DECONSTRUCTING LINDY HOP
I’ve been thinking about how I can contribute to the evolution of Lindy Hop. I’m interested in incorporating influences from other street dances that I study, and I want to keep the dance agile, open-ended, and adaptable.
I’ve started thinking more about Lindy Hop as a set of principles rather than a syllabus of steps. I can’t really say that a movement is or isn’t Lindy Hop – either it works with the music or it doesn’t. Lindy Hop – and Jazz music – were created in a melting pot of influences that included (but not limited to) African, Caribbean, and European cultural elements.
In my opinion, the basic principles include:
- Dancing to music in 4-4 time signature (4 beats per bar)
- Maintaining a groove (down-bounce, up-bounce, rock, etc.)
- Seated posture
- Dancing with a partner
Let’s let go of everything we think we know about Lindy Hop for a minute. By focusing on these four principles, we can create a new framework full of new possibilities! We can dance to many types of music in so many ways!
Most music is in a 4-4 time signature, but dancers generally count in 8’s, which represents two bars of music. Polka and Waltz are examples of music in 3-4 time signatures, but this is far less common. For contemporary dance, I’ve danced to music in all sorts of wacky time signatures, but let’s assume that we’re using music that has four beats per bar.
Maintaining a groove is fundamental to virtually all American street dance styles: Hip-Hop, House, Soul, Disco, Lindy Hop, Tap, etc. Groove is the way that we hold rhythm in our body, most commonly by bouncing or rocking. The groove goes hand-in-hand with seated posture, because you can’t bounce or rock with a stiff pelvis and straight knees.
Dancing with a partner has its own set of principles, such as Lead/Follow, transferring information through physical point(s) of contact or visual ques, follower shoulder matching, etc. If you want to learn more about this, come to our class!
Does this mean that you can do a swingout to all music? No! You should only do what fits. For example, swingouts don’t work well with certain blues songs or Soul, but I think they could work great with some Hip Hop music if styled correctly. There’s also a lot of jazz music that’s terrible for doing swingouts… so it really depends. Don’t try to put a square peg into a round hole.
Is this still Lindy Hop? I don’t know, you’ll have to ask the Lindy Hop Police. Does it matter? No. Different can be good. You may even create an entirely new dance in the process.
That’s the concept – I challenge you to open your mind to new possibilities. Have fun!
Using words inspired by Jackson Galaxy: All light, all love, all Lindy Hop mojo to you.
– Zoey
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THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO JOINED US FOR WORLD LINDY HOP DAY 2024!
Sunday, May 26th, 2024
Celebrate the rich history of Lindy Hop! Mandi Gould and partner Osman Omar will be teaching special workshops to mark this important global event!
We will also welcome Alexander Hall whose uncle, Charlie Meade, we will be honouring. Charlie Meade is a longtime dancer from Harlem and was a friend of Frankie Manning’s. Zoey Gould will also be helping with the workshops.
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Why is World Lindy Hop Day important?
World Lindy Hop Day honours an important part of history. Not only is Lindy Hop a super fun swing dance and form of creative and musical expression, it also holds cultural significance as the dance emerged during a time of racial segregation in the United States. Since the development of Lindy Hop in the late 1920s, the has continued to spread around the world and now has global representation in most countries. Celebrating World Lindy Hop Day allows us to appreciate and remember the Black community who created and popularized this dance, as well as the diverse groups that continue to share the joy of Lindy Hop around the world.
The date for World Lindy Hop Day was picked to mark Frankie Manning’s birthday. Frankie was one of the founders of Lindy Hop; he was an American dancer from Harlem, dance instructor, and choreographer, and a member of Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers, the greatest Lindy Hop performance troupe of all time. Learn more about Frankie Manning here.
Did you know that Mandi isn’t just the co-founder Bees’ Knees Dance? She’s also one of the founders of World Lindy Hop Day globally, was a member of the board of the Frankie Manning Foundation for 9 years, and was the producer of Frankie 100 in NYC. Having been lucky enough to work intimately with Frankie Manning, Norma Miller, and other important figures in Lindy Hop, Mandi will be sharing her wealth of knowledge alongside Osman on May 26th.
About the Instructors
Toronto has strong ties with Frankie Manning. Our city had the privilege of hosting Frankie Manning on 4 different occasions:
- 1996 hosted by Simon Threlkeld of Swing Toronto
- 2002, 2006, 2008 hosted by the Toronto Swing Dance Society
In fact, one of Frankie’s very last workshops before his passing was in Toronto.
Toronto also hosted legacy dancers Norma Miller, Dawn Hampton, and Chazz Young on various occasions.
Mandi’s Connection to Frankie Manning & World Lindy Hop Day
Mandi Gould was honoured to assist Frankie in his workshops in 2002, 2006, and 2008. After Frankie Manning passed away in 2009, the Frankie Manning Foundation was formed and Mandi Gould acted as a member of the board of directors from 2011 to 2020. She was also the primary organizer of Frankie 100 in NYC in 2014, the largest Lindy Hop event of all time, which included the show Swinging’ Frankie’s Way at Harlem’s World Famous Apollo Theater.
In 2020, Mandi chose to withdraw from the Frankie Manning Foundation and her participation in shaping of the global Lindy Hop scene, in order to make room for Black leadership with the formation of the Black Lindy Hoppers Fund. In alignment with the BLHF mission, she is passionate about the Lindy Hop legacy and bridging the gap of knowledge, access, and development for Black Lindy Hoppers.
Scholarships for Black Students
Bees’ Knees Dance would like to welcome and encourage people of Black and African diasporic heritage to attend the World Lindy Hop Day workshops for free. Please use code BLHF at checkout.