As I write this from my home in Toronto, 60 dancers from our community and its neighbours are lying by a river, tossing a frisbee or canoeing out to a waterfall at Lindystock, Toronto Lindy Hop’s annual Algonquin retreat for swing dancers. Of the dancers who’ve stayed home, three of them are polishing their DJ sets for TLH’s monthly swing and blues night at the Imperial Pub. There is certainly a lot happening in our organization, and I want to tell you about it.
There is actually *so much* going on in the TLH world that we’ve recently gone through a major recruitment, and I am so thrilled to be able to welcome some fantastic people and dancers to the Toronto Lindy Hop fold. The incomparable Caitlin Wellman has joined our Board, along with the wonderful Miranda Brunton. At committee level — where the real work happens — Natalia Grane and Luis Arredondo of Lindy Hop Revolution, former UT-Swing President Jessica David, and Bees Knees Dance’s Kris Light and Ani Novshadian are among our newest members. We are aiming for cross-studio representation on our Board and committees, and we’re glad that so many fantastic people have agreed to join us.
But what are all of these fantastic people doing?
We’ve re-launched our monthly Theme Nights at the Dovercourt House (in partnership with Swing Toronto). The last two, “Canada Day Picnic” and “Gilligan’s Island,” were both huge successes. Our next one will be “Swing Prom” on August 24, 2013.
September 6-8 brings Lindyworks, TLH’s annual workshop series (click here to register). This edition features Brittany and Dargoff, coming in all the way from Seattle, and it will be the best possible way to improve your dancing fast from the comfort of our own city. It also features a Strictly Lindy competition, which you can sign up for here.
September 14 is the launch of the 2013-2014 season of the Dance Ambassadors, after its summer break. Dance Ambassadors is one of TLH’s flagship programs, placing ambassadors at the Dovercourt House to dance with newcomers and make sure they feel welcome as part of our community.
On September 28 is a new event for TLH that we’re very excited about: The Anti-Comp. A uniquely Torontonian event, the Anti-Comp is a chance to compete in a supportive setting and get real-time feedback from judges — it will be fun, a bonding experience, and help get you ready for those larger competitions outside of Toronto.
There are a couple of other events happening in October and November that we aren’t able to announce yet, but we can announce Toronto Lindy Hop’s annual Cabaret on November 30. It is one of Toronto’s best loved events: a showcase of our community’s non-dancing talents, with a few lindy hop routines mixed in. You can register your act by e-mailing the coordinators.
If you have any questions about these or any other events, please talk to any Board member or e-mail info at torontolindyhop dot com. See you soon!
