Hellzapoppin'
I'm pretty sure...that I just experienced one of THE most incredible weekends of my life. It is almost too hard for me to explain how completely amazing it was...but I will start, from the beggining...
So the whole event was Harlem Nights, and Frankie Manning, Steven Mitchell and Virginie Jensen came and taught workshops. Now you probably don't know who Frankie Manning is...but he is a super star of Lindy Hop. He is 92 years old and is one of the original lindy hoppers from the 1930's, like he helped invent the dance. Also since dances then were always to a live band he was good friends with people like Billie Holiday, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald ect. He is amazing, to say the least. Steven and Virginie are world class swing dancers today. Steven is one of the people who brought back swing dancing in the 80's, and now they go around and teach workshops with Frankie.
As a whole I think I danced around 19 hours over the weekend...give or take since I wasn't necessarily dancing the entire time at the dances or the workshops...but you get what I'm saying. And the workshops were beyond incredible...I learned soooo much at every single one. It is weird though...because even though I know I'm so much better of a dancer because of them...I feel worse because I have seen how amazing people really can be. One of the best classes was blues...which is the sexy side of swing. And Jazz movement was one of my favorites too. Oh man and I can't forget the charleston class...sigh they were all the best. Probably the most incredible thing wasn't even a workshop. Friday night we had "storytime" with Frankie...and he just told stories about dancing in New York in the 30's. It was beyond belief, and he was such a happy funny old man. Like when he would be telling an embarrassing story he would just start cracking up, I have never heard an old person laugh as hard and hearty as he did, it was great.
Friday night at the first dance "A" team preformed and that went really well and was tons of fun. Then I went to the Late night dance at 1:00 and...get this...placed fourth in the endurance dancing competition. I was dancing for so long, and it was just really exciting because I don't have endurance...or at least I didn't think I did, I get winded after going through a routine once! Also I was dancing so hard the treads that I had stuck on the bottom of my character shoes came off! Anyway so that was just completely awesome and now it is my goal to -win- and endurance competition. The Saturday night dance was the best though. It was at Elite Hall and they had the Hellzapoppin' dance competition. I was kind of bummed...becuase I didn't have anyone to compete with in the amateur competition...and the boy I kind of wanted to compete with was competing with another girl...but it was okay it would have been too scary anyways. The real competition though was out of control. It was just completely incredible and fun and amazing and everyone was so talented I couldn't handle it. The rest of the dance was amazing too...just because I love to dance and there were a lot more people there than usual.
Sigh...so I just had to type all that so I can always remember how wonderful it was. I love swing dancing, and that is all there is too it. Like I had a test today...and I didn't do very well since I didn't have time to study over the weekend....but I don't even care because I would never give up that experience for anything. Dancing is my most favorite thing in the whole world...and I love that I feel that way...because it is discouraging when you do something...and you like it...but you arn't so in love with it that you are willing to devote all of your time towards it. Like Ballet I love...but obviously I don't live for it or else I would be a ton better. Swing is the best...I don't care how much time of mine it eats up becuase it is what I want to do all the time anyway. Sigh...
So the whole event was Harlem Nights, and Frankie Manning, Steven Mitchell and Virginie Jensen came and taught workshops. Now you probably don't know who Frankie Manning is...but he is a super star of Lindy Hop. He is 92 years old and is one of the original lindy hoppers from the 1930's, like he helped invent the dance. Also since dances then were always to a live band he was good friends with people like Billie Holiday, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald ect. He is amazing, to say the least. Steven and Virginie are world class swing dancers today. Steven is one of the people who brought back swing dancing in the 80's, and now they go around and teach workshops with Frankie.
As a whole I think I danced around 19 hours over the weekend...give or take since I wasn't necessarily dancing the entire time at the dances or the workshops...but you get what I'm saying. And the workshops were beyond incredible...I learned soooo much at every single one. It is weird though...because even though I know I'm so much better of a dancer because of them...I feel worse because I have seen how amazing people really can be. One of the best classes was blues...which is the sexy side of swing. And Jazz movement was one of my favorites too. Oh man and I can't forget the charleston class...sigh they were all the best. Probably the most incredible thing wasn't even a workshop. Friday night we had "storytime" with Frankie...and he just told stories about dancing in New York in the 30's. It was beyond belief, and he was such a happy funny old man. Like when he would be telling an embarrassing story he would just start cracking up, I have never heard an old person laugh as hard and hearty as he did, it was great.
Friday night at the first dance "A" team preformed and that went really well and was tons of fun. Then I went to the Late night dance at 1:00 and...get this...placed fourth in the endurance dancing competition. I was dancing for so long, and it was just really exciting because I don't have endurance...or at least I didn't think I did, I get winded after going through a routine once! Also I was dancing so hard the treads that I had stuck on the bottom of my character shoes came off! Anyway so that was just completely awesome and now it is my goal to -win- and endurance competition. The Saturday night dance was the best though. It was at Elite Hall and they had the Hellzapoppin' dance competition. I was kind of bummed...becuase I didn't have anyone to compete with in the amateur competition...and the boy I kind of wanted to compete with was competing with another girl...but it was okay it would have been too scary anyways. The real competition though was out of control. It was just completely incredible and fun and amazing and everyone was so talented I couldn't handle it. The rest of the dance was amazing too...just because I love to dance and there were a lot more people there than usual.
Sigh...so I just had to type all that so I can always remember how wonderful it was. I love swing dancing, and that is all there is too it. Like I had a test today...and I didn't do very well since I didn't have time to study over the weekend....but I don't even care because I would never give up that experience for anything. Dancing is my most favorite thing in the whole world...and I love that I feel that way...because it is discouraging when you do something...and you like it...but you arn't so in love with it that you are willing to devote all of your time towards it. Like Ballet I love...but obviously I don't live for it or else I would be a ton better. Swing is the best...I don't care how much time of mine it eats up becuase it is what I want to do all the time anyway. Sigh...