Lindy Diversion branches out a bit more to include dances such as Tap, Blues, and Jazz. There are no competitions at Lindy Diversion; the focus is on the workshop classes and the often spectacular live music and social dancing. Just like at our other events, you can find some of the best in the world at our event. Look forward to engaging classes, live music to dance to all night, and some killer performances this February 21-24, 2020.
Ticket Sales are Open.
Tickets available at the door! Cash and card accepted.
Please read before registering
BY PURCHASING A TICKET FOR THE EVENT YOU AGREE TO CMDANCE’S TERMS
ALL ACCESS PRICING!!! We have a few tiers this year to help facilitate your learning experience.
**It is our goal this year to not let finances be a hindrance to learning. On top of volunteering being an option to assist those having a financial hindrance, we have benefactor tiers and donors that can directly provide support to others.**
We encourage you to purchase the highest tier you are able to, in order to directly support your community with obtaining access. We also have the option to donate directly through the ticketing form, which will be used to provide scholarships to those needing a little help!
Benefactor Tier - $219 - You are directly subsidizing your peers to be able to learn
Standard Tier - $189 - If everyone bought this pass, we would cover costs (maybe)
Subsidized Tier - $159 - Need a little help from your friends
For now there are limits to the subsidized tiers, but as more Benefactors support the program... we will adjust to reflect!
Dance Only Passes Go On Sale December 21st
A La Carte Pricing & Tickets will be available January 21st
Sarah Breck
Sarah Breck has been training and competing in dance with an emphasis on Vernacular Jazz dance since the age of 10. As a competitor she has claimed numerous world titles, and performed in over 20 countries. As a swing dance teacher, she has pioneered the concept of “active” following and concepts that give follower the ability to positively affect the dance and empower leaders to do more. Her reaction timing is impeccable and she has an amazing ability adjust her body to work with leaders of various styles and strength. She is the head instructor for RhythmJuice.com.
Dax Hock
Dax brings timeless Hollywood charm to the stage with his infectious enthusiasm to preserve, innovate and share authentic swing & jazz dancing with the world in a truly unique fusion of vintage and modern style. Influenced by dance legends ranging from Frankie Manning to Fred Astaire, he has been specializing in swing for over 14 years. As a competitor he has claimed numerous world titles, as well as performed and taught in over 20 countries. Dax is the Creative Director at RhythmJuice.com.
Krystal Wilkerson
Krystal loves living in Huntsville, Alabama, although she is originally from southern Ohio. She has an uncanny energy and enthusiasm for blues music and dancing, and can often be seen at events all over the southeast and the US. She’s been partner dancing various styles since 2007; Blues stole her heart, however, in 2010, and has never let go.
She has taught all over the US, ranging from small community -focused events all the way up to national events such as Blues Muse, Blues Geek, and the Blues Experiment. She’s a fierce competitor, frequently making finals at national blues dance contests, and brings her fervor for connection into all of her dancing and instruction. Her love of the dance is contagious, and she believes in injecting fun into all of her classes.
Photo Credit: Ben Hejkal
Adam Wilkerson
Adam is proud to call Huntsville, Alabama home, but he's originally from Mississippi. He’s been partner dancing since 2004, starting in Ballroom, Latin street dances, and Lindy Hop, but he followed Krystal into blues in 2010, and it’s been his primary focus ever since. He’s passionate about social dancing and blues music, and loves to explore all different blues styles in his instruction and setlists. He strongly believes in teaching the context and history of the music and the dance, focusing on research in the Mississippi Delta in his spare time. His analytical approach to connection and value for intuition in dance provides a unique classroom environment that promotes self-awareness and improvement beyond the classroom. He believes in learning through experience and experimentation, so expect a LOT of getting up and dancing in his classes.
