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Damon
Stone
Damon has been dancing his
entire life. Starting with vernacular jazz/blues he went
on to Hip-Hop, and eventually studied over a dozen different
dance styles until coming full circle focusing primarily
on the history and styles of swing and blues, in 1995.
He has taught dance extensively
on both coasts, and studied the development of vernacular
jazz/blues dance regionally and nationally, traveling to
New York, Chicago, Memphis, Los Angeles, Oakland, Sacramento,
St. Louis, and New Orleans. He has been interviewed as
a jazz dance historian in documentary and for radio.
Damon has been a featured instructor
at numerous swing camps and jazz festivals and workshops
and camps across the U.S. and Canada. He is a member of the
California Historical Jazz Dance Foundation, and a member
of the Northern California Lindy Society. |
Heidi
Fite
Heidi
began dancing and teaching in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1999
and has been dancing, teaching, and performing ever since.
She now lives in San Francisco, California, where she teaches
classes, workshops, and private lessons.
Admired for her clear explanation
of fundamentals, Heidi brings to all her classes and workshops
not only a focus on solid techniques, but more important,
a love of dance and a dedication to the learning process.
Heidi has been a featured instructor
at numerous workshops across the United States and Canada,
including St. Louis, Missouri; Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal,
Canada; Dallas, Texas; Williamsburg, Virginia; and San Francisco,
California. |
Ogden
Sawyer
Ogden's experience with movement
began studying martial arts at age nine. In 1997, he walked
into a swing dance and was hooked. Over the last 9 years,
he has studied various swing dances, ballroom dancing, African
dance, Argentine tango, lindy hop, and blues dancing, and
has been teaching lindy hop, connection, and musicality classes
in the Boston area for the past 6 years.
Ogden
had been teaching dancing, choreographing, and
competing with Amanda in blues dance since 2000. They
have been teaching since 2002. Their style of modern
blues combines historic blues dance with modern concepts
of strong connection, partnered improvisation, and elements
from many of the different dance styles they have studied.
This unique blend has given them a national reputation
for inspiring and emotional partnered blues dancing. |
Amanda
Gruhl
Amanda
has been dancing since age five. Experienced in dance instruction,
choreography, performance, and show production, she has studied
blues dance, lindy hop, jazz, ballet, tap, lyrical dance,
sacred dance, and hip hop. She has also had instruction in
other dance forms such as popping/breaking, flamenco, modern
dance, and ballroom dance. Amanda has been swing dancing
for 8 years and has had the opportunity to teach lindy hop
in Boston with several national instructors.
Since 2003, Ogden and Amanda
have been teaching at national events and workshops, encouraging
and supporting the recent growth and popularity of blues
dance. Their teaching style communicates their passion
for blues dancing, and encourages dancers of all levels
to take chances and push their personal boundaries. |
Jerry
Warwick
Jerry
is fun, easy to get along with, loved by just about everyone,
and--needless to say--the man KNOWS how to dance. He brings
his love and passion for Blues to the plate, whether he's
stepping up to DJ, to dance, or to teach.
One can't think of Jerry
without immediately adding "...and Kathy" to
the mental process. Jerry and Kathy have been dancing and
instructing Lindyhop and Blues for over six years. They
have taught their style of Blues / Slow dancing around
the country to overwhelming praise by their students. |
Kathy
Warwick
"Mama
K", as she is often lovingly referred to, has taken
adopted the Dallas dance scene. Her love, however, isn't
limited to the one city, but extends to her entire dancing "family."
Jerry and Kathy have been
using their humorous style on their quest to connect your
soul to your dancing. They teach weekly lessons in Dallas,
were the organizers of Red, White and Blues in Dallas for
three years, and love traveling around the country to teach.
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Don
West
Don West has been dancing since 1997 and teaching since 2000
in Dallas. He's been in a number of dance troupes including
Smiley's Lindy Hoppers, Uptown Swing and began his own troupe
called the Madcap Maniacs and is now the creative director
for the ACME Swing Company. He was also the 2000 American Lindy
Hop Jack and Jill Champion in Connecticut as well as first
place winner in several local competitions in Austin and Houston....
...And that was all BEFORE
he took up this whole "Blues" thing. Since teaching
with Tina at BBC last year, Don has been requested all
over the country to share his love and knowledge of Blues.
Don's teaching style focuses
on technique and communication in social dancing, and wants
nothing more than to share his love of the dance with you
and for you to enjoy yourself on the dance floor. |
Tina
Davis
Tina has been dancing Swing, Lindy Hop and Blues since 1999,
getting caught up in the resurgence of Swing Dancing thanks
to those crazy Gap ads. Since then she's been dancing up a
storm, fitting in a growing love for West Coast Swing, Argentine
Tango and Ballroom Dance with all that swingin'.
Tina is continuing her love
affair with dance by teaching and spreading her love of
Blues dance across the land. She has organized and/or taught
at several Blues dance workshops in Austin and Dallas,
and at national events like Austin Blues Party, Blues Boot
Camp (Dallas) and ReEnter the Blues (Atlanta).
Tina likes to emphasize to
students sound fundamentals, the basics of rhythm, and love
of the music. But most of all, dancing has just got to be
fun. |
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