Welcome to our dance styles page!!!
At SAA we dance and teach a wide variety of dances that fall under the umbrella of swing dances. Below is a list of the most common dances (on the left) as well as some sample videos (on the right).
At SAA we dance and teach a wide variety of dances that fall under the umbrella of swing dances. Below is a list of the most common dances (on the left) as well as some sample videos (on the right).
6 count swing, often referred to as "east
coast", is a simplified, easy-to-learn swing
dance which is good for beginners. It is based on a
six-count step and can be danced to fairly fast music
(150-200 bpm). The six-count steps are part of lindy
hop, but are also known separately as variations of
east coast swing.
Lindy Hop is an 8-count dance which can be a bit more difficult to learn than East Coast. That being said, the difficulty is more than made up for by its flexibility and style. Lindy Hop can be danced to a wide range of tempos.
We currently offer a Beginning Lindy series every month.
The Charleston is probably what comes to mind when you think of the 1920's and "flappers". However, Charleston continued to evolve into the 1940's and beyond. We teach lessons in a variety of solo & partner Charleston styles.
Balboa is often danced to fast music (190-300 bpm). It is danced in close contact with your partner and is suitable for packed dance halls.
Ballroomin' blues and drag blues are similar, begin dances in upright ballroom postures and are best suited for slower tempo jazz songs. Like balboa, they danced in close contact with your partner, ballroomin' in close embrace connection and drag blues in drag connection. Ballroomin' blues is bouncier while drag blues is smoother and more elegant. These dances are vintage in nature, but have also been absorbed into and influence by modern blues dancing as well. As such this dance is seen both at swing dances as well as "blues rooms" and late nights.
Jookin' blues is best suited for blues music. Jookin' is danced in a variety of connections and relies on a disassociation of upper and lower body movements. This dance is usually reserved for "blues rooms" and late nights.