The Path to Becoming a Lindy Hopper (rough draft)

Let no one deceive you: the Lindy hop is a difficult dance to learn.
Certain people may pick it up more easily, particularly if one already possesses some previous social dance experience, has a good teacher, or is in a good swing dance scene. But even with all these factors in place, Lindy Hop remains a difficult dance to learn. But let not one be discouraged, for there are many other Lindy hoppers around the world willing to help. Lindy Hop is addicting, for it is rewarding, and the rewards- the knowledge you gain, the people you meet, and most importantly, the enjoyment you gain from dancing- are immediate.

One of the most efficient and effective methods that teachers recommend Lindy hoppers to start with is to dance at least twice a week, get instruction, and travel.

Let us start where many of us start- looking for something to do at night. The first step one should take is to locate dance venues, or places to go dancing. Visit websites looking for swing dancing in your local area. Advice from Linda Sheppard, San Diego: make sure you look up swing dancing. If you look up swing in your local area and don’t find what you want, try to look for swing dancing instead. Also look up swing dance instructors and ask them where you can dance, for they are often connected with the local scene. Be willing to travel! Most lindy hoppers in the greater Los Angeles area travel about 30 minutes to an hour to reach their venues at least 2 or 3 times a week! In fact, some will even travel in excess of two hours to reach their venues (San Diego dancers for example). Bring a friend with you; it will make the trip safer and shorter, and will encourage you to come back.

Once you have a list of venues, you can start attending them. Try out each venue 2 or 3 times and write down what you enjoyed or disliked about the venue, i.e. ambience, music, attendance, dancer skill level, floor, cleanliness, etc. Ask the local dancers where they dance, for they will be a more reliable source of information than websites which may possibly be outdated or biased towards a business. Be mindful that the ultimate factor that will probably determine where you choose to dance is the people there. There are glorious clubs that will fascinate you in their beauty, and there are dives that will make you wonder how people have congregated there to dance, but find the places that have happy Lindy Hoppers, for that place and its people will probably make you happy as well.

Once you have found some of your favorite venues, attend them regularly.
The most important thing you can do for your dancing is to social dance regularly, preferably at least twice a week.

While you are checking out venues, you may find swing dancers are generally a friendly bunch, so feel free to ask everyone to dance, regardless of skill level. Of course, there are a few outliers with all groups. Do not be discouraged, and associate with the people that treat you well. There is no need to exert effort attempting to fit in. As with any group, some will accept you immediately, some will grow accustomed to you, and some will do neither. You will find that Lindy hop has its own social etiquette, but that extends beyond the scope of this article, and will be covered in greater detail in another.

In your course of dancing, you will probably see some dancers who inspire you. You will see the fun they are having and you will wish you could dance like them. One solution is to befriend them and politely ask them if they could teach you. Lindy hop instructors are another way to help realize that goal. Your purpose for learning is to become more fluent in the dance so that there are less barriers between you and your partner having fun. It is recommended that beginners start with the local group lessons that everyone attends. Not only are they cheaper than private lessons and less likely to burn you out financially and physically, but you will have the opportunity to learn the same material with the fellow people you will probably dance with frequently. In most group classes, you will learn some basics that will make up the dance. Practice what you have learned at your favorite dance venues. Practice your basics at home as well until they are firm in your muscle memory- until you can hold a conversation while dancing. Keep in mind that you are not learning moves, but learning how to move. Learn the basics, and the moves will follow. Eventually, as you progress in skill, you can take private lessons or advanced group lessons to refine your skills and learn the things that will very quickly make you a great dancer.

As you learn, your passion and hunger for dancing may extend beyond the scope of your local area. You may begin to hear of other events and others will ask if you are attending them (the correct answer is yes). What you are experiencing is the traveling aspect of lindy hop. As explained earlier, travel is important to your dancing. It is my firm belief that the most important factor to a dance scene’s evolution is travel between scenes.

People may be traveling dancers for different reasons, including business bringing dancers from one place to another, or a band performing that people would like to listen to (and dance to). However, the principal reason dancers travel to other dance scenes is to attend events. There are three types of events that one will encounter: Social, Instructional, and Competitions.

Social dancing events are also called exchanges (with a few exceptions). All swing dance events include a social dancing aspect, but exchanges are events where the primary, if not single-minded, focus is upon social dancing. Exchanges are just that. Supposedly these events allow the dancer to get a glimpse of the scene’s venues and dancers, but in reality it is simply a big weekend of partying and dancing wherever they can fit some 200 or more Lindy Hoppers. Exchanges should not have lessons (save a brief beginner lesson immediately prior to the main night dance), as it maintains the party atmosphere of the event as well as ensures that all your money is going towards pure dancing (However, local instructors typically attend to contribute to the scene and so traveling dancers can approach them for private lessons). There is typically dancing starting from the mid-afternoon (1 or 2PM-4 or 5PM) until a two-hour dinner break, and then a main night dance event typically to a live band, usually from about 8 to midnight, and a late night dance (with refreshments!) from midnight to 5AM. This day schedule is typically repeated from Friday to Saturday. Exchanges typically cost about $50-80, slightly skewed towards the left, with the most common price being about $60-65. Occasionally you see extreme cases on both sides, for example, in 2007, prices ranged from from Orange County's dirt cheap $35, and Austin Lindy Exchange on the other end at $90.

Instructional events include camps and workshops. The focus is obviously on instruction, but there is plenty of social dancing later to practice what you have learned. These will have lesson from late morning to the afternoon, at which point there may be competitions or more lessons. After a dinner break, social dancing and competitions take over. Camps typically cost $120-$150 for a weekend, while workshop weekends run a little cheaper at $80-100. Camps will be discussed in more detail later.

Finally, competitions are events which the primary focus is indeed competitions. They include championships, camps, and various other names. Good examples and recommended ones are: Camp Jitterbug (Memorial Day weekend in Seattle, WA), Camp Hollywood/National Jitterbug Championships (Last weekend of July in Los Angeles, CA), the Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown (Second weekend of September in Minneapolis, MN), and the Rhythmic Arts Festival (New Year's weekend in San Diego, CA). They range widely in cost, but the larger ones are typically $99 for competitors and $120-$160 for general participants (plus hotel costs). Larger events will typically cost $180 and up, so make sure you buy your tickets before the price breaks. Despite their high price, these typically have the greatest attendance, as some dancers come to show off their skills, and everyone comes to be inspired.

The path to becoming a Lindy Hopper is difficult, but not long, and it should definitely not be arduous. It is the spirit of the dance and the love of the music that should drive you through this path with flying colors. Remember that it is not easy- you will be discouraged along the way, but no matter what happens, remember the fun you had dancing and will have dancing.