Tanja Lallas demonstrates some of the more complicated aerial work that can accompany the fancier swing dances. Photo by Scott Niles.

It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing! Dancers flip over the craze

by SCOTT NILES
reporter

Remember a few years back when swing dancing was all the rage?

Remember when it died out?

Well, it never did.

Swing dancing is still alive and kicking, literally. Although it dropped out of popular culture, the energetic dance has found a niche in our area, thanks to the Blue Max Swing Dancers.

These people are local residents who follow the swing band Blue Max and dance at their concerts.

"The dancers in Huntington are the best I've seen in the region," Jeff Carter, saxophonist for Blue Max, said.

If the Blue Max dancers are so good, how did they get that way? Lessons, of course.

Stacey Welch has taught many of the Blue Max dancers to swing.

"I had taught swing dancing at the Wild Dawg about a year ago," Welch said. "That is where the Blue Max dancers more or less got their start."

Welch, a Blue Max dancer himself, said his interest in the music of Frank Sinatra and Harry Connick Jr. is what turned him on to swing dancing.

"The style of dance we do here is called East Coast Swing, which is probably the easiest version." There are other versions of swing dancing, such as the Lindey, which Welch claims is more challenging.

While Welch considers East Coast Swing "easy," it is by no means low impact. During upbeat songs, the dancing can get quite strenuous. Other than the basic steps, there are aerial moves that require timing, balance and lots of upper body strength on the part of the male.

One such move is called a "suicide dip," where the male lowers his partner inches from the floor by her hands, then quickly pulls her back up.

Another potentially dangerous move is called the "foot breaker," where the partners alternate kicking between the other's legs on the beat.

"Foot breaker" is actually a term coined by Melissa Hutchinson, a swing dancer from Ashland who literally broke her foot last year trying to execute the move.

"My husband came down at the wrong time and there went my foot," Melissa said.

"Any thoughts people have of swing dancing being an 'old folks' pastime is simply untrue," Tonja Lallas, Blue Max dancer, said.

"It's a lot of fun and good exercise. The girls do most of the hard stuff, like jumping and twirling. It's the guy's job to cue their partner as to when they want to do certain moves."

The most recent opportunity the Blue Max Swing Dancers had to showcase their talent was at the regional conference of the Society of American Military Engineers, which held its annual event Aug. 23 in the Don Morris room.

The event featured music by Blue Max. Lee Sutphin, coordinator of the conference, asked the Blue Max dancers to attend the event.

"Our theme this year was 'Casino Night' and we thought that having swing dancers would really add to the ambiance," Sutphin said.

The crowd of Marshall students there as workers and volunteers watched in awe as the dancers twisted, turned and gracefully glided to the undeniably infectious swing groove of Blue Max.

"The swing dancers really help the crowd get into the music and on the dance floor," Keith Lambert, bassist for Blue Max said.

"I think the whole fascination with the swing era has reemerged," Andrea Fekete, Man senior, said. "It looked difficult, but fun, and I'd take lessons if I knew where to go."

The Borderline Dance Club in Huntington was offering swing dance lessons this past spring, but lack of interest forced them to cancel.

Recently, there has been nowhere in the area to learn how to swing dance.

Thanks to the Blue Max Swing Dancers, however, that might change.

"I used to teach at the Wild Dawg, but stopped because there weren't enough people to show everyone," Welch said. "I also had other obligations that took precedence and unfortunately the teaching stopped." Welch said several Marshall students attended the lessons at the Wild Dawg.

"We are trying hard to find a place that will let us use their dance floor to give lessons one day a week," Lallas said.

"I think the interest is there, but the venue is not."