Learn to swing dance and Lindy Hop at Cat’s Corner! Have fun, meet new people, and get great exercise all at once! Cat’s Corner offers:
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- Hip, expert & friendly dance instruction with Nathan, Karen and monthly guest teachers
- Progressive format classes so you can get better each week
- No partner needed. We rotate partners frequently in class. Beginners always welcome!
- Convenient and secure online class registration
- Live Music Dance Party & Cocktails after class!
Class and party dates: August 7, 14, 21 and 28
Other Month’s Classes: July 2019 | September 2019
| Main Floor | Side Room | |
| 7-8 PM | Intermediate Lindy Hop 4-week Series with Nathan and Rebecca |
8-count Collegiate Shag 4-week Series with Amy and Karen |
| 8-9 PM | Beginning Lindy Hop 4-week Series with Nathan and Rebecca |
Intermediate Advanced Lindy Hop 4-week Series with guest teachers |
| 9-9:30 PM | Beginning East Coast Swing Weekly Drop-in Crash Course with Nathan, Rebecca & Guest Teachers |
Save $15 or more when you sign up early!
[wptab name=’For Beginners’]
Beginning East Coast Swing Drop-in Class
Class time: 9-9:30pm
This short and sweet class is designed for the absolute beginner with no previous dance experience. We start from scratch each week, covering partner dance fundamentals and introducing simple 6-count East Coast Swing, Jig Walks and Charleston steps to get you out on the dance floor and grooving to the music.
Cost: $10 per week (includes dance party admission). No registration required.
Beginning Lindy Hop 4-week Series
with Nathan Dias and Rebecca Shannon
Class time: 8-9 PM on August 7, 14, 21 and 28
In this class, you will learn the basics of Lindy Hop, the original swing dance from the 1930s that features fast footwork and addictive rhythms. You’ll learn the basic 8-count steps that every lindy hopper should know — swingout, lindy circle & charleston — plus solid lead and follow technique and a different set of beginner level steps each month. This class is a progressive series, which means we review and build steadily upon previous weeks’ material.
Previous swing dancing experience is helpful but not required. To get the most out of the class, we recommend that you are already comfortable with “triple-steps” — if you don’t know these yet, we suggest taking our 9pm drop-in swing class a few times first.
Save your spot in class!
Four Month Class Cycle (okay to start any month!)
| Jan/May/Sep (A) |
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| Feb/Jun/Oct (B) |
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| Mar/Jul/Nov (C) |
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| Apr/Aug/Dec (D) |
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About the Teachers
Nathan Dias
Resident Teacher, Cats Corner Founder
Nathan specializes in Lindy Hop, the high-energy swing dance from the 1930s and 40s, and has been teaching, performing and DJing since 2005. He started swing dancing in 1997 and lindy hopping in 2000. A regular dancer in San Francisco since 2001, Nathan enjoys the creativity and personal connection of social dancing as well as the challenge and satisfaction on working on and improving his dance.
He has taught at practically all of the local swing dance venues at one time or another, including the 9:20 Special, Lindy in the Park, Tuesday Night Jump, Rent Party and original Doghouse, and has been a featured instructor at regional workshops such as Swingin' at the Savoy, California Swingin', *Workshop (San Luis Obispo), Santa Swing (Santa Barbara), and Le Hot Sauce (SF).
Rebecca Shannon
Rebecca is known for her friendly, fun-filled classes and her love of all things swing. Knowledgeable in Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, Blues and Collegiate Shag, she has taught, performed and competed throughout the Bay Area and beyond and is currently the teaching partner of David Blood at San Francisco City College. She also performs with and does choreography for the City College performance troupe the Hot Bloods.
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[wptab name=’Intermediate Lindy Hop’]
Intermediate Lindy Hop
with Rebecca Shannon and Nathan Dias
Class time: 7-8 PM on August 7, 14, 21 and 28
In this class, you will build up your repertoire of lead and follow techniques, classic lindy hop moves and styling.
