Tampa Bay's Swing Dance News for October 26th 2015

Triple-Time Swing lessons start Wednesday November 4th at the Gulfport Casino Swing Night. Triple-Time Swing forms the basis for most advanced swing dancing (including Lindy Hop, West-Coast Swing, European Boogie Woogie, Ballroom Jive, and Advanced East-Coast Swing, to name a few), for the simple reason that if you add more steps, you can perform more intricate moves. So kick your dancing up a few notches with these lessons, and learn some very cool moves in the process! Featuring Swing Time instructors, Sam & Bri, Triple-Time Swing lessons run every Wednesday in November during the 6-7pm Bonus Lesson.

THIS WEDNESDAY (OCT 28) — HALLOWEEN COSTUME BALL

This Wednesday October 28th, put on your best costume and get ready to swing with all sorts of exciting characters! It's Swing Time's 14th Annual Halloween Costume Ball at the Gulfport Casino Swing Night! The Ball starts with a one-of-a-kind dance lesson: Shim Sham (with Special Zombie Styling!) 7-8pm; no partner needed. Starting at 8pm, dance 'til the midnight hour to the Ultimate Halloween Swing/Dance Music Mix... that's right! — all Halloweeny music, all the way to midnight! The Halloween Costume Ball features a Costume Parade & Contest with $500+ worth of Cash & Prizes for the best costumes! Prizes include a Dolphin Watch or Sunset Sail Cruise for Two, courtesy of Dolphin Landings Charter Boat Center, Full-Day Passes to the Suncoast Jazz Classic festival, cash, tickets to dances, and other great stuff! The Ball features loads of Chocolate, Candy, & Trick-or-Treats; Door Prizes; a Zombie Shim Sham; a Steal Dance Mixer; plus Special Halloween Decor & Atmosphere! Gulfport Casino's vintage waterfront grand ballroom is smoke-free and provides a full bar and free parking. Just $10 admission includes EVERYTHING, and all ages are welcome! (No free passes or student specials accepted at this special event.) Experience Tampa Bay's Best Halloween Dance Party... fourteen years running! More Info

Costume Contest Categories:
Best (Overall)
Best Hollywood
Best Science Fiction
Best Disney/Cartoon
Best Superhero
Best Historical
Scariest
Funniest
Most Original

Sunday November 8th is Fusion Night at the Gulfport Casino Ballroom. The night's lessons feature special guest instructor...the one & only, Simone Amaral, from Simone Salsa Dance School! Simone will teach Merengue, Cha Cha, and Guajira, including how to mix and transition between all three dances...get ready for some Latin dance fusion! Dance 8-11pm to a solid mix of music for all of your favorite dances — West-Coast Swing, Cha Cha, Waltz, Tango, Blues, Rumba, Hustle, Salsa, Bachata, East-Coast Swing, Fusion...you name it...all requests welcome! Just $8 admission includes both lessons and the dance, students get $5 admission, and all ages are welcome.

LESSONS 6-8PM:
Merengue, Cha Cha, & Guajira Intro 6-7pm
Merengue, Cha Cha, & Guajira Fusion 7-8pm
Special Guest Instructor, Simone Amaral

DANCING 8-11PM:
Modern Musical Mix — Ballroom/Fusion/Requests

All Ages No Partners Needed Admission $8 (Students $5) Door Prizes Cash Bar More Info

5 Days Left — Earlybird Special — Save $5/Ticket! — Purchase by October 31st

Tickets are now on sale for Swingin' the New Year at the spectacular St. Petersburg Coliseum. This Grand New Year's Eve Celebration for All Ages has become Florida's biggest annual swing-dance event...make plans now to join us! This year's Celebration features the world-renowned Mitch Woods & His Rocket 88's! Get ready to jump & boogie, rock & swing! Buy tickets now to get the best seats. Group discounts and VIP Alcoves and Tables are available for parties of 10 or more, so start organizing your group today. Free Alcove SuperSpecial — Save $295!

SWING TIME SECTION — We've reserved a central block of 60 of the best seats in the house for Swing Time regulars, and are selling these Wednesdays at the Gulfport Casino Swing Nights, while they last! Buy one of these tickets and you'll be among friends and fellow dancers. Tickets in the Swing Time Section are available exclusively to dancers who attend (and purchase them in person at) prior Swing Time events.

