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| Michael Forrester, president of Dal Swing Society, shows off some moves with the help of fellow enthusiast Rebecca Ladouceur at the Dalhousie Society Fair. (Nick Pearce Photo) |
Everything old is new again (again.) If the crazy kids before Facebook and Twitter rode/wore/owned a vehicle/garment/accessory, the Millennials are reclaiming it. But there’s one retro-chic trend you may not have heard of – the triumphant rebirth of swing dance.
Mike Forrester, president of the Dal Swing Dance Society (DSDS) traces the lindy-hop revival to the States. “People rediscovered some old videos, including ‘Hellzapoppin.’ It was a small, two-to-three minute dance sequence in the middle of a movie.”
Youtube ‘Hellzapoppin’ and you won’t need to ask how 120 seconds of black-and-white footage turned into a global obsession. Now swing dance clubs can be found worldwide (full disclosure: I learned to shuffle with Vancouver’s Jungle Swing) and the community is growing fast. “We’re only a decade or two, give or take a couple years, into the swing revival.”
How to explain lindy hop to those unfamiliar with the dance? I could tell you to dig up a DVD of Swing Kids, but I was forced to watch that movie twice in high school and now even a pre-crazy Christian Bale can’t quite redeem it. I could also link you to Christina Aguilera’s Candyman video, but I want to maintain my ability to face my reflection in the morning. But if you head down to Oxford Street’s First Baptist Church some Saturday night, you’ll find a group of several dozen Dal students, faculty and community members – the Dal Swing Dance Society, headed by fearless, fedora’d leader Mike – looking like they’ve been swinging since the dirty thirties.
“I had wanted to learn a partner dance for a while,” says Mr. Forrester. The Dalhousie student (doing a PhD in Microbiology and Immunology, and now in his 2nd year as president of DSDS) is explaining what turned him into an incurable jitterbug. “I wanted to be able to dance nicely on my wedding day – or at other people’s weddings, since I’m getting to that stage of life.”
When he started dancing in January 2008, he was “Awkward. Two left feet. (But) it’s the kind of dance where you can be a goof and it’s okay.” Plus, you pick up the basics fast. “At the end of three to four weeks, you can go out and socially dance convincingly.” He practices what he preaches in that regard, not only at designated swing spots but more unusual venues like Pacifico and the Halifax Alehouse. “Girls like to be twirled,” he confides.
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Mark Pavlovski and Jill Grant and Josh Hood and Justine Muller enjoy last year's Swing with the Fishes. (Dave Williamson Photo) |
But there’s more to swing dancing than twirling girls (no, really.) Accessibility is important to DSDS; Dalhousie is one of only a handful of Maritime locations teaching swing dance, and group representatives have even visited schools to teach a new generation the value of a well-executed tuck turn. And, of course, part of the mandate of any retro dance club worth its weight in saddle shoes is keeping the classic dance intact.
“There’s a desire to keep it as authentic as possible… certainly we want to try and keep the authenticity of swing.” Mr. Forrester says.
“Where there’s changes that have happened, they’ve become entirely different cultures and swings.” The splinter dance “West Coast Swing”, for instance, has little in common with lindy hop anymore – it’s become a partner dance in its own right. One place where modernizations have crept into lindy hop, however, is in its move names – when I visit DSDS to brush up on my Charleston, we’re taught the “Texas Tommy” and the “Sugar Push” but also the possibly less traditional “sushi roll.” When I mention this, Mr. Forrester is quick to point out that a turn by any other name is still a turn: all the moves are traditional, but “the names that we have for these things are kind of convenient for us.”
Swingers dishing to show off their sushi rolls are invited to DSDS’ annual “Swing With the Fishes” community dance. Current non-dancers are also encouraged to attend. “You do not need dance experience to come to this event,” Mr. Forrester emphasizes. “We’re going to keep it to a moderate tempo and we’re going to have a beginner lesson… it’ll get you through at least half a song and then you can repeat the sequence!”
Swing with the Fishes will be held Saturday, Nov. 13 in the McInnes Room, Dal SUB. Tickets are $15 advance and $20 at the door; you can buy tickets at Atlantic News, Morris and Queen Streets, Pretty Things Boutique on Blowers Street, or the Dal Swing Dance website. Live music will be provided by Shirley Jackson and her Good Rockin’ Daddies.
Those who simply must swing sooner are invited to drop in on the DSDS’ weekly social dance at the Coconut Grove any Thursday night. “We absolutely encourage people to come out to Coconut Grove. We’re not scary people,”says Mr. Forrester.
Swing might look intimating at first, but you won’t know until you try. Take a deep breath, put on a fedora, and practice your sushi roll – the DSDS will see you on November 13th.