In this section you will find the guide to choose the most suitable level and role for you of all the proposed disciplines.
LINDY HOP LEVELS (Dancing in pairs)
BEGINNERS:
Dedicated to those who have never danced and want to begin to take their first steps.
IMPROVERS:
You have been dancing for a few months and you know these figures: Base 6/8 conti, Side By Side position, Bring in, Send out, Circle, Tuck Turn, She/he goes, Repetitions, Contrasts.
INTERMEDIATE:
If you have been dancing for one year you must know the figures required in the Impovers level plus: Basic Charleston, Swing out, Tandem Charleston and a fair knowledge of musical structure.
INTERMEDIATE/AVANCED:
You have been dancing for more than one year and have a good command of the Charleston figures including: Chase Tandem, Hand to Hand, Airplane and have a fair amount of proficiency with musicality.
ADVANCED/INVITATIONAL:
The INVITATIONAL level is not a true level.
Access to this level, the highest, is at the discretion of instructors who may decide participants based on the material covered in the course.
Persons not invited to participate in an "invitational" course who nevertheless feel they are eligible for the material covered in the course may request to participate in the course by writing to info@lindyhopinflorence.com.
JAZZ / CHARLESTON ONLY LEVELS (You dance alone)
BEGINNERS:
Dedicated to those who have never danced and want to start taking their first steps.
INTERMEDIATE:
If you have been dancing for a year jazz or Lindy Hop you need to know the basic movements such as basic Charleston, kick Charleston, Shorty George, Boogie back & forward and remember the most famous routine in Swing, the Shim Sham.
ADVANCED:
Knowledge of popular routines such as the Tranke Doo and steps such as the Fall of the log, Jump Charleston is required, you are not afraid to jump in and open a jam and are familiar with mixing the steps you know.
BALBOA LEVELS (Dancing in pairs)
BEGINNERS:
You have never danced Balboa or at most you took part in a taster class, or you have danced a little bit of Balboa but it has been a while and you would like to refresh things to get back into it, or you already dance Balboa but you would like to focus on, refresh and improve your basics. In this course the basic figures and principles of the dance will be the main focus.
INTERMEDIATE:
You have participated in the Balboa beginner courses and you are pretty confident in the basic figures that you learned and you are ready to work on honing your technique, or you learned the basics of Balboa at a workshop and want to continue dancing more regularly. In this course you'll work on improving the basics you already know while adding variations. You'll also combine further figures with each other and begin adding in some footwork variations.
ADVANCED:
This level is perfect for you if you have been dancing Balboa regularly for a good while. You feel comfortable combining basic and more complex steps and figures creatively on your own and you totally feel comfortable with faster tempos with different dancers.
LEADER & FOLLOWER What does that mean?
There is no gender distinction, male or female don't count when it comes to leader & follower.
In couple dances like Lindy Hop and Balboa generally the Leader is the one who leads the dance, improvises and succeeds most of the time the figures. In the role of Follower generally you follow, but especially when you are more experienced you can suggest figures to your partner and interpret the dance independently.