Matthew Pait
Matthew Pait is an avid jazz musician turned Lindy hopper from the age of fifteen. His passion for authentic jazz movement has carried him through over a decade of instructing, mentoring and performing for many nationally ranked teams. Matthew also spent 2 years as a scene leader and dance school developer during his residency in Germany. He had opportunities to teach throughout Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. After years of dabbling it was here that his love of tap was fully realized under the tutelage of World Champion Jutta Maas. He has since consumed the majority of his practice time on diversifying and developing his advanced tap skill that flows wonderfully into his effusive and musical dance style. His greatest tap influence and inspiration is Jimmy Slide. He looks forward to sharing his point of view with everyone at Lindy Diversion 2020!
Friday - Joe Smith & The Red Hot Rhythm Rocket
Red Hot Rhythm Rocket A little bit of Rock and Roll, some Rhythm & Blues, a Hammond B3 Organ, and just a dash of swing is the recipe for some infectious groove set by the men and lady of the Red Hot Rhythm Rocket. Pulling inspiration from Louis Jordan, Etta James, Pearl Bailey, Bill Doggett, Milt Buckner, and Big Jay McNeely, among others, this band features two horns, organ, guitar, drums, and a strong vocalist. The band was started by Joe Smith in 2017 to provide an eclectic mix of music arranged to get people on the floor dancing.
Saturday - Josh Fialkoff and the Oddfellows
Joshua Fialkoff lends his smoky voice and unique piano stylings – a veritable gumbo of “roots piano” flavors – to dance exchanges and series around the world, and has been doing so for over ten years. Joshua first began playing for dancers as a bass player for Solomon Douglas. Later, as a pianist, he started his own group and began sharing his distinct brand of Blues and Swing. Joshua is known for his unique arrangements that are at once new and old, and an authenticity and rawness that shines through in his presence and performance.
Blues and Swing events throughout the US, Canada, and Europe regularly feature Joshua or one of his ensembles. Some recent performances include Spoonful (Edinburgh, UK), DCLX’tra (Washington DC), Dance Flurry (Saratoga Springs, NY), BluesSHOUT (Chicago, IL), Sweet Molasses Blues (Boston, MA), Eastside Stomp (Seattle, WA), Montreal Bagel and Blues (Montreal, QC), Capital Ballroom (Seattle, WA), Mean Old Blues (San Francisco, CA), and many others. He has shared the stage with a number of esteemed musicians including Gordon Webster, Barbara Morrison, and Meschiya Lake. Joshua is the rare performer who cares deeply about his audience, who is constantly seeking to connect and engage the people he plays for, and who yearns to instill in everyone within earshot an irresistible urge to move.
DJs
Kara Fabina (Colorado Springs)
One thing that you can count on from this DJ is a vast understanding of genres. Because of her background in various dance styles, Kara brings a depth of musical knowledge appropriate for dancing. Her loves vary from House to Funk, Old School Hip Hop, Vintage Jazz, Blues and Soul. She has a not so secret adoration for mashups, and has even dabbled in beat production and mixology. With a desire to be a jill of all trades, she began Dj’ing at house parties in 2011. Since then she has gone on to DJ at local dance venues and events throughout the world. Based in Colorado Springs, she works to provide dancers with a variety of blues, jazz, and swing music in her sets.
Adam Wilkerson
Adam is proud to call Huntsville, Alabama home, but he's originally from Mississippi. He’s been partner dancing since 2004, starting in Ballroom, Latin street dances, and Lindy Hop, but he fell in love with blues in 2010, and it’s been his primary focus ever since. He’s passionate about social dancing and blues music, and loves to explore all kinds of swing and blues styles in his setlists. He strongly believes in teaching the context and history of the music and the dance, focusing on research in the Mississippi Delta in his spare time. In the spirit of that, you'll be sure to hear plenty of blues from his home state in his sets! He absolutely loves jazz, though, so don't worry, he'll bring the swing!