Requirements:
Students wishing to join the Intermediate class must have completed our 4-month Beginning Lindy Hop program (or the equivalent) as well as a friendly level-check with one of our teachers. Students should be regular social dancers at this point, and should be able to confidently dance the steps listed on our 4-month Beginner curriculum (click the “Beginning” tab above) including 6-count turns, 8-count swingout, Lindy circle and related turns, and basic Charleston patterns. Contact the teachers to arrange a level-check and get class level advice.
Register now for classes
Save your spot in class!
Intermediate Lindy Hop 6-month Class Cycle (start any month)
| Jan/Jul (A) |
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| Feb/Aug (B) |
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| Mar/Sep (C) |
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| Apr/Oct (D) |
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| May/Nov (E) |
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| Jun/Dec (F) |
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About the Teachers
Nathan Dias
Resident Teacher, Cats Corner Founder
Nathan specializes in Lindy Hop, the high-energy swing dance from the 1930s and 40s, and has been teaching, performing and DJing since 2005. He started swing dancing in 1997 and lindy hopping in 2000. A regular dancer in San Francisco since 2001, Nathan enjoys the creativity and personal connection of social dancing as well as the challenge and satisfaction on working on and improving his dance.
He has taught at practically all of the local swing dance venues at one time or another, including the 9:20 Special, Lindy in the Park, Tuesday Night Jump, Rent Party and original Doghouse, and has been a featured instructor at regional workshops such as Swingin' at the Savoy, California Swingin', *Workshop (San Luis Obispo), Santa Swing (Santa Barbara), and Le Hot Sauce (SF).
Rebecca Shannon
Rebecca is known for her friendly, fun-filled classes and her love of all things swing. Knowledgeable in Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, Blues and Collegiate Shag, she has taught, performed and competed throughout the Bay Area and beyond and is currently the teaching partner of David Blood at San Francisco City College. She also performs with and does choreography for the City College performance troupe the Hot Bloods.
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[wptab name=”Intermediate Advanced Lindy Hop”]
Intermediate Advanced Lindy Hop
with Julian Enis and Jess Centorbi
Class time: 8-9 PM on August 7, 14, 21 and 28
Stretch and grow as a Lindy Hopper by focusing on important fundamentals: connection, musicality and momentum while learning and dancing more complex patterns, challenging lead and follow techniques, and impressive styling.
Required: 6+ months of Intermediate Lindy Hop classes and social dance experience, or the equivalent.
Recommended: 12+ months Intermediate Lindy Hop class & social dance experience
Save your spot in class!
If coming from another dance program, check our Intermediate Lindy Hop syllabus (click the “Intermediate” tab above) to see if what you’ve covered in other classes and social dancing is comparable. In particular, we are looking for:
- Your swingouts, lindy circle, 6-count turns, 8-count inside & outside turns, Texas Tommy and 6- and 8-count tuck turns should all be solid, fluid, and social dance worthy at medium tempos (140-170 BPM) with clean, accurate footwork
- You should be able to dance common modes of Charleston (side-by-side, kick-through, hand-to-hand, airplane, tandem and face-to-face) along with simple transitions into and out of them
- You should be able to incorporate some common footwork variations in your basics, independent of your partner (i.e. kick-ball-change, heel pops, Al Minn’s footwork, scissor kicks, Frankie’s footwork).
- You should be able to dance at least a few classic lindy hop “flashy” patterns such as: Curl & Points, Mini-Dip, the Chase, Sailor Kicks, Hacksaws, Behind the Back Promenade, Quick Stop, etc.
- You are starting to demonstrate an ability to lead and follow improvised movements not explicitly taught in class
There is no formal level-check, and student placement is by honor system. Teachers, however, are instructed to, at their discretion, politely send unqualified students to the appropriate level. When in doubt, the best is to arrange a friendly level check with one of our teachers.
