Swing
In its roughly 80 years of history, swing dance has assumed many names and forms. lindy hop is the original swing dance, born in Harlem’s Savoy Ballroom during the late 1920’s. As the popularity of jazz and big-band music extended throughout North America, so too did lindy hop. Indeed, it became so widespread that lindy hop was featured in dance competitions, festivals, film, and popular culture.
By the 1950’s, swing dance had evolved into the Jitterbug, East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, the Boogie Woogie, Balboa, Carolina Shag, DC Hand Dancing, and other forms, each reflecting different regional or musical styles. Today, many of swing’s styles have spread beyond their regional origins.
At Steppin’ in Style, our performance and instructive style is a refinement of the Lindyhop portrayed in various films of the 1940’s and 1950’s. We also provide instruction in East Coast Swing, a simpler form that captures the essential swing rhythm and that can be learned with relative ease.