Swing dancers stomp at The Swamp

March 18, 2008

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — More than 170 dancers from Gainesville and across the country spun into town for “Stompin’ at The Swamp,” Feb. 29- March 2. The weekend’s workshops, lessons and dances all had the theme of “Leaping through Time.” The convention wanted to teach beginning and advanced swing dancers alike about the history of swing dancing, in addition to encourage its current popularity and provide for the future of swing dancers everywhere.

The 21 hours of dances featured five different disc jockeys over the course of the weekend, and a wide variety of music.

“A lot of dancers aren’t used to listening to ‘20s music and ‘future’ music, or dancing to it for that matter, so I think the theme forced a lot of people to dance outside their comfort zone and learn new things,” said Florida Swing Club President Mika Turim-Nygren.

The weekend also featured more than nine hours of lessons and workshops taught by guest dancers Michael Gamble and Jaya Dorf of Asheville, N.C.

Student Government provided half of the funding for the event, while out-of-town registration fees and fundraising covered the rest.

“We put a lot of work into this weekend,” Turim-Nygren said. “The most gratifying part for me was looking around and seeing that everyone was having a good time.”