Workshops:
- Start from the Heart
- Balance and Imbalance
- Playground Floor
- What to do with the Arms?
- Joyful Legs
- Put into the mixer
Workshops:
- We Have to Talk
- Let Me Tell You
- Absurdist Comedy is very Potato
Workshops:
- Lindy Hop Beginner Workshop
- Tasters
This combo will set the vibe for our "City Walk and Dance" on Sunday afternoon.
Astrid Akay is a theater directress and actress, dancing in Brussels with the Old Soulz and the Jazz Maniacs. Her central interest in the African American vernacular jazz dance is Lindy Hop, its history, its culture and its legacy today. How do we develop our own personal dance language while inheriting the powerful beauty and complexity of the original Lindy Hop? How do we keep the freedom of improvising, and at the same time work very specifically on original video clips ? Also, how do we keep the meaning of dancing alive? Those are some of the questions that are driving Astrid to keep learning and exploring the jazz culture.
Click here to see Astrid and Sander in action!
Sander Costermans has had a passion for the swing era, its music and aesthetic, since he was a teenager. He studied fashion technology and loves to create clothes for dancers in order to enhance their styles of dancing. He's part of the Brussels swing dance community and together with the Jazz Maniacs and The Old Soulz dance crew he works on constantly learning about jazz culture, analyzing video footage from the great African American dancers, drawing inspiration from them to keep authenticity and creativity central in his dancing. Early Bebop is the music he finds himself drawn towards the most.
Click here to see Astrid and Sander in action!
Mariana works with movement and dance education. She is driven by a passion for expression and creativity and work focuses on empowering individuals to explore and share their stories by blending movement, writing, and literature as creative tools.
Originally from Brazil, Mariana has lived in Germany for over 14 years. She holds a transdisciplinary Ph.D. in Translation Studies with a focus on Dance and Performance. Alongside her dance research, she has been devoted to studying and teaching movement practices in Berlin and online, working with aspiring trainers, young people, and the elderly.
Mariana’s classes encourage intuition, lateral thinking, curiosity about the potential of the body of owning and telling your own history.
www.marianahilgert.com
Patrick loves words and is all over them. He is an experienced language teacher as well as an avid swing dancer and Lindy Hop instructor whose dancing journey has led him to comedy, comic acting, writing, and MCing. A student of ancient literature, he is fascinated with rhetoric as performance, with timing, story telling, and with how we use our words, our performance to move and surprise an audience and express our thoughts. He is also bit of a comedy nerd and adores the absurd. In all his work, he likes to seek out the laughs in our common experiences rather than our differences, and is keen to create warm and memorable moments for audiences.
Check out Patrick's stand up act at the All that Blues Festival 2025 cabaret here.
Jens Weber has been performing on all the stages around Konstanz (GER) since 2006. He is in his element in both quick-witted scenes and longer play formats. Spectators and fellow actors agree - he should be on stage. His ability to portray a wide range of characters is legendary - hilarious, profound, unexpected, quirky and subtle. He has been teaching improv theater since 2021 and passes on his enthusiasm and knowledge to all those hungry for improv.
www.impro-konstanz.de
Clara Brill has been on stage since her childhood and became known in recent years as a slam poet in Saarland. Her texts, which humorously and profoundly process everyday observations and experiences, made her the Saarland Poetry Slam Champion for the third consecutive year in 2024. With her sharp eye for human absurdities and her ability to capture them in incisive words, she writes both poetry and prose, often blending both in the same text. In addition, the three-time Saarland Poetry Slam champion is pursuing a Master's degree in Cultural Management and works as a reporter at Saarländischer Rundfunk (photo credit: Jonas Samson).
Interview with poetry slammer Clara Brill
Team Lindy Hop Saarbrücken is a passionate and dynamic group dedicated to the joy of Lindy Hop dancing. Based in Saarbrücken, their vibrant community fosters a love for swing dance and a welcoming environment for all skill levels. With a commitment to sharing the spirit of Lindy Hop, they offer engaging classes, energetic performances, and a supportive space for dancers to connect and thrive.
Team Lindy Hop Saarbrücken are Monica Beyhs, Chiara Bräuning, Karin Gadziala, Jovanna Holste, Matthias Höschele, Roumany Israil, Sarah Klein, Manuel Klar, Simon Kieke, Jonathan Marx, Gina Monzon, Martina Natella, Hagar Orr, Nik Taffner, Ben Taffner und Nicola Veit.
www.lindyhopsaarbruecken.de
More infos soon!
The Duke Box was born within the Swing Dance Luxembourg association, the result of the meeting of Lindy Hop dancers determined to move from the floor to the stage. This "small band" (trumpet, saxophone, piano, rhythm guitar, bass, drums) covers the great classics of Swing, from the Benny Goodman Sextet to Count Basie and Fats Waller. Combining energy and a dose of humor, particularly loving playing with it's dancing audience, they perform every month at parties, socials and tea dances in Luxembourg and elsewhere.
Facebook page of DUKE BOX
Jazz with 2 of Us and Bass is a swing trio that brings together jazz and swing with a lot of heart. Katerina Stampolaki (vocals), Andreas Bertram (piano, accordion), and Wolfgang Marx (double bass) create a vibe that's all about energy, fun, and getting people to move. As dancers themselves, they know what it takes to keep you on your feet during the City Walk and Dance.
