so... what are classes like?

lindy hop class at Swing Belfast

This post is obviously more for someone who has never been along to a swing class but in the hope that non-dancers are reading this then questions like this need to be answered!

The first class I went to at Swing Belfast was in 2014 and had about 16 people. The photo attached to this post is from their beginners' class in October 2015 when close to 80 people turned up. EIGHTY! And that was just the beginners/level 1 class without even considering the improvers/level 2 or intermediates/level 3 classes. I was blown away by the surge in interest that swing dancing has had in Belfast over the preceding year and long may it continue! So, to introduce any would-be newcomers, I'll explain what happens!

First of all, it is not imperative that you turn up with a partner, so that was a huge relief to me as I couldn't convince anyone to come with me to class never mind dance with me! It also turned out that I was not alone in this regard and there were a host of other folk arriving solo. So, when the first calls to 'pair up' were made everyone just grabbed the aspiring lead/follow nearest to them and we formed a big circle around the teachers (that's what's happened in the photo above) who explained what to do for each move which we then practised with our partners. Every minute or so we switched partners so that everyone danced with everyone else. I know not all swing groups rotate partners but I am more than glad that that's how I learnt for a number of reasons.

Firstly, this helps average out everyone's ability and increase it - some people are quicker to learn and so they can actually help their other classmates get up to speed.

Secondly, over-familiarity with the dancing style of only one other person may reinforce bad habits that impair your ability to social dance with others (which is really what swing dancing is all about!).

And thirdly, and most importantly, it's through classes and these rotating learning circles that we get to meet all the other awesome people in our scene! Because swing dancing, like most other styles of partner dancing, is generally less fun solo, and although there is a lot of fun to be had dancing with completely new people (in another post I've discussed the 'dance crush') the most fun comes from grabbing a familiar friend and swinging out to a familiar tune as this takes away the performance pressure and lets you just enjoy it!

Seriously, try it!