Seattle Easter Swing ~ March 20-23, 2008
Seattle is ready to welcome you again!!
Time is short; the New Year is upon us. All our table tickets have been mailed out to the various clubs so contact your club rep. If you don’t have one and would like to get a hold of a table contact Tom Dempsey ASAP and he will put you on the wait list.
Last year everyone got to enjoy a new hotel (Hilton Flagship Hotel at SeaTac Airport), larger rooms for workshops, more dance floor, MUCH Bigger Ballroom with the same phenomenal volunteers. Over 120 volunteers showed ~ 700 dancers had a great weekend.
We have 32+ workshops, Showcase, and Classic competitions. The event is within tripping distance of the airport and you won’t even know you’re near planes!!! No more 30 minute drive to the hotel. There is a free shuttle from the airport across the street.
For info on the event: Seattle Easter Swing Website
Buy your tickets here: Seattle Easter Swing Tickets
Book your hotel here: Seattle Easter Swing Hotel Rooms
Last year we sold out our rooms so I strongly suggest you book ASAP. We added rooms last year and still sold out. $114 Room rate is available until March 1st then it is gone. TIP!!! Request a room in the section close to the ballrooms. The hotel staff has been guided to put ALL SES people in that section (till its full) but we heard last year people asked for specific rooms which put them in the tower instead of near the ballrooms. Tip!!! The biggest, newest, fanciest King Bed rooms are close to the Ballrooms.
NEW THIS YEAR!! In addition to NASDE Showcase, Classic) and WSDC Points, we have joined AANCE (Americas Amateur Novice Championship Events) http://aance.com/ Last year we had 66 couples in our Amateur Strictly Swing Division so this year we have split it up into Novice, Intermediate and Advanced. The Novice and Intermediate SS along with the Standard Novice and Intermediate Level Jack and Jills enable you to qualify for competing in the National Amateur competition.
If you have any questions about anything around Easter Swing go to:
Contact Seattle Easter Swing
Jim Minty
SES Chair 2006, 2007 and now 2008.
Trust Fund Set Up for Son of Murdered Swing Dancer
Gerry Zonca, the director of the
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One of our fellow WC Swing dancers was brutally murdered recently - the victim of domestic violence. She was shot 5 times in the head by her husband while her 9 year-old son,
Christopher was seated in the back of their car. One bullet injured him. He later recovered in the hospital. The father shot himself the next morning.
Lynn Gibson was the dance partner of Gerry Zonca, Director of the
The USA Swing Net has set up a National Fundraising Trust for little Christopher to help pay for expensive psychological counseling and special education services to overcome the
domestic trauma he has experienced over the past several years as well as the recent horror of seeing his mother shot by his father from just three feet away.
Please click this link and donate whatever you can to help this little boy recover from this tragic incident. We urge you to join many of the Top Swing Dancers in
already contributed to this campaign. Their names are listed on the website along with photos of Lynn and Christopher.
No child should have to endure what Christopher Gibson has endured. We cannot erase his memories but we can help offset some of the damage and help him get a fresh start in
life. We ask for your help to assist this orphaned boy as a living tribute to his mother, a fellow WC Swing dancer.
Click www.usaswingnet.com/Christopher_trustfund.htm
The Seattle Swing Dance Club Board of Directors
Executive committee
President – Candy McCullough president@seattlewcswing.org.
Vice Pres. – Abel Hewitt vicepresident@seattlewcswing.org.
Treasurer – Kaj Sonjia treasurer@seattlewcswing.org.
Secretary – Shirli Simmons secretary@seattlewcswing.org.
Members at Large
Bob Young bobyoung@seattlewcswing.org.
Bonnie Bradley bonnie@seattlewcswing.org.
Ray Boutillier ray@seattlewcswing.org.
Merrill Ames Merrill@seattlewcswing.org.
Barbara Wettland Barbara@seattlewcswing.org.
Mike Chambers mike@seattlewcswing.org.
