Swing East Coast

(similar to Jive) is a “must” for any dancer’s repertoire. It can be danced to so many pop tunes played everywhere. This dance takes up very little room, as the steps are small, and it is danced basically on one spot. Swing can be danced with either single rhythm, double, or triple rhythm. In this class, we will start learning the triple, as it has much more style and allows more creativity.

All steps are taken on the ball of the foot, with the heel just off (or lightly touching) the floor. The weight of the body should be kept forward and not be allowed to fall back onto the heels. Knees are flexed and limber, and hips are kept ‘loose’ to laterally ‘jilt’ into side movements. The two basic foot placements in this dance are the side steps and the rock step; and they will be used over and over again in a variety of patterns.