Ready or not, another year has come to an end. It is not possible for me (Aurelie) to reflect on it without the one overriding feature of losing my Dad in May. I and the rest of my family miss him very much. He was the focal point, so there is a big gap to fill. We are learning to find our way as we move forward. Thankfully I come from a large family and we have each other.

2011 did bring many wonderful moments and here are a few of our biggest highlights:

• Not only did we hold our 15^th Beantown Camp, we received many comments of “best ever” and we think we agree. A gathering of many wonderful people for a week full of joy, tons of positive energy and just so much fun!
• Hop to the Beat had its 16^th anniversary this September, something we find pretty amazing.
• Passing our 1 year mark in our Monday night Boston location. It is always a big challenge to start something new and we have really enjoyed our classes and the people we have gotten to know from them.
• A truly phenomenal Uptown Swing dance with Gordon Webster during the Skye and Naomi weekend. The house was absolutely packed, however, what made it exceptional was how the room was on fire! Gordon surpassed himself, Naomi was incredible, she and Skye entertained and inspired us, and everyone present contributed to such an awesome, happy night. We couldn’t have ended our HTTB year any better.
• A non-dance highlight was adopting our two rescue kitties, Izzy and Luna, in August. They have brought much cuteness to our home.

Something that continues to be a major force are all the fabulous people who have touched our lives through our classes, dances, camp and other activities. We are very grateful for the opportunity to be a part of your life and there is nothing that makes us happier than seeing new friendships made, smiling faces and everyone having a good time. We caught the Lindy Hop bug back in our early days and are thrilled if we can help pass that on to someone else. Neither of us could ever have imagined back when we each started dancing what it would become in our lives. It has brought us each other and so much more.

So here’s to a new year which we hope will give you all much joy, happiness and of course plenty of excellent moments dancing!

Our best to you,
Aurelie & Tony

Our first 6 week session of 2012 starts on Sunday, January 8 in Newton Lower Falls and on Monday, January 9 in Boston. Both locations include a class in Beginner Swing/Intro to Lindy Hop Level 1, appropriate for anyone starting out as well as those with some experience who are working on building a solid foundation of dance skills. Six count basics will be covered along with a variety of fun steps to build your repertoire and get you out on the dance floor!

Lindy Hop Level 2 is also offered in both locations. This class is for more intermediate level Swing dancers, although no prior Lindy Hop experience is required. Eight and six count basics will be mixed along with a variety of classic Lindy Hop, newer variations, and a focus on partnering, technique and style.

For intermediate to advanced Lindy Hoppers, in Newton on Sundays we have a new class, Partner Charleston, Flashy Variations and Transitions. It will include some cool variations on classic Charleston while also focusing on some fancy transitions. These classes will be challenging, energetic and of course a ton of fun!

If you have any friends interested in getting into dancing, lessons are a great way to get started. Please pass on the info!

If you are planning to take class, please submit your registration.

Registration is open—Complete class information and registration.

Last weekend was a blast - fun, challenging, inspirational and full of awesomeness! Good thing there are high ceilings at Brookline Tai Chi or we would have blown the roof off the joint at Uptown Swing on Saturday night! Gordon Webster, Naomi Uyama, Jesse Selengut, Adrian Cunningham, Cassidy Holden and Jeremy Noller were on fire! So much fun and great energy which pushed them to keep playing past 1:00am. It was a packed house full of beaming faces. Very special thanks to those who stuck around until after the music finally ended to help us pack and clean up.

Huge thanks to Skye and Naomi for the excellent classes, performing for us at the dance and for being your wonderful selves. Thanks to everyone who participated. We really appreciate all the visiting dancers who joined us. Thanks also to everyone who helped with hosting, transporting, running the door and spreading the word, especially Margaret, Betty and Meredith. The vibe all weekend was so positive and full of joy! What more can you ask for?

If you would like to see photos from the workshops, check out the album on Facebook.

Our first 6 week session of 2012 starts on Sunday, January 8 in Newton Lower Falls and on Monday, January 9 in Boston. Both locations include classes in Beginner Swing/Intro to Lindy Hop Level 1 and Lindy Hop Level 2.

Also coming up, we have a new class for intermediate to advanced Lindy Hoppers: Partner Charleston, Flashy Variations and Transitions. It will include some cool variations on classic Charleston while also focusing on some fancy transitions. Classes will be challenging, energetic and of course a ton of fun! This class will meet on Sundays in Newton.

If you have any friends interested in getting into dancing, lessons are a great way to get started. Please pass on the info!

Registration is open - Complete class information and registration.