The Lessons and Práctica

Jitterbug to Lindy ~ Essential Swing Dance Classes
A 12+ week program, consisting of a 6-week class session & ongoing prácticas ~

Our lessons and prácticas are on hiatus...
Come to the weekly dances!!
If you would like some help then email us at secondcupswing@mac.com and we'd be happy to meet you early for one of the weekly events and we can spend 15 minutes or so for free :)

Mondays . September 10th - October 15th, 2012
. This session is now closed. Please come visit us some Monday for the Práctica and then join our next session in November :)

Our next 6-week session will be at the beginning of November 2012.
then the first available Monday every other month thereafter ~

Our 2 hour Prácticas are ongoing each n' every Monday evening with rare exception ~
. The Prácticas are Drop-in so just come by any time you can!

. . . . .
at Taft Street Coffee (like the monthly Taft Dance - visit them)
2115 Taft - Houston 77006 (map)
. East of Montrose Blvd., between W.Grey/Welch & Drew/Fairview


"This connected Swing is the most responsive and versatile partner dance you can learn!"
When you hear someone say, "I swing dance," you may just think of Zoot Suits or bobby socks and poodle skirts — but it is so much more! With our stress of true lead-follow connection, you can use your swing dancing skills to not only dance to swing, but to a whole variety of music (even some you never thought you could partner dance to!).
Not only that, but its connection will allow you to much more easily mimic or learn most any other dance you might find on the floor.
If you want to experience what we're talking about, please come join us and "savour the dance."

Our 12 week program, consisting of a 6-week (Monday evening) class session and ongoing prácticas, covers Jitterbug and then Lindy-Hop, the original swing from Harlem's Savoy Ballroom in the late 1920’s. In the prácticas we'll move on to explore the dance to an even wider variety of music. In our classes you'll get:
• A variety of moves to get you started
• A feel for the music and a sense of how to play within the dance, and
• A true lead-follow dance experience, so you can dance within and beyond the moves with a world of swing dancers!
. . . . .

Schedule

part I . Essential Swing . mondays . 7:00 - 8:15pm
~ discovering the source of our swing ~
Beginning from scratch — we get the feel of the connection and energy that makes swing work; first with 6-count Jitterbug & then we take it into Lindy-Hop!

part II . Essentially Swing . mondays . 8:30 - 10:30pm
~ building our swing from the source . a guided swing práctica ~
Now that we're dancing our swing with connection and energy / frame, flow & counterbalance — there is so much more Jitterbug & Lindy that we can do as we explore, add, embellish and create!!
. The práctica is now for 2 Hours!! ...but
. The Prácticas for the rest of April will begin at 8:00 for 2.5HRS!
. Still $3 for most . It's Drop-in so just come by any time you can!


excerpt from our "part II" description:
Borrowing the idea of a "práctica" from Tango — it's not just a dance, nor is it a class with a teacher in the middle all the time... it's a guided practice dance. Each night will have a lot of music and we'll be coming around throughout the class to help in any way we can. In addition, we'll offer a few selected highlights, for both leads and follows, to help us explore the dance more - and you'll be encouraged to share as well.
While still essentially Swing, this class takes our connection and explores how we can use it to move together and dance to a whole variety of music!

Among the highlighted themes will be exploring in the Prácticas are:
* Listening Beyond The Beat
* The Inside and The Outside Are One
* It's the Spaces That Give it Shape
* Beginnings & Endings
* Showing Off Your Follow
* Turn Turn Turn
* Exploring Dimensions in Closed
* Playing with the Tempo
* Where's the connection?
* Fancy-Dancy Moves
* Listening to Your Follow
* Rollin Rollin Rollin
* Follow Treats each and every week! ... and more!!
Please join us — it's going to be FUN!!

See fuller descriptions here.
. . . . .

Fees

The first class of Part I is just $10 and that will be applied to your session's tuition when you come back the second week to register. ~ All you need to do is just show up!
As of The second class of the Part I session we complete full registration.
Part II, the guided swing práctica, is $3 per evening for most and is a walk-in class.


part I . Essential Swing
$35 - Students and Ecclesia Members*
$50 - The rest of us
See Repeat and other discounts below.
Interested Swing Teachers - please contact us for special rate.


part II . Essentially Swing . a guided swing práctica
$3 - per evening if you (are):
. . taking our ScS Part I class
. . have taken our ScS Part I class twice (w/in the last 18mos; repeat once to renew)
. . an active HSDS member (please present membership card)
. . an active RSDS Swing member
. . . *If you are with a non-commercial swing group and would like to participate in these discounts then please contact me. -h

FREE - per evening if you:
. . buy anything worth $3 or more at the counter — It's our "Taft St. Latte discount"!
. . can't afford $3. We'd rather you come than stay away because of the 3 dollars

If you're not already active doing lessons as above, then it's still just
$7 per evening... or only
$4 ($3 off!) if you buy anything worth $3 or more at the counter (Taft St. Latte discount again!).

~ I will not be carrying a bank so please, Correct Change is appreciated for Part I and strongly requested for Part II. Sorry, we can't take credit cards and we take checks for Part I fees only. -thank you
~ It's Drop-In — just show up!
. . . . .

