The Chase
It's a classic move. There's an event named after it. It's an often quoted Lindy move in many a routine. It has a ton of variations. Learn it once and then spend the rest of your Lindy life chasing it's seemingly endless variations.
It's a classic move. There's an event named after it. It's an often quoted Lindy move in many a routine. It has a ton of variations. Learn it once and then spend the rest of your Lindy life chasing it's seemingly endless variations.
It's time to step up your break step. This soft shoe version of the break step is used in the original tap dance version of the Shim Sham Shimmy. It’s more challenging than the break step version we showed in Level 1, but is absolutely accessible with practice. This assumes you are comfortable with the Level 1 Shim Sham.
Seemingly simple, these short drills when done properly will prepare you to be a fun partner to dance with as opposed to a laborious partner to sturggle with. Focus on your weight, body pulse and relaxation.
The Shim Sham has become a global Lindy Hop phenomenon. When in doubt....Shim Sham! We have 3 versions for you to learn based on your current skill level or if you need inspiration in deciding what to teach your students. Originating in the tap dance community in the 1920s from Leonard Reed and Willie Bryant, Lindy Hoppers have since modified it to work for "soft shoe" dancing. The primary version used in the global Lindy Hop community was introduced by Frankie Manning to NYC in the 1980s.
Want to cover up the stumble? That's where the Toe Drag comes from! Here's fun Swing Out variation that you can put just about anywhere in your Lindy Hop.
Time to take ownership of this classic routine. Using one example, Jo breaks down the general concept of maintaining the musical structure while creating new variations. Then in the demo video, Jo and Kevin let go and dance, which is a great example of them owning the routine and contributing their personal style and flare. Use it to inspire your own progression. The ultimate goal is for you to express yourself on the dance floor with ease, precise rhythm, and own personal style.
We predominantly use the name Texas Tommy because if pays homage to the fact that the original Texas Tommy dance came out of San Francisco, California and traveled to New York City. In good Lindy hop tradition, the key element of the dance was then borrowed/stolen for Lindy Hop. Now we have a ton of variations based on the original concept.
A short and slow routinelette as a little challenge to get your grove on. It's only 4 eight counts long. Once your comfortable with the pattern, you can then use each of these moves independently in your social dancing.
This is not limited to 3 walls, but please keep it under double digits. It's fun to lead and really useful to change orientation when performing or competing. Caught on the 'closed' side of the dance, rest easy, 3 wall your way to open goodness.
Basically everything is based on these core principles. Expect to watch and practice these concepts multiple times as you progress with your dancing. This "simple" concepts can actually be quite complex and difficult to execute properly.