Jonathan Neave
Jonathan started dancing Swing in Colorado Springs in 2015, and quickly fell completely in love with Lindy Hop by 2016. Since then, he's had the opportunity to learn from, dance with and be humbled by, the amazing people of the Colorado Springs and Denver area. Jonathan has been DJing swing in Colorado Springs for two years, he's always excited to keep the dance floor hoppin' with a variety of tunes, both modern and classic, that will be sure to keep you dancing until your feet fall off.
Photo by Karen Ludwig
Lorne Fultonberg
After years of dancing Lindy Hop, Lorne Fultonberg finally realized the root of his addiction: the music, of course! Since, he has fallen in love with anything that swings, becoming a regular DJ at Boulder Swing and the Denver ShalBags while also making appearances at the Mercury Cafe and Scissortail Swing. Lorne's playful, groove-able sets reflect the musicality he so cherishes in his and his partners' dancing. He firmly believes you can never play enough Benny Goodman (especially his small groups) and has soft spots for Teddy Wilson, Nat King Cole, Fats Waller and Django Reinhardt. But he also believes in supporting and spinning the contemporary jazz groups keeping the classics alive.
Katrina Rogers
Music and dancing are food for Katrina's soul. She feels the music on a very deep level and her body simply responds. Dancing has always been and will continue to be a place for Katrina to explore and express who she is, and she encourages everyone to do the same. Katrina took her first Blues dance lesson in 2013 and found a piece of herself she never knew was missing. She is dedicated to learning and promoting the rich culture and history of this beautiful black art form. As a dancer, with a strong connection to musicality, she brings joy, emotion, fun, tons of sass and plenty of ridiculousness into her dances (nothing is off limits). Katrina especially loves to play in her partnerships and wants to see what you’re bringin’-lets Riff!. She has a special love of Blues with that Funky vibe (it totally compliments her quirkiness) and anything with that deep groove with high energy. In addition to being an instructor, you’ll find Katrina Djing up and down the front range. Committed to blending sounds and rhythms from various artists, regions and eras to keep people dancing the night away.
Aloura Summers
Aloura has been active in the Dance Scene in Denver for over 10 years, she found her place in the dance community when she was introduced to Blues dancing at the Mercury Cafe. She started hosting and DJing events regularly in 2016 and quickly fell in love with creating space for her communities to dance and connect on a deeper level. Aloura Teaches dance to preschoolers in the Head Start program through CMDance and teaches music and movement to the special needs community in Littleton. Her hope as she continues hosting and DJing events is to help inspire a new vibrant energy of connection, connection to the music, connection and access to high quality dance instruction, connection and fusion between dance styles, and connection to each other.
Schedule
Friday
Main Ballroom
7:30-8:30pm - Beginner Tap Lesson
8:30pm-2:00am - Social Dancing to The Red Hot Rhythm Rocket & DJs
Ratskellar
7:00-8:00pm - Beginner Swing Lesson
Saturday
Main Ballroom
11:00-12:00 - Freestyle and Flow! (Dax & Sarah)
12:15-1:15 - Bouncing Vs. Rhythm (Dax & Sarah)
1:15-2:30 - Lunch Break
2:30-3:30 - Slow dancing: More like SLOW MOTION dancing. (partnered) (Dax & Sarah)
3:45-4:45 - Jazz, Blues, and Jazz Blues (Adam & Krystal)
Dinner Break
7:30-8:30 - Beginner Swing Lesson
8:30pm-3:00am - Social Dancing to Josh Fialkoff and the Oddfellows & DJs
Ratskellar
12:15-1:15 - Savoy Walk (Adam & Krystal)
1:15-2:30 - Lunch Break
2:30-3:30 - Musician Focus (Adam & Krystal)
Dinner Break
12:00-3:00am - Late Night Blues Only Room
Sunday
Main Ballroom
11:00-12:00 - Lag & Relaxation (Adam & Krystal)
12:15-1:15 - When Connection Hurts Your Dancing (Dax & Sarah)
1:15-2:30 - Lunch Break
2:30-3:30 - Microsliding To Achieve Good Movement (Dax & Sarah)
3:45-4:45 - Progressive Challenges (Dax & Sarah)
Ratskellar
12:15-1:15 - Crafting a Partnership (Adam & Krystal)
1:15-2:30 - Lunch Break
2:30-3:30 - Flash in the Ballroom (Adam & Krystal)
Beginner Friendly - We recommend that you have been dancing 6 months, and have been taking dance classes regularly. These are NOT introductory classes
Freestyle and Flow! (Saturday 11:00-12:00 Main Ballroom)
In this level we will focus on flow and freestyle, incorporating loops of basic moves, and simple freestyle ideas to improve your technique, creativity, and improvisation skills. Each class will focus on a different set of basic moves, and freestyle concepts.
