Hi everybody, It’s official…

We are launching our online Swing School, and we thought you should know!

Similar to enrolling at a university or joining a gym, we offer students a place to learn and focus on practicing their skills outside of weekend workshops, camps and exchanges.  This past January we started offering our first dance course, “8 Count Moves You Should Know,” and after receiving wonderful responses from all over the world we began developing an entire swing curriculum for dancers of all abilities and levels.

The main goals of our online program include:

  • Providing students with quality Swing dance education anywhere there is wifi
  • Guide you in your growth as a dancer, from novice to pro, social dancer to performer
  • Support students through the emotional and social journey of partner dancing

The Online Advantage

When I first started dancing, a few top teaching couples offered VHS instructional videos, and while they were great, they had their limitations. I remember having to constantly fast forward and rewind (I know, a first-world problem), and once a video was purchased, that was it. It was rare when more than a 3-video series was produced, and there certainly was no follow up with the teachers.

The other way we used to get moves and ideas was through bootleg tapes of old dance footage that was passed around from dancer to dancer.  They weren’t necessarily educational in nature and you had to know the right people (and be in their good graces) to get a copy.

We understood that those tapes could never replace social dancing and going to workshops or classes, but they were hugely valuable in supplementing our learning.  Here at our online school, we’ll offer the same benefits as those tapes, and provide students much more.

What’s Included?

  • An Ever-expanding Course Library

Currently we have 12 course topics and over 63 individual video lessons, each with an introduction by us providing context and anecdotes about the topic. We are filming more lessons, and members can help guide what topics they’d like to see in the future.  We break concepts down with counts, demonstrate them from multiple angles, and for the really fast movements, we utilize slow motion to really capture every moment in detail.

  • Live Coaching

Members will have the opportunity to participate in live online seminars where we offer Master Classes.  Dancers can submit a video of themselves, and we will breakdown and analyze the movement, providing constructive feedback from which all participants can learn. Members can also submit questions and topics to be discussed for these live events, creating an interactive experience as if we were right there in your living room.

  • Members Forum

Members will have access to our online Forum where we discuss all things Swing. We frequently contribute to the Forum to answer your questions and guide your study. What’s also exciting is that because it’s international, you can talk to other Members from scenes across the globe, hear about what their experiences are and share your own.

Taking the Leap

As we’ve said, our course can’t replace everything, but it comes pretty close.  We always encourage you to gain as many different experiences as possible to become the most well-rounded student you can be.  But we also believe that our school is more than just a couple of class recaps neatly packaged (though we’ll also be sharing over 10 years of our own with Members!).  Being an active learner, a student of the dance takes time and dedication, and we have distilled over 17 years of our own time and dedication into a learning experience for you! Go to michaelandevita.com/members to begin your journey of becoming a better dancer today.

Michael Evita socialdance