Discounts

Purpose
We really want to help you learn to Swing Dance and embrace it as a source of enjoyment and revitalization for years to come.

To be honest, this is rarely done in a single 6-week beginning swing session. Most often repeating the Part I (Essential Swing) class at least once, and then following it with Part II (Essentially Swing) one or more times (the contents varies some each time) is necessary for it to sink in and become yours (I can't tell you how many times I've done beginning dance classes!).
With that in mind we offer these discounts, which may be combined, to encourage you to continue your Swing study beyond a single experience of the Part I class — and to take the time to really let it sink in - feel it - create with it.

Boomerang Discount: You're coming back!
If you have completed Part I (Essential Swing) once then you will qualify for a discount off any further repeats of that class. This discount will be $15 off the Regular Rate, and $10 off the Student Rate.
This offer is good anytime within 13 months of completing your last session.

Buddy Discount: You're bringing a friend!
If you have attended Part I (Essential Swing) at least once and then subsequently bring a buddy (pal, friend, chum, compadre...) to the Part I class, then you will receive a $10 credit off your Part I session or 2 free nights of Part II (Essentially Swing)... as well as our heart-felt thanks. : )

Feedback Discount: You've got something to share!
If you have completed Part I (Essential Swing) and have some considered, thoughtful feedback (in an email) that might help us in future classes, then we'll happily give you an additional $5 off the next session you take or 1 free night of Part II (Essentially Swing).
This offer is good if feedback is received anytime within a month of completing the class in question and then can be used within 7 months.

When you pay please have your discounts (and amounts) listed in a note so that we can register you efficiently.
Correct Change is appreciated for Part I and strongly requested for Part II.
Sorry, we can't take credit cards and we take checks for Part I fees only. ~thank you


Drop-ins: Once you've taken Part I (Essential Swing) for a full session once, then you also have the option of just dropping in to that class for $10.
Part II (Essentially Swing) is already offered purely on a drop-in basis.

Joining mid-session: We usually discourage anyone joining Part I (Essential Swing) after the second week because we will have already covered a good deal of our fundamentals and we need to keep the class moving.
Our Part I sessions are not pro-rated and if you really want to join the class late then a prerequisite will be to meet us before the class (it can be at 6:00 Monday just before the class) for a private catch-up lesson. There will be as much as a $20 additional charge for that extra time.
. . . . .

Class Descriptions

We focus very much on connected lead-follow dancing, not choreography or some system of signals and interpretations.
In our 12 week program we'll take you from learning to connect with each other and getting the feel of how to use your body, your core, in swing - to using your connection and energy to move and express yourselves together with the music.

The first class (part I . Essential Swing - discovering the source of our swing) begins by focusing on Jitterbug (6-count, East Coast... whatever) and then segways into Lindy-Hop. More importantly though, this class introduces and develops the fundamentals of Connection, and Energy (with Frame, Flow and Counterbalance), that we think are essential to the dance all the way through — indeed they are the source of everything that makes our Swing work!
Even if someone feels they know "the basics", we encourage taking our Part I to experience how we develop these core fundamentals.

The second class (part II . Essentially Swing - a guided swing práctica . building our swing from the source) explores our swing further as we take those fundamentals and experience them through a variety of Jitterbug and Lindy moves. In addition we'll introduce you to a few of the most common styles of Swing that you'll find in addition to our own flavor of Jitterbug and Lindy.
Most importantly, we'll develop an increased understanding of where the moves "come from" (how everything we do in Swing is just another expression of this source) so you can discover your own "moves" or, even more fun, dance beyond and outside of "moves".
Borrowing the idea of a "práctica" from Tango — it's not just a dance, nor is it a class with a teacher in the middle all the time... it's a guided practice dance. Each night will have a lot of music and we'll be coming around throughout the class to help in any way we can. In addition, we'll offer a few selected highlights, for both leads and follows, to help us explore the dance more - and you'll be encouraged to share as well.
While still essentially Swing, this class takes our connection and explores how we can use it to move together and dance to a whole variety of music!
Among the highlighted themes will be exploring in the Prácticas are:
* Listening Beyond The Beat
* The Inside and The Outside Are One
* It's the Spaces That Give it Shape
* Beginnings & Endings
* Showing Off Your Follow
* Turn Turn Turn
* Exploring Dimensions in Closed
* Playing with the Tempo
* Where's the connection?
* Fancy-Dancy Moves
* Listening to Your Follow
* Rollin Rollin Rollin
* Follow Treats each and every week! ... and MORE!!
Please join us — it's going to be FUN!!

The classes are small as such classes go so we get to give a little more individual attention (especially during the práctica) which is very important since so much of learning the dance is in the feel.

You're welcome to come visit any Monday if you like.
We hope to see you at a session soon and let us know if you have any questions!

~hank & swinging crew:)
. . . . .

Privates are also available.
We often consider privates to be a nice compliment to the class lessons but not a substitute. It's good to get to dance with a variety of partners in order to learn to lead-follow effectively.

*Ecclesia members refers to the Ecclesia Church which owns Taft Street Coffee.
. . . . .