Let's face it, big events are fun. Lots of people, lots of competition, lots of energy... But due to competition schedules, social dance time during "Reasonable Hours" tends to suffer. More often than not, the real social dancing doesn't start until after the competitions, which is usually Midnight or later... sometimes as late as 2:00AM. This is particularly annoying if you do not compete, or are not really interested in sitting through endless divisions of multiple dance forms.
Many big events advertise 40, 50, even 80 workshops...but they are scheduled 4, 5, sometimes 6 at a time, and usually several different dance forms. At best you can usually attend about 6-8 per event. For Swingin' Into Spring, there are currently 12 hours scheduled for workshops...two at a time (24 total). For those who have been to one of my workshop weekends with the top pro's, this is set up very similarly...only bigger.
Workshops are set up so that the same instructor will usually teach at least two 