as hell. If people are afraid to make mistakes, they will be afraid to take risks. Many judges are also slightly biased to trends in dancing, and many judges, though perhaps on a subconscious level, obviously give favor to dancers they know.
And this diatribe isn't even touching the really difficult judging questions. Perhaps the inherent problem with judging is that we're trying to quantify an art, which is never easy. I want to write more about judging, and interview some of the great minds in swing judging for future articles for Jam Cellar and Lindybloggers, so, if this interests you, be on the lookout for those or feel free to ask me about it.
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For some reason, the hotel at Lindy Focus only served Thanksgiving meals for lunch. Nothing gets you ready to swing-out at 230 BPM like creamy buttery cheese potatoes, roasted chicken, mac-and-cheese, and steak everyday for lunch.
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Lindy Focus had three secret contests; one where Couples had to do Lindy without Charleston to speed music, one where couples had to do Charleston only, and a final competition, between the two winning couples of those contests, who had to do nothing but swing-outs to a blazing 300+ bpm. (This contest was a surprise to everyone involved). The first couple to stop doing them lost.
Friend and fellow Lindyblogger Carl Nelson and his partner for the comp, Karen Turman, were one of those finalists, and he should get special mention for doing twenty or so swing-outs in slick, leather-soled shoes. And she should get special mention for compensating for his leather-soled swing-outs. The winners, Brooks and Joanna, did Atlanta proud and displayed an impressive amount of spirit and cardiovascular health.
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As for the disease that left Kate bed-ridden and myself pacing the halls in a frock coat, the swing scene's version of Dr. House soon had a diagnostic. Dr. Dorry Segev, a transplant surgeon at Johns Hopkins (You would probably recognize him more as the guy who could make anything, even a thesis on single-variable calculus, into a sex joke. ), told Kate she probably had a stomach bug that's been going around. If you've been in contact with Kate at dances, don't worry, it's not very contagious. You'd have to, like, rub her hands for a minute or something to get it. The strange thing is, the disease cleared up her chronic allergies.