Bouncing Vs. Ryhthm (Saturday 12:15-1:15 Main Ballroom)
These two words are often put together which can lead to the belief, "if I bounce, my rhythm will get better!". But let's look at the MOVEMENT (to bounce) and apply multiple different grooves to it so that we can give these two words more clarity.
Savoy walk (Saturday 12:15-1:15 Ratskellar)
Savoy Walk is an idiom closely tied to swing dancing. With techniques learned from Sugar and Norma, we'll provide some historical context to this dance the blends a cozy connection with moments of Exciting flash danced at the world-famous Savoy Ballroom!
Musician Focus (Saturday 2:30-3:30 Ratskellar)
Ballroomin' shares SO MUCH of its musical roots with swing dancing. To that end, come explore the music and history of Ella Fitzgerald with us during this hour. We'll give some nice introductions to musicality, along with a lot of really exciting facts about this amazing woman's life and art!
All Levels
Slow Dancing: More like SLOW MOTION dancing (Saturday 2:30-3:30 Main Ballroom)
A unique take on how Dax and Sarah approach swing dancing to slow music.
Jazz, Blues, and Jazz Blues (Saturday 3:45-4:45 Main Ballroom)
When the tempos get low, we may slow down, but that doesn't mean we lose our connection to swing. In this class, we'll talk about some classic Blues Dance moves that find a root in swing mechanics, and help you explore how to incorporate some of your Lindy into your Blues!
Lag and relaxation (Sunday 11:00-12:00 Main Ballroom)
Blues dancing is all about keeping your cool and making it look effortless. In this class, we'll explore some techniques to maintain relaxation in your dance, and work through some fun exercises to rethink the way you lag behind the beat and your partner!
Make Em Cry - Material is meant to be a more intricate look into technique and skill development
When Connection Hurts Your Dancing (Sunday 12:15-1:15 Main Ballroom)
CONNECTION, the thing we all strive to get good at. But what happens if your connection actually prevents you from achieving your goal to have a good dance? Let's evaluate these situations and shift our focus to the tools we need to achieve our goals.
Crafting a partnership (Sunday 12:15-1:15 Ratskellar)
Crafting a tight partnerships starts with your footsteps. In this class, we'll explore what it means to lead and follow precise foot placement and timing!
Microsliding To Achieve Good Movement (Sunday 2:30-3:30 Main Ballroom)
We've all seen (and maybe attempted) slides before. But what about micro-sliding? This incredibly, essential technique facilitates our goal to achieve good body movement and connection without a partner. So leave your sticky shoes in the room, and let's get (micro)sliding!
Flash in the ballroom (Sunday 2:30-3:30 Ratskellar)
Unlike the Blues Dances done in small juke joints, dancers in ballrooms had a lot of space to show their stuff! In this class, we'll work through a sequence of moves that captures the spirit of that flash, and get some cools spins into your ballroomin'!
Progressive Challenges (Sunday 3:45-4:45 Main Ballroom)
In this level we will progressively build a short combination adding more and spicier stylings and embellishments until students are no longer able to handle the heat.
