Swing Dance Sunday School

Instruction ~ Attention ~ Community ~ Fun

Our Swing Dance Sunday School initiative kicks off September 21st of 2025. It's a way for students with a range of experience to strengthen and expand their dancing. And have some fun as well!

Sunday, Sep 21, 2025
Theme: Community Performance!
Instructors: Sam Uebel & Joel Domoe

For our first Swing Dance Sunday School, participation is free! We will work on three commonly known choreographies in the world-wide swing and jazz dance community. We'll learn them first in the afternoon, and then after dinner we'll setting some Community Performances Pieces for us all to dance together. We'll then do some planning to use those pieces for public performances and for fun group activities at dances in the future. 

Noon-1pm Class: The Shim Sham!
Known by dancers all over the world, the soft shoe version of this tap routine (created by Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant in 1927) is a staple of of Lindy Hop events everywhere, including every week at Cincinnati's Thursday SwinGallery dance. If you haven't learned the Shim sham yet or if you are unclear on the details, this is your chance to really get it down. this class will be appropriate for all levels of swing dancer, including beginners. It is a group "line dance," so you don't dance with a partner.

1-1:30pm Office Hours: Get Help w/ Your Shim Sham Basics

After the first class we'll have a half hour to practice on your own and/or get help with your Tacky Annies, Breaks, Half Breaks, Shim Shams, Shorty Georges, Boogies, and Crossovers!

1:30-2pm Class: Advanced Shim Sham Variations & Styles

For those of you who already know the routine, or were able to pick it up lickety split and come out asking for more, we will spend a half hour doing some fun/challenging stylings and variations on the classic Shim Sham moves. You know, showoff/crowd-pleaser type stuff, gates!

2-2:30pm Short Break

Drink Water, Breath Deep, Phone a Friend, Pee Pee

2:30-4:30pm Class: The Lindy Chorus

The Lindy Chorus is a partner choreography created by Frankie Manning to share Lindy Hop with the world and each other. It is a partnered choreography, but we will rotate partners, so you don't need to bring your own (but if you do, you have to share!). This routine will challenge intermediate level Lindy Hoppers with the volume of material. It will also stretch expand your ability to learn and retain choreography. Students in this class should already be able to confidently execute a Swing Out, Lindy Circle, Side by Side Charleston and Texas Tommy.

4:30-5pm Office Hours: Get Help w/ Your Lindy Chorus

We'll take an extra half hour to give individual attention to anyone who needs to refine their Lindy Chorus - whether you were in the prior class or had learned it in a past life or both! Break out the Tandem (Charleston) and let's ride Around the World (and Point)!

5-5:30pm Class: Jitterbug Stroll

Named after the club "Jitterbugs" in London, this Solo Jazz routine is done in a group and faces four different directions/walls (making it a stroll). It was created by Ryan Francois, one of the greatest modern era Lindy Hoppers. The Jitterbug Stroll follows 12-bar Blues form and features 6 moves: one for each direction, one brdige move and one transition move. All levels of dancers can take the class, but if you have done the entire Shim Sham and Lindy Chorus previously this same day, learning one more short choreography will really push your absorption limits, expanding your capabilities. Hang in there! You can do it!

5:30-7pm Dinner Break

Let the choreo sit for a bit and let your memory muscles recover! We'll likely go to the Chameleon or Bridges or the new Indian Restaurant all in walking distance to get our physical and social sustenance.

7-8pm Class: Community Performance

In this hour, we will learn simple community performance pieces that incorporate the common choreographies as well as improvisational dancing in such a way that many people in our community will be able to participate. We will assume that everyone in this class knows at least one of the Shim Sham, Lindy Chorus, or Jitterbug Stroll. The more you know, the more ways you can join in!

8-9:30pm Discussion & Practice: Future Community Performance Prep

This time slot is designed to take us one step further than our day of classes - into the future where we actually meet back up with each other and use this stuff! We'll discuss how we will make these routines happen at our local events and also at special events where we are asked to perform for the general public. We already have one opportunity in Mt. Echo Park on October 4th, so save that date if you can!

Sunday, Nov 16, 2025
Instructors: Shannon Varner & Joel Domoe

Schedule and Material tba