The Huntsville Swing Dance Society got it's start in 1995 when Paul Wieland and a few friends started getting together to swing dance. He started it with some of the dancers gathered at a drug store downtown that served ice cream sodas. At that time, HSDS held a dance every few months. Al and Alta Bogush joined in 2000 and, (among helping with many other things), have kept records of HSDS events, year after year.

Solomon Douglas will be teaching an intermediate lindy hop workshop before entertaining us at the HSDS Dance. He's come all the way to Huntsville from Seattle so this is your best chance this year to get some west coast instruction! The workshop will focus on musicality and making the music happen in your dance. Solomon is a swing rockstar, as an artist, a musician, and a dancer. Come get some!

There is NOTHING hotter than bootleg blues, but sometimes summer heat is good. If you were there or saw the recap, you know that the heat wasn't just from the summer sun. And people can't get enough so we're doing it again. July 2nd, we're bringing back the blues and the summer heat.

Just like the summer, all good things must end. Don't bide your time. No-one gets a second chance. Be happy for the second bootleg blues and pray there's a third before the heat fades and the summer of blues is gone.

Man, what an awesome dance! Normally DJ dances are a nice mellow affair. A lull between the bands. This was anything but! Rob, Breanna and Danielle all put off rock solid sets and gabe ended was one hell of a blues playlist!

Just a quick note, Tabitha and Gabriel's lessons at the UAH Fitness Center are cancelled today (Tuesday, 3/16) due to spring break.

Tabitha and Gabriel will be back next week. The beginner class will continue lindy hop fundamentals, building on the last two weeks.

Thanks to everyone who came to swing out to the Dean Martinis with us! We had great turn out and a great time! There were about 20 people at the beginner lesson alone!

Thanks to Tabitha and Gabriel for teaching as always and thank you to Rob and Kristen for the intermission DJ'ing. It was great to see all the new faces at the dance as well as all of the great lindy hoppers.

Balboa, the ever feared and respected swing dance. Even among swing dances, balboa is a separate peak to be conquered. However, with the right help, you can go from 0 to 60 in no time flat. Thats what this workshop is all about, giving those with no experience a chance to get cruisin and those with some balboa experience a chance to turn it into a solid part of their swing repertoire.

Update 3/1: Class descriptions are up!
Class 1 – The Good Stuff: Getting comfortable with the feel and basic steps of the balboa

Class 2 – The Better Stuff: Adding some pure balboa moves to your basic

Class 3 – The Great Stuff: Moves to make you look great on the dance floor

Class 4 – The Best Stuff: Teaching a classic “old timer” balboa move for some major eye candy on the floor that combines a little bit of everything learned so far and more.

And we have crowned our DJ queen! Danielle Beardsley faced off head to head with seven other DJs, 3 head-to-head, and came out on top! This even with losing her computer the morning before the dance and having to DJ off of a loaner.

Thank you to everyone who came out to the New Years Eve Bash. It was an incredible event! We had more people at the lesson than would fit on the dance floor. Gabriel and Tabitha taught an excellent lesson and Rocket City Jazz Orchestra followed it up with four fantastic sets. I think I speak for Huntsville's swing dance community when I say that RCJO has made Huntsville a better place both to dance and just to enjoy the arts!