Denver Turnverein
1570 N Clarkson St., Denver, CO 80218
Free Parking: Parking lot is available at the building, street parking is also available in the neighborhood as well.
At this venue there will be:
Friday Main & Late Night
Saturday Daytime Classes, Main & Late Night
Sunday Daytime Classes
Mercury Cafe
2199 California St #2821, Denver, CO 80205
Free Parking: Parking lot is available at the building, street parking is also available in the neighborhood as well.
At this venue there will be:
Unofficial Pre-party Thursday night
Unofficial After-party Sunday night
Flying Into Denver
The nearest major airport to Denver is the Denver International Airport (DIA). DIA is a stylish, up-to-date facility receiving all popular airlines. You can find deals at respective discount airfare sites or directly from your preferred airline. We suggest checking fares often and signing up for low fare alert services. Research shows that the ideal time to buy your airline tickets is generally about 54 days before travel. After 54 days, prices begin to rise and then shoot up 30 days before the flight. Remember to check out package discounts for hotels and car rentals, if you wish. Here are some sites you can use to find deals and set up price alerts:
www.southwest.com – www.farecast.com – www.orbitz.com –www.kayak.com – www.priceline.com – www.hotwire.com –www.travelocity.com
Getting Around Denver
Rideshare programs like Uber or Lyft are highly active in Denver. We also have Car2GO, a convenient smart-car rental service providing over 400 2-person cars spread throughout Denver; just take it, drive it, and park it, within the designated city area (membership required).
RTD Buses – For public transportation, our RTD buses and light rail system are an effective and inexpensive method of getting around Denver. Check out the RTD website for a helpful Trip Planner and more details on Denver public transit.
Bird Scooters are an efficient/affordable option to get around downtown. App download required.
Lime Scooters are another app based scooter option to get around downtown. App download required.
Getting to Downtown Denver from DIA
The A Line will get you from the DIA airport to Union Station (1.5 miles from the Studio Loft/Curtis Hotel) for only $10.50 in approx 40 minutes. This is by far the most affordable and efficient way to get downtown from the airport. Last train to leave DIA departs at 1:26am. Trains departing Union Station start as early as 3:15am.
Everything is Awesome! Everything is great when you’re part of a team!
Volunteers are the face of the event, as each of you are often the first human anyone interacts with and comes to with emergencies. We value our volunteers and seriously cannot function without you. Help us make this a successful event, and get to know your organizers and artists a little better. You will be able to sign-up after reading the following!
Important Notes Related to Volunteering:
If you would like to volunteer in exchange for a pass, PLEASE DO NOT REGISTER/BUY A PASS! If you just want to help out because we are a community, that’s cool too!
If you have not pre-registered, you must provide a check as a deposit at the beginning of the weekend, in the full amount of the event ($189). This deposit is an assurance that you will show up for all your shifts and will communicate with all the appropriate personnel if you swap a shift.
The check will be destroyed when all your commitments are fulfilled. If you do not show up for your shifts, CMDance will cash your check in exchange for your pass. You may write a new check or PayPal CMDance the difference if you are late for or miss a shift.
If you are unable to pay by check, alternative forms of deposit may be available on a case-by-case basis.
Volunteers have the option to work part-time for a dance pass (or half off an all-access pass) or full-time for an all-access pass.
CMDance will not refund any dollar amount above what you paid for your event pass.
Volunteers will have the opportunity to select shifts in the first stages of volunteer sign-up, but the schedule will be locked for editing as the event approaches.
Volunteers who do not show up for shifts will not be allowed to exchange volunteer hours for passes and/or monetary compensation at CMDance events in the future.
We will accept your volunteer support and helping hands at any time, even when you are not scheduled, of course!
Volunteers are really cool and make this event amazing! Thank you.
Fill out the Volunteer Form.
If you have any questions about volunteering for this event, please e-mail our volunteer coordinator, Lorne Fultonberg: lornefultonberg@gmail.com
Visiting and want to request to be housed with locals? Local and wanting to offer some space and make new friends?
