What?
We’re back! Bigger and better with another fun-filled weekend of balboa or collegiate shag classes and, of course, lots of social dancing to live music!
When?
Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd September 2024
Where?
This year everything will be at the Cherwell School South Side, Marston Ferry Rd, Oxford OX2 7EE.
Do I need to know any shag or balboa to attend the classes?
Yes, we are expecting dancers with reasonable levels of experience of one or both dances, e.g. you should feel comfortable dancing balboa and/or shag at a social event. This year we’ll be running parallel tracks: one for dancers who want to focus on improving their balboa with a taste of collegiate shag and the other for collegiate shag enthusiasts with a little bit of balboa. Please feel free to get in touch if you’d like to check anything in terms of levels/experience.
Who’s teaching?
Collegiate Shag: We’re delighted to be welcoming back the fabulous Peter and Aila from Shag Pile.
Aila and Peter have been dancing and sharing their love of Shag for nearly twenty years. Whether building a scene in London or teaching at events across Europe, they’ve earned a strong reputation for insightful, entertaining, and engaging classes. Peter and Aila's teaching is grounded in classic moves and elegant styling, and is informed by first hand research into original clips. Their students learn to combine efficient movement with playful musicality through immediate, highly responsive tuition.
Peter Ayres founded London's 'Shag Pile', a group dedicated to growing the Shag scene through classes, workshops, and events, delivered with a team of London's best dancers and international guests. Peter loves the broad range of music that works with Shag, from the 1920s through the 1950s to today.
Aila Floyd brings a wealth of professional dance training and performance experience to her teaching. As the director and choreographer of highly regarded flapper troupe "The Bees' Knees” and "The Shag Pilots”, she has performed, competed and won at prestigious events, festivals and competitions across the UK and Europe.
Balboa: We’re thrilled to have Yulia, Sasha, Janet and Chris who are well known both in the UK and international bal scene.
Yulia and Sasha
Yulia and Sasha are easily recognisable for their zippy yet smooth style. They are two times California Balboa Classic winners, and 6-time Pure Balboa Classic champions and teach at dance weekends across Europe. In class, they encourage their students to appreciate the joyful energy of Balboa, its subtle humour and the precious opportunity to be in the moment with the music and one another. They have studied the history of the dance and partnership dynamics. Lately, as Sasha has found a new passion for tap dancing, percussion, and rhythm overall, they are becoming even more focused on different aspects of musicality, and aim to reflect that in their teaching.
Janet Davis and Chris Riddick
After years of lindy hop Janet and Chris each discovered balboa and became addicted. Janet is well-known for her footwork and her "follower voice". She loves inspiring dancers of all levels and helps dancers to find their own individual style within the dance. She is brilliant at making the dance approachable, with a supportive and interactive style of teaching. Chris has wonderful musicality and can explain just what is needed to make the dance flow beautifully while having fun with your partner! They can explain the basics really clearly and also stretch and inspire the most advanced dancers.
Schedule
Saturday
09:45 Registration at The Cherwell School South Side
10:00 Classes (balboa or shag track)
12:45 Lunch break
14:15 Classes (balboa or shag track)
15:45 Classes (balboa or shag track)
17:00 Dinner break
19:00 Doors open for evening social
19:15 Ice breaker class
20:00 Social with live music from Jim Wynn
23:00 Bed time!
Sunday
10:00 Doors open
10:15 Classes (balboa or shag track)
13:15 Lunch break
15:00 Tea dance with live music from Benoit Viellefon
18:00 Farewell!
Who’s playing?
On Saturday night we will have the wonderful Jim Wynn band playing for us once again and on Sunday we are very excited to be welcoming Benoit Viellefon back to Oxford for our tea dance.
What should I bring?
Comfy clothing, dance shoes (nothing too sticky), water and maybe a towel and an extra T-shirt or 3 as it can get quite sweaty!
Do I need a partner?
No. We will ask everyone to pick a role (lead or follow) when booking to help us balance numbers in the classes and the dances. We will rotate partners during the classes (although of course you can dance specifically one person if you prefer).
How do I book?
Via DanceCloud.