Teachers

Laura started dancing in 2001 in San Antonio. It wasn't a very large scene, and the people teaching her hadn't been dancing very long, but she quickly came to love lindy hop, the music, the history and everything involved.

Now Laura travels the world teaching, competing, performing and learning. She is a passionate believer in dancing with swing, with rhythm, and with presence. She constantly strives to find something genuine and fun, instead of finding the next cool move, and passionately believes that follows and leads are two vitally important sides of the same coin. She is also an active participant in her home community of Austin, TX; co-owning a teaching company, The Lindy Project, with Scott Angelius & Mike Roberts, participating in the Austin Swing Syndicate board, the Austin Lindy Exchange board, organizing community events, and any number of things to keep Austin one of the best scenes around.

Jo and Kevin live and breathe Lindy Hop with their passion for celebrating life through dance. They travel globally teaching and performing dances from the Jazz Era of the 1920's to 1940's. Since their partnership began in 2007 they have taught in 28 Countries across 5 continents including North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Together they hold titles at the International Lindy Hop Championships, European Swing Dance Championships, American Lindy Hop Championship, Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown, Camp Hollywood and Camp Jitterbug. With clear and humorous instruction, these two creative and versatile dancers will entertain, inspire, and help you become the best dancer you can be. They are striving to change the world...one rock step at a time.

Always striving to capture the classic spirit of the original jitterbugs with a modern voice, Bobby and Kate teach Balboa, Lindy Hop, Solo Jazz, and Collegiate Shag nationally and internationally.

Between them they have championship titles in almost every major Balboa and many major Lindy Hop competitions, including the International Lindy Hop Championships and the American Lindy Hop Championships. Their judging is highly respected and sought-after for events such as the International Lindy Hop Championships and the European Swing Dance Championships.

Both Bobby and Kate are recognized for their engaging teaching: Kate instructs with a thorough, mechanics-based method, while Bobby prefers unique analogies and irk-irk noises. Along with more traditional classes based around moves, variations, and lead/follow technique, Bobby and Kate also enjoy teaching many "alternative education" classes on subjects like partnership, practicing, dancing personality, and developing a unique voice.

Joe DeMers is a champion Blues and Lindy Hop instructor based in Denver, CO. In addition to teaching all over the US he has toured the world from Canada to France to South Korea. He loves to dance and is proud to be a dancer, performer, competitor, and instructor. He is the excited owner of Overstreet Dance Gallery in Littleton, CO; a club for the arts, music, and dance. He is a proponent of Frame Matching and the creator of ΔPTED, a framework for analyzing and teaching partner-dance connection. Joe also runs a 6-day Blues dance instructor training in Denver, CO. Additionally, Joe enjoys sushi, anime, long walks on the beach, and dancing with Mike Legenthal.

Julie's expressive dancing and joyful, playful connection are known throughout the blues dancing world. With a background in theatre, improv comedy, and solo dance, she is best known for her solo movement, artistic choreography, and killer follower expression.

A hard-working competitor, Julie has won many national competitions, including Nocturne Blues 2015 Challenge Strictly and Open Jack & Jill, Winter Blues 2015 Invitational Jack & Jill, bluesSHOUT 2014 All Star Jack & Jill, and many more.

As a teacher, Julie is clear, thoughtful, and varying degrees of goofy. From in-depth analyses of arm movement, to beginner-friendly intros to lead-follow conversation, Julie carefully crafts her classes and continuously tailors her material to fit the crowd at hand. Julie has taught blues in San Francisco, Seoul, Austin, Boston, London, Chicago, Zurich, and many places in between. She also teaches regularly in her home-base of Boston. For dance videos, pictures, and more info, check out dancewithjulie.wordpress.com.

Michael Faltesek brings to the dance floor an incredibly diverse social and performance dance talent that includes not only Lindy Hop but also Cakewalk, Black Bottom, Traditional Jazz, Tap, Charleston, Breakaway, Balboa, Big Apple, Blues and many other Authentic American Jazz dances.

Michael has been dancing for well over 15 years. In that time he has traveled to instruct, compete, and perform all over the globe -- from Harlem to Los Angeles, Canada to Korea, and all throughout Europe. Mike is well known for his charismatic personality, approachability, and passion for the essence of authentic jazz dance and music. He possesses an enthusiastic ability to convey ideas and movements explicitly, making him a popular instructor wherever he goes.

Mike Legenthal is a passionate aficionado of jazz and blues, known all over the world for her friendliness, teaching skills, following, and expression. She embodies vibrant energy and technical precision, and strives to make every social dance the best possible. Whether at residencies, international workshops, or private trainings, she brings preparation and flexibility every time. Her classes can involve students morphing into robots or seaweed, standing on one foot blindly, or analyzing chord changes - always in pursuit of art. Regardless of subject, she always brings abstract and concrete topics, plenty of levity, and homework, to help students improve long after class ends.