Archived Content
This is archived content, and does not reflect our current classes and events. For current information, please start from the home page.
Workshops and Events
Mad About Swing proudly presents
A weekend of all things swing!
1st – 3rd November 2013 in Plymouth
Also check out the footage from our last Swing Thing:
The majority of the action will be taking place on the Saturday with classes throughout the day and a very special social with live music from the amazing Company B who are guaranteed to inject the evening with their special blend of high-octane swing and jump jive! The teaching team comprises Bic & Simone, David Zilkha and Duncan & Louise and classes will focus mainly on Lindy Hop with elements of 20s Charleston and Blues.
On Friday night, you can join us for a meal and a live band at The B-Bar. Dance space is limited but the food is great and the atmosphere is always rather special. Friday night's band will be the highly-rated Swingology who rocked the joint when they played for us all back in March as part of our Balboa weekend.
| Early Bird rate (before October) |
Advanced rate (during October) |
Full price (after October) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Everything* | £42† | £45† | £48† |
| Dance only | £10† | £11† | £12† |
| Just classes* | £35 | £38 | £40 |
| Individual classes | £7 | £8 | £9 |
* Friday night is sold separately and is not organised by Mad About Swing.
† For an extra £4, upgrade to a premium ticket with free alcoholic and soft drinks all evening. Otherwise bring your own... we'll provide the glasses!
Saturday's Timetable
Doors open at 9.15am. Lessons will start promptly at the times stated below.
| 9.30am – 10.30am | 20's Charleston with Simone Brown The perfect way to start the day's classes off! Simone has taught Solo Charleston at every one of our Swing Things and the class is always packed. As if hailing direct from the 1920s, Simone will guide you through the whacky and wonderful dance they call The Charleston. Considered immoral and rather provocative in its heyday, the dance is frequently associated with the flappers and Speakeasies of the prohibition age. To participate in this high energy solo dance you don't need to have any prior knowledge but it would be beneficial. Simone is a valued member of Jenny Thomas's Sophisticated Ladies Dance Troupe and a star on the national swing scene. |
|---|---|
| 10.40am – 12.50pm | Lindy Hop with Bic & Simone and Duncan & Louise This year we're running two streams of Lindy Hop: Advanced (for competent social dancers who are comfortable dancing all of the fundamental figures at a range of tempos) and Intermediate (for dancers who know the basic footwork patterns but lack the experience to dance comfortably all night long). Each stream will receive one hour with Bic & Simone and one hour with Duncan & Louise. If you're a UK Lindy Hopper then Bic and Simone need no introduction. They are regarded as two of the best Lindy Hop dancers of our generation in the country. At the top of their game, Bic and Simone are Strictly Lindy Champions of both the London Swing Festival and DJAM and are Lindy Open winners of the Lindy Hop Festival held in Liverpool. They teach regular classes, are integral in the running of Ryan and Jenny's Camp Savoy and are the organisers of the popular Sugar Push monthly social and annual Maytime Messaround weekender in Hampshire where they live. Your hosts for the weekend, Duncan and Louise live and teach in Plymouth where they are proud and delighted to drive the local scene with their Mad About Swing classes and events. No strangers to the UK Lindy scene, they have been attending national and international events since 2007 and, more recently, have been honoured to be part of the teaching team at national Lindy Hop and Balboa events over the past few years. With a focus on fun, as well as technique, Duncan and Louise's classes are clear and concise and their local scene is friendly, welcoming and, above all, a whole lot of fun! |
| Lunch break | You're welcome to bring a packed lunch and eat at the hall. Alternatively, we're in easy walking distance from a range of cafes and shops. |
| 1.50pm – 2.50pm | Bluesy Lindy with David Zilkha The hardest swing songs to dance to can be the slowest songs rather than the faster ones. In this class, David will share his knowledge, showing you how to apply simple blues moves and techniques to your Lindy Hop repertoire. Empowering you to conquer songs at the slower bluesier end of the spectrum, this class will look at fusing Lindy Hop and Blues, giving you valuable tools to use on the social floor. Currently residing in Bristol, David Zilkha was one of the founders of the London Lindy Exchange, the London Balboa Festival, and Blues Revolution (the most established blues dancing organisation in Europe), and has more recently founded Swing Dance Bristol. As an experienced dancer and dance teacher, David has heaps to share and his classes are always fun and engaging. |
| 3.00pm – 4.00pm | Exploring Connection with David Zilkha You know those dancers who always look cool and relaxed no matter what happens in the dance? Time to learn the secrets... This class will explore how to dance together (almost) without using hand connections. (There will be lots of movement without touching your partner but this is completely a partner Lindy Hop class and not a solo Jazz class). The leaders will learn how to move more across the floor and adapt to their partner, and the followers to keep their momentum and direction going and not to anticipate. This will give you much more space to be playful, as well as making your dancing super-cool and as smooth as Drew Benjamin's bottom! |
| 7.20pm – 11.00pm | Sugar Foot Stomp Special with live music from Company B An evening to remember powered by 7-piece jump-jive swing outfit Company B; these guys are totally awesome and blew us away at our first Swing Thing back in 2011. You can choose between a premiere ticket (an extra £4) which includes free alcoholic and soft drinks all evening from our teachers' area or get a standard ticket and bring your own drinks (we'll provide the glasses!) The band's first set will begin at 7.30pm so don't be late! During the evening there will also be a Shenanigans class with Duncan, Louise, Bic & Simone – prepare for some crazy high jinx! |
Parking
For the evening social, free on-street parking can be found on the roads directly outside of the venue and down the road on North Hill. In the unlikely event that you can't find a space, there is a pay and display car park a stone's throw away opposite Clifton Place on the other side of North Hill. During the day, the parking directly outside of the hall is restricted to 2 hours maximum stay. To avoid having to keep moving your vehicle, you can either park in the pay and display car park or make use of restriction-free parking on nearby Salcombe Road and Colebridge Road (a 5-10 minute walk away).
Friday
On Friday night, you can join us for a meal and a live band at The B-Bar. This is our regular Friday night haunt when we put on one of our bigger weekends. Dance space is limited but the food is great (and super value) and the atmosphere is always rather special. The band will be the highly-rated Swingology who rocked the joint when they played for us all back in March as part of our Balboa weekend. Bands tend to start around 9pm so we recommend booking a table for around 8.30. www.b-bar.co.uk
Booking
You can book your place at any of our weekly classes. Alternatively, please send a cheque made payable to 'Louise Anderson' to 3 Parks Drive, Plymouth, Devon PL9 9FG. Please include your contact details (preferably an email address) so that we can confirm that we have received your payment. For obvious reasons, single follows should check availability before booking any of the partner classes. You are also welcome to pay by bank transfer, making the reference YOUR name so that we can track your payment: please contact us for the account details.
Any questions? Don't hesitate to get in touch.
For information about last year's event, see the Swing Thing 2012 page