FRIDAY NIGHT SWING DANCE
at the 25th annual SUNCOAST JAZZ CLASSIC festival
Friday November 20th, 6:15pm-12:15am, at Sheraton Sand Key Resort

The weekend before Thanksgiving, the Suncoast Jazz Classic festival happens at the Sheraton and Marriott on Sand Key (Clearwater Beach). This year, the Suncoast Jazz Classic hosts its 6th annual Friday Night Swing Dance with an amazing lineup of all-new bands and a new/bigger venue at the Sheraton Sand Key! All lindy hoppers, swing dancers, balboa dancers, etc, who appreciate swinging big-band and traditional jazz are encouraged to attend. Support your very own Tampa Bay jazz festival by bringing your dancing self and friends, and get ready to dance to some world-class live music! Dance to FOUR superbly swinging bands from across the USA! Each band performs one full set of music for your dancing pleasure. The evening's lineup is:

6:15- 7:15pm - Swing Time Dance Lessons (Swing, Charleston, Balboa) 7:30- 8:30pm - Tom Rigney & Flambeau (San Francisco, CA) 8:45- 9:45pm - The Fat Babies (Chicago, IL) 10:00-11:00pm - Miss Ida Blue & the Yerba Buena Stompers (Brooklyn, NY) 11:15-12:15am - Dave Bennett Quartet (Detroit, MI)

Advance tickets are available online for just $22,
or in-person Wednesdays at the Gulfport Casino Swing Night.

EXPERIENCE THE FESTIVAL — Attention Dancers! Your ticket gets you into both the Swing Dance AND the other three music halls of the festival from 6pm onward! If you'd like to check out different bands, or follow your favorite bands around, you're welcome to do so. A total of 14 bands will play during the 6:15pm-12:15am time frame on Friday Night! From Big Band Swing to Cajun/Zydeco to New Orleans & Dixieland Jazz to Blues, this festival has it all! Complete Band Schedule

LARGE DANCE FLOOR — This dance takes place in one of two ballrooms (Zorch's Place, 1st Floor) of the beautiful Sheraton Sand Key resort. For one night only, this ballroom will be set up dance-style, with chairs moved to the walls and the dance floor cleared for dancing! This year's ballroom will be even bigger than last year's. Doors open 6:00pm.

TICKETS — Tickets are $22 in advance (deadline to purchase advance tickets is 11:59pm Thursday 11/19/2014) -or- $25 at the door. Advance tickets are available online ( Buy Advance Tickets: $22/each ) or Wednesdays at the Gulfport Casino Swing Night. This dance is presented by the Suncoast Jazz Classic. 100% of ticket proceeds go to support the Suncoast Jazz Classic festival, now in its 25th year as one of the USA's premier traditional jazz fests!

WANT TO STAY LONGER? Consider getting a Friday All-Day Ticket or a Weekend Package instead of a Swing Dance Ticket. Both of these alternatives include admission to Friday's Swing Dance! Get Tickets/Passes here. You can also get special Jazz Classic rates if you'd like to stay at the Sheraton or Marriott or two other nearby hotels.

More Info / Band Info / Tickets

Saturday November 21st is Jazz Night in Tampa, a dance where you can Lindy Hop or Balboa (or Shag, Charleston, Shim Sham, etc) all night long! Dance to the best of Big Band and Traditional Jazz, featuring multiple DJs from all across Florida! November 21st's Jazz Night will include a Lindy Hop Lesson 8-9pm, followed by Dancing 9pm-Midnight+. Doors open 7:45pm and admission is $8 (which includes both the lesson and the dance). Jazz Night happens at Simone Salsa, 8336 W Hillsborough Ave, Tampa, FL 33615. Mark your calendars for future Jazz Nights on the 3rd Saturday of each month.

8pm- 9:00 - Lindy Hop Lesson with Jony Navarro (Orlando) & Cynthia Lyons (Tampa) 9pm-10:00 - Dance! Music Set 1 featuring DJ Hurley Francois (Orlando) 10pm-11:00 - Dance! Music Set 2 featuring DJ Margie Sweeney (Tampa) 11pm-12:00 - Dance! Music Set 3 featuring DJ Les J Wardell (Tampa) After 12:00 - Keep dancing to keep the party going!