Terry Gosse terry@seattlewcswing.org.
Lynn Gross to Teach at the SSDC Dance on March 16, 2008
Lynn Gross will be teaching the workshops at the SSDC dance on March 16, 2008. Her workshop will be at 2:45 PM with a second at 4:00 PM. These workshops and the social dance will be held at the Alki Masonic Hall in
Become the partner everyone is DELIGHTED to dance with! It’s all about clear, effective, and comfortable non-verbal communication between you and your partner.
4:00 to 5:00 - Phase Two - Bring it up a notch - or two - by learning to apply the same skills in more complex patterns and movements.These will be intermediate workshops. If you plan to attend you should be familiar with the basic six and eight count WC Swing foundation patterns.
To Reserve your space at the member price of $19.00, click here:
To book a space at the guest price of $25.00, click on this button:
Intermediate/Advanced Jack & Jill Finals. March 16th is also the dance where the evening event will be the Jack & Jill Finals for the Intermediate and Advance category contestants. The invited competitors must check in at the competitions desk by (the usual) 6:30 PM. The intermediate competitors will be on the floor at 7:00 PM; the Advanced competition will begin immediately after the completion of the Intermediate contest.
Our DJ for the evening will be none other than “Song scout” himself, Mr. Paul Booth.
The SSDC Board Meets on March 16th at 12:30 PM. This is YOUR club and the board works for YOU. Candy McCoullough, your President, invites you to attend the board meetings whenever you can. The board always appreciates member comments and suggestions, and what better way to make your ideas known but to attend a meeting and speak directly to your elected representatives.
Where Will All This Happen? At the Alki Masonic Hall located at 4736 40th Avenue SW; Seattle, WA 98116. The Masonic Hall is in West Seattle about two minutes across the West Seattle Bridge from Interstate 5.
Intermediate & Advanced Finals at March 16th SSDC Dance
The SSDC dance for March 16, 2008 will be held at the Alki Masonic Hall located at 4736 40th Avenue SW; Seattle 98116. The dance will run from 5:00 PM till 9:00.
There is a free basic West Coast Swing lesson at 4:00 that is open to anyone who has paid their admission fee to the dance. The entry fee is $5.00 for SSDC members (or members of affiliated clubs) and $9.00 for our guests.
A highlight of the evening will be the Intermediate and Advanceds Jack & Jill competitions. These are the last competitions of the 2007 - 2008 competition year. They are invitational competition; the competitors who have the highest number of points in their classification are invited to dance in this contest. Competitors must check in to the competition desk by 6:30 PM. The Intermediate competition will begin at 7:00 promptly followed by the Advanced Competition.
Our DJ for the evening will be none other than Paul Booth.
Novice Jack & Jill Final at the March 2nd SSDC Dance
The SSDC dance for March 2, 2008 will be held at the Alki Masonic Hall located at 4736 40th Avenue SW; Seattle 98116. The dance will run from 5:00 PM till 9:00.
There is a free basic West Coast Swing lesson at 4:00 that is open to anyone who has paid their admission fee to the dance. The entry fee is $5.00 for SSDC members (or members of affiliated clubs) and $9.00 for our guests.
A highlight of the evening will be the Novice Jack & Jill competition. This is the last Novice competition of the 2007 - 2008 competition year. It is an invitational competition; the competitors who have the highest number of points are invited to dance in this contest. Competitors must check in to the competition desk by 6:30 PM. The competition will begin promptly at 7:00.
Our DJ for the evening will be the incomparable Terry West.
Jim Minty Teaching Intermediate WC Swing Classes on March 2nd
Jim Minty returns to the Seattle Swing Dance club to teach two fantastic West Coast Swing workshops. The first workshop will begin at 2:45 PM and the second at 4:00 PM.