Fill out our HOUSING FORM!
For your request for housing to be valid you must have either an All Music and Dance Pass or Full Access Pass for the event.
Disclaimer: HOUSING IS NOT GUARANTEED!!!!
For those hosting:
You are only required to provide a place for guests to sleep and shower.
You are not responsible for providing toiletries, transportation, food, or anything else.
For those requesting housing:
Hosts are only responsible for providing a place for you to sleep and shower.
You will need to contact your host to find out what you need to bring (sleeping bag, towels, etc)
Please respect all rules provided by the host.
We will do our best to honor all requests to be housed with certain people.
We will honor all requests to be housed with or to host people of the same gender.
Deadline, Assignment, and Questions.
Housing requests will close after February 7th
Housing assignments will be sent out by February 14th. However, housing IS NOT guaranteed.
All housing questions should be directed to our Housing Coordinator, Kin Wong, at kinhowong00@gmail.com
Hotel Accommodations
CMDance has secured a group rate at Townplace Suites which is approx. 1.5 miles from the venue. Please use this LINK to book your room. Booking is available until February 12th!
Townplace Suites, located at 685 Speer Blvd. in Denver, provides continental breakfast until 10am, free WiFi, limited free parking, and shuttle services. We are thrilled to be working with them again!
We believe dance is a gift that should be accessible for everyone. We have seen first-hand and experienced the impact that dance can have on an individual’s life. Further, we have seen the personal and community growth that can occur in participants of a dance community.
Therefore we do not want financial hardship to prohibit students from participating in CMDance Events. At the same time, we recognize that our education immersion weekends are not for everyone. Families and individuals have various priorities, and a great diversity of talents to steward. We understand that dance may or may not fit into that picture for you or your family.
Our scholarships are primarily for those who consider dance to be a priority, yet after making personal sacrifices cannot afford the financial cost. If you believe you (or someone you know) fit this criteria, we welcome you to submit the scholarship application form for yourself or welcome you to nominate someone.
SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS ARE DUE DECEMBER 1ST, 2019
Please read the following important notes before applying for a scholarship for yourself or someone else:
Scholarships do NOT cover any portion of travel expenses, housing expense, or other travel expenses. In other words, you will need to be able to cover those fees on your own. If you are unable to do so, we recommend finding an outside sponsor (such as a friend or community member) who will agree to cover those costs. We do have housing request forms for out of town attendees. We will make our scholarship recipients a priority on housing accommodations, but housing is never guaranteed.
Scholarships cover a portion of dance class tuition ranging from 25% to 100%. The portion is completely variable, depending on the unique situation. If you are awarded a partial scholarship, you will still be responsible for your reduced tuition rate, just like any regular attendee. Whatever your portion may be, if you are late you will forfeit your scholarship, and will no longer be eligible for the program if the balance is not paid in a timely manner.
Only one scholarship application is needed per person.
Only one scholarship per calendar year will be awarded to the same recipient. That means, that if you receive a scholarship for an event in February, then you are ineligible to receive another scholarship until March of the following year. You may still however volunteer at multiple events.
Scholarships are awarded based on our sole opinion and discretion. This is a private event. There are many factors which may affect the availability of scholarships. Not everyone who applies will receive a scholarship.
In addition to scholarship awards, we may consider bartering for certain services that would be beneficial to CMDance. (For example: advertising exposure, outreach, community engagement programs, sound/lighting help, photography, etc.) Again this is at our sole discretion, and there are only so many services we need so please do not take offense if we do not have need for your service at this time.
We reserve the right to revoke scholarships at any time for any reason.
We plan to have our decisions communicated by December 15th. If you do not hear from us in that time frame, please contact us. We may also contact you to get additional information. Kara@cmdance.org
Please respect our decision. Awards are not open for negotiation, unless we are specifically bartering for a service you are providing.
You can find the Scholarship Application Form Here