Calvin Lu
Calvin Lu started dancing in 2013 and quickly became a regular at UC Berkeley’s weekly outdoor venue, dancing as both a lead and a follow. There, he learned about having fun, being musical, and not taking himself too seriously. Now, as a teacher, competitor, and choreographer, he takes that spirit of playfulness into all of his dance endeavors. His classes emphasize feeling comfortable when you’re dancing, accessible learning curves, and coming to each dance with a playful attitude. He is also one of the organizers for The Switch, a workshop about de-gendering dance roles.
Julian Enis
Julian learned to Lindy Hop at Cat's Corner and ever since has been dancing with a smile on his face. He enjoys social dancing wherever there's swing music, and has performed and competed with groups from the Bay Area locally and nationally. He always brings his dance shoes when he travels (even on the rare occasion that it's not dance related) and enjoys making connections with people that share a love for the art of Lindy Hop. When he's not dancing he can be found swimming in the bay, baking bread and pastries, brewing beer, or nerding out about food and wine.
Jess Centorbi
Jess started dancing Lindy Hop 2 years ago when she was invited by a good friend to a local dance. When she saw her first swing out, she was hooked and wanted to start learning as soon as possible. Jess has performed and competed with solo and Lindy teams across the United States. When she's not cutting a rug on the dance floor, she’s usually at home reading and hanging with her cat Oliver.
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[wptab name=”Collegiate Shag”]
8-count Collegiate Shag (Beginner-Intermediate)
with Amy Sorenson and Karen Huddleston
Class time: 7-8 PM on August 7, 14, 21 and 28
Enjoy this snappy swing dance that explodes with energy and features a unique double-rhythm six-count basic and eye-popping footwork, plus animated movements that will whip you into shape and invigorate your dancing! Collegiate Shag is currently in the midst of a huge worldwide revival. Join the movement and give it the old college try!
We are excited to offer this class in an Everybody-Leads-Everybody-Follows (ELEF) format!
Required: 4+ months of Beginning Lindy Hop classes and social dance experience, or the equivalent.
Recommended: 3+ months Intermediate Lindy Hop class & social dance experience.
Amy Sorenson
Amy is a self-identifying Shagaholic. She is a former member of Steve Sayer and Chanzie Roettig’s LA Shag, and of Johnny “Bluejeans” Lee’s The San Francisco Jitterbugs, and is now running her own Shag team here in the Bay Area. As a method of sharing her love of dance she teaches, competes, performs, and helps organize dance events. She is very excited to be sharing her love of this dance with you as she continues on her journey to make Collegiate Shag more visible and increase its presence in the Bay Area. She hopes you will love it as much as she does.
Karen Huddleston
Karen came to the Bay Area from Portland, where she regularly danced Lindy Hop and Blues. She started training in dance at the age of 3 and discovered swing dancing as a high school student. In college, she helped run the swing dance club and participated in the ballroom dance team as a member and coach for several student groups. She's an avid social dancer in San Francisco and has performed with the Someday Sweethearts and Nathan's Swing or Nothing dance troupes. Karen and Nathan recently taught their first Intermediate-Advanced Lindy Hop class at Cat's Corner, and they had so much fun that Karen decided to return for more!
Save your spot in class!
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Series class sizes are limited and often sell out. A few extra spots are also made available to our staff volunteers.
(Can’t make Wednesdays? Check out Monday Classes in the Mission!)
Progressive vs. Drop-in Classes
All of the Lindy Hop classes are progressive, with each week’s material building on the previous week’s class. Lindy Hop drop-ins are allowed for $20 which also includes dance party and 9pm lesson admission. Please note that if you drop in to one of the classes, it may be in the middle of the class series, and you may fall behind. We recommend that you take the full series. We always offer a drop-in Beginning Swing class each Wednesday from 9:00-9:30pm.
Not sure which class is for you? Send us an email with any questions!
After the Classes
All class costs include admission to the Cat’s Corner Swing Dance Party. Stay to dance to live swing music starting at 9:30pm. The venue features cocktail bar, roomy dance floor, and great swinging ambiance. We often have surprises around 10:30pm – it could be a special performance, contest, or silly group activity — to add to the festivities.