Principia college swing dance club
Press Releases
Principia Swing Dance Club Hitting the Dance Floor at Nevermore Jazz Festival
ELSAH, IL, Oct. 18, 2018 - Join Swing Dance Club to learn from some of the best swing dancers in the country at Nevermore Jazz Ball in early November. This annual event, held in St. Louis, is just one example of how Swing Dance Club dances beyond the college and into the community.
The best St. Louis jazz and swing dance bands come together for a weekend of performances, dancing, classes, and workshops. The early part of each day includes dance workshops, put on by some of the “most amazing dancers from all over the world,” described Kayleen Rice, Swing Dance Club co-president. The club is excited to watch and learn from professional dancers. At night, participants can try out a handful of dance clubs in the St. Louis area.
Excitement is building for this special event which Principia Swing Dance Club has attended for several years. “Nevermore is so much fun!” raved Billy Brooke, Swing Dance Club co-president who has enjoyed this event the past few years.
Swing Dance Club will participate on Saturday, November 3. The portion of the event attended by the Club usually costs $15 but the club will be subsidizing that expense for its members. More details will be released by Rice and Brooke soon.
Some of the club’s favorites – including the band Miss Jubilee as well as the dance venue of Casa Loma – will be part of the weekend. Nevermore hopefully will prove to be a fulfilling outlet to grow the love of swing dance and have a memorable time as a club.
About Principia College Swing Dance Club:
Principia College Swing Dance Club is a student-run club which offers weekly meetings in which swing dance techniques are taught and practiced. With a focus on social dance, this club is open to all ability levels. Students and faculty are welcome to join. Dancing occurs both on campus and occasionally at off-campus events. The Club’s main goal is to share the joy of swing dance with the community.
To contact media outreach: please contact Emily Staunton at Emily.Staunton@principia.edu
Nevermore Open Dance at Casa Loma, St. Louis, Missouri
Swinging into Dance Prod with Joy and Fresh Perspective
ELSAH, IL, Nov 21, 2018 - Swing dance will happily dance its way in front of a larger Principia audience with a number that will be performed as part of Principia College’s Spring 2019 Dance Production. Choreographed by seniors Lauren Weiss and Kayleen Rice, this dance with be one among many other styles of dances performed in Cox Auditorium at the college’s annual dance performance.
April 2019 will mark at least be the fifth time that swing dance has been a part of Dance Prod. Weiss has choreographed the dance for the past three years. The past two year’s swing dance pieces have used electro-swing music with a psychedelic, other-worldly flavor. 2016 included an Alice in Wonderland tea-party theme and then a dancing shoes theme in 2017.
While electro-swing is very different from classic big-band music, Weiss commented that it was chosen because its upbeat nature “bridges the interest between people who may not be as interested in old pieces…we wanted people to be more interested in the song and then the dance would hopefully reach more people.”
This year, however, Weiss and Rice wanted the dance “to be different than what we did in the past” and thus the dance is less contemporary. The dance’s story takes place at a dance hall with a 1980s Jackie Wilson song at its core. And, to add a modern twist, women will be going up to men to ask for a dance.
Regardless of the music style, Weiss commented that in the midst of usually more serious, social-justice themed dances that comprise the rest of Dance Prod, swing’s playful personality serves as a welcome way to lighten the entire production.
Weiss and Rice have been working on choreography for the whole semester both creating it and teaching it to co-president Billy Brooke. After they auditioned the piece with Principia College’s dance professor, Erin Lane, it was approved to be a part of Dance Prod. December 1 is when auditions and callbacks will occur. Both choreographers are saddened that they cannot include more than two couples in this year’s dance; this is due to their dance and the level of swing dance knowledge currently at the College. Performances will occur April 12-14, 2019.
Swing has arguably became a staple to Dance Prod. This is certainly a testament to the impact Swing Dance Club has had on students and Principia culture as a whole.
About Principia College Dance Production:
Dance Production, affectionately known as “Dance Prod” is a unique staple of Principia College performing arts. Nearly completely choreographed by student dancers, this highly collaborative performance brings together a wide variety of dance styles and addresses a range of social issues in provocative, refreshing, and poignant ways. The collage of dance pieces is performed in Cox Auditorium towards the end of each spring semester.
To contact media outreach: please contact Emily Staunton at Emily.Staunton@principia.edu