2:45 PM - Survival Skills of Swing
To be a good competitor you should be a good social dancer. To be a good social dancer you need to be able to dance with anyone. Learn how to dance with those who pull, yank, squeeze, those who don’t move and those who bounce all over the place. If you do any of these things, learn how to not do it and why. Good social dance skills that can improve your look and feel when dancing to a slower tempo of music and make you look snappy when dancing to faster music. This is a great concept for any budding/existing competitors as these are handy skills to have!!
Let’s work on a few patterns and sequences that will drill the use of energy and momentum. What do follows need to do, how do leads use it once they get it and how do they ask for it. Build confidence in your dance.
The workshops (and the social dance following the workshops) will be held at the Alki Masonic Hall. The address is
The cost of the workshop are $19.00 for members and $25.00 for non-members. The workshop fee covers admittance to BOTH of the workshops and the 5:00 PM social dance.
These will be intermediate workshops. If you plan to attend you should be familiar with the basic six and eight count WC Swing foundation patterns.
To register for the class on line select one of the payment buttons below:
Click here for the member price of $19.00.
Click here for the guest price of $25.00.
The SSDC Instructors for 2007
Over the last year the Seattle Swing Dance Club has had some terrific instructors come and teach at our pre-dance workshops. Here is the list of our instructors and their contact information. We hope you continue to use their services throughout the year.
206/ 313-5678
Katie McCaslin
Jim Minty
Charles England
206/353-5178
Jay Offutt
http://www.jays-dance-experience.net
Nancy Heaverlo
Lynn Offutt
206/542-5550
Paul & Melinda Booth
Shannon Knauss
206/ 533-8855
Barry Douglas
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BarryDouglas/
Michelle Badion
Next 14-Week Progressive WC Swing Class begins April 28, 2008
This class will take you from beginning up to an intermediate level in West Coast style of Swing. You get great teachers plus access to our music library.
The Class covers the 22 Foundational Patterns of West Coast Swing plus numerous techniques during the 14 weeks. The first six weeks you will learn the basic structure of WC Swing, many of the six-count patterns, and some four-count patterns. On week seven the class reviews the material learned to that point and participants have the opportunity to have a 20 minute private lesson with one of the instructors. Prerequisite for first seven-week session: ability to count to six (in any language) out loud while walking in a somewhat straight line.
In the second six weeks the class completes the remainder of the six-count patterns and all of the eight-count patterns. On week 14 the class reviews patterns learned during the second section and participants have a second opportunity to have private sessions with the instructors. Prerequisite for second seven-week session: successful completion of a first session.
The class meets at: The Juanita Community Club -
Class dates/Time: Monday nights from 7:30 PM till 9:45 (includes one 15 minute break)
First seven weeks: 4/28, 5/5, 5/12, 5/19, 5/26, 6/2, 6/9 (Instructor: Jim Minty )
Second seven weeks: 6/16, 6/23, 6/30, 7/7, 7/14, 7/21, 7/28 (Instructor: Nancy Heaverlo)
Variations Class: August 4th
The instructors: Our lead instructors - Jim Minty, Nancy Heaverlo & Lynn Gross - are all certified as teachers by the Golden State Dance Teachers Association and as judges by the National Dance Dynamics Certification Board.
The Class Fee: $125.00 (Note: you must be a member of the SSDC or join the first night of the class.)
The three ways to register for this class:
(1) Send a check for made out to the SSDC to: Attention Progressive Class; SSDC;
(2) Show up at the Juanita Community Club and pay at the door.
Session I is closed. There may be slots available for session II. To be on the waiting list send an e-mail to vicepresident@seattlewcswing.org. Put “Progressive Class Waiting List” on the subject line.
This Class will be limited to 60 students.
This class is appropriate for dancers new to WC Swing and for experienced WC Swing dancers who want to improve their dance skills. You must be a member of the
Seattle’s Easter Swing ~ ~ March 20 - 23, 2008
One of the biggest and best swing dance conventions in the United States.
The EASTER SWING convention will be held over the Easter weekend at the SeaTac Hilton hotel (across the street from SeaTac Airport).
For more information go to www.seattlewcswing.com.
