Blues After Hours

NEXT CLASSES:
11 December 2017 - our final night with live band!

VENUE
Camperdown Hotel (upstairs)
138 Parramatta Rd, Camperdown
Please support the venue that is supporting us by buying dinner and/or drinks at the downstairs bar.

STRUCTURE
* 7:00-8pm – Foundations class
* 8:00-8:15pm – Social dancing
* 8:15-9:15pm – Deep Dive class
* 9:15-11:15pm – Social dancing

PRICE (cash only)
* Whole night: $20 (includes 2 classes and social dancing)
* Social dancing: $5
* First timers: $5

CLASSES
* Foundations. This class is focused on developing solid blues dancing skills. Suitable for beginners as well as experienced dancers looking to get more serious about their blues dancing.
* Deep Dives. Taking a deeper dive into a range of blues dancing themes. Examples of themes
covered include: Dancing to different types of blues music including faster tempos; Jukin', Ballroomin' and other styles; Follow/Lead conversation.

WHAT IS BLUES DANCING?
In a nutshell, blues dancing is partnered or solo dancing to blues music.

MUSIC
* "Nothin' but the Blues" pretty well sums up our music policy.
* 100% blues music for classes.
* Predominantly blues music for social dancing.

OUR GOALS
* Share our passion for blues music and blues dancing.
* Develop and grow the Sydney blues dancing scene by running regular classes with social dancing.
* Challenge people to consider the world of blues dancing beyond what they know.
* Encourage people to explore what blues dancing means for them.

OUR VALUES
* Foster safe spaces and consent culture.
* Value each dance role equally.
* Respect dance role choice regardless of gender.
* Recognise blues dancing roots and history.

BLUES AFTER HOURS TEAM
Katherine Sivieng, primary teacher and co-founder
A friend dragged Katherine to her first partner dance class in the summer of 2006. While drawn to the experience of physically embodying and expressing music, self and partnership through dance, it wasn't until she found blues dancing that she found her true love. Katherine was living in London as blues dance exploded throughout Europe. She attended every event she could get to and still travels as far as The Blues Experiment in North Carolina to further her blues dancing. Katherine is keen to help grow the local blues scene through event organising, teaching and social dancing. Katherine is passionate about discovering authentic blues expression, fostering healthy body mechanics, and celebrating the freedom of follow voice and lead voice within the dance partnership.

Chris Kearns, co-founder and teacher
Chris discovered swing dancing at the end of 2008 and blues dancing a few months later. Having sung all his life, he quickly found that dancing was a natural extension of his musicality. He has been teaching Lindy Hop, Blues and Balboa in his local scene in Sydney since mid 2010. Chris is fascinated by the different conversations that can be expressed within a dance partnership, and the physics, chemistry and artistry that go into making such conversations possible. He has sought to satisfy his hunger for learning more about blues (the music, history, dancing, DJ'ing and teaching) over the past few years by travelling to blues dance events in Berlin, Chicago, New York and most recently in May 2015, The Blues Experiment held in North Carolina. Chris loves the challenge of finding different ways to articulate music and movement ideas to people. Everyone learns in their own way, so this difference keeps Chris on his toes. After 6.5 years of regular teaching, Chris is taking a break, but can still be seen guest teaching, dancing and DJ'ing. Chris is also available for private lessons.