Description
Following on from our hugely popular workshops in 2024, we’re thrilled to welcome back our favourite dance historian Richard Powers USA this July for more inspiring and joy-filled workshops! We are excited to have not one but THREE workshops with him this coming Summer!
Richard Powers (US) is a full-time instructor in dance history and contemporary social dance forms at Stanford University Dance Division, Department of Theatre and Performance Studies. His principal focus since 1975 has been social dance forms, from the Renaissance to today. Specializations include 19th century American and European social dance, dances of the Ragtime Era and Jazz Ages and currently evolving vernacular dance forms. As well as being hugely informative, his content is also very useable for the dancefloor.
***
Early Lindy Hop Styles with Richard Powers
Saturday 4 July 1-4.30pm
📍 Studio 1, City Sport, 124 Goswell Rd, London, EC1V 7DP
Step back to the roots of Lindy Hop with the moves that Shorty Snowden and his contemporaries danced in the late 1920s and early 1930s! These early styles were improvisational, playful and full of personality, blending Charleston-inspired footwork, syncopated rhythms, and “swing-outs” in their simplest, original form. Unlike the polished Lindy of later decades, this was social dance at its liveliest - creative, expressive and made for the dance floor battles and joy of the Savoy Ballroom.
Advanced Tickets: £38.50 +bf per person / £80 +bf all 3 workshops
On the door: £45
***
Rock n Roll Partnered Dances of the 1950s with Richard Powers
Sunday 5 July 10.30am-1.30pm
📍 Studio 1, City Sport, 124 Goswell Rd, London, EC1V 7DP
Step into the energy of the 1950s, learn the original stylings that were being danced back then! From the lively Jitterbug to the playful turns and spins of early Rock n Roll styles, this workshop is all about fun, rhythm and that irresistible 50s vibe. Let’s dance like it’s 1955!
Advanced Tickets: £33 +bf per person / £80 +bf all 3 workshops
On the door: £38
***
Blues and Foxtrot with Richard Powers
Sunday 5 July 3-4.30pm
📍 Studio 1, City Sport, 124 Goswell Rd, London, EC1V 7DP
Step back in time and explore the roots of these two popular social dances! This workshop dives into the Blues, with its slow, expressive movements full of feeling and improvisation, alongside the classic Foxtrot, the smooth, flowing ballroom dance that defined early 20th-century dance floors. Discover the musicality, connection and style that made these dances the heart of social dancing in their day - perfect for history lovers and dancers today.
Advanced Tickets: £16.50 +bf per person / £80 +bf all 3 workshops
On the door: £20
***
Website: https://swingdanceuk.com/classes/workshops/#RichardPowers
Tickets: https://swingdanceuk.cademy.io/richard-powers-weekend