December 2010
28 posts
@windyenchantment
(First off, dear person and/or algorithm that has to sift through my tumblr feed and pick out the relevant posts for Rabbits & Toasters, I’M SORRY! PLEASE FORGIVE ME!)
Anyway, I figured this needed a bigger post than what 250 characters would give me on a standard reply.
My answer to the question about how advanced is Lindy Groove? I think this applies to most scenes, if not just California: there’s always going to be a bunch of advanced dancers hanging around for everyone to go ooooh and ahhhhh at. But you’ll always find someone to dance with anyway. In New York, Frim Fram’s dance scene tends to split with the intermediate-advanced+ dancers near the DJ booth and the novice-intermediate dancers on the other side of the room. You’ll always find people around your level to hang around and dance with, and you’ll always find people interested in helping you improve your dancing on the floor. Whenever anyone asks me how to do a certain move, I’ll always help demonstrate it and do my best to see the dancer through!
Social dancing is what got me started in the swing scene a good … five? years ago? I think? All I was armed with then was just the east coast basic (triple step! triple step! rock step!) I don’t think I even learned the Charleston basic until the second or third time I was out. I was slow. >_> It’s definitely a good way to get someone into the dance, and if they’re hungry and want more … well. Wait til they learn a swing-out!
i enjoy your blog! :) also, curious..where do you live?
Heee. Thanks! I’m in New York City and try to frequent as many dances in the scene as I possibly can. (Taking a little hiatus from dancing this week to get over being sick, unfortunately). Also, I must admit that I have that philosophy: “if you’re not laughin’, it ain’t Lindy!”
Are you talking about Atomic Ballroom in Irvine or Strutter's Ball in Fullerton? I go to Atomic every Friday when I'm in school, but I've never been to Strutter's. My friends and I are planning on going during the spring quarter.
I'd go to Atomic or Strutter's but both are 2 hours from my house (while I'm on break) while Lindy Groove is only like an hour and twenty.
I believe it’s Atomic Ballroom, but I could be wrong. It’s the place that Jeremy Otth and Laura Keat dance at whenever they’re in town. I also checked out Memories (Pasadena?) this past summer and liked it, though I think the level of dancing at Lindy Groove was much higher.
:D :D :D :D :D <---- all I am capable of doing right now is grinning like a buffoon.
A very happy buffoon.
Heee. I’ve only had very minor acting experience (as the Dentist in Little Shop of Horrors and Joseph in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, both of which were school productions). But if I ever found someone putting on a Dr. Horrible production, I’d sign up as fast as I possibly could to be just even remotely involved with the project.
Interesting story about Rhapsody in Blue. Why did u quit? Thats very sad to hear.
Do you play any other instruments now? Who are your favorite artists to listen to?
I didn’t appreciate the piano as much as I really should have. I do go back to playing/composing on it occasionally, but my primary instruments now are my guitar and my body (I’m both a songwriter and a dancer). I also play the mandolin and harmonica.
Favorite artists? Non-swing related, that would be Damien Rice, The Swell Season and The Frames, The Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, Radiohead, Josh Ritter, and Regina Spektor. Among many, many, many others. Swing-related would be Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald(!!!), Sly Blue (a local NYC band), and the Solomon Douglas Trio. Wow, I never get to answer questions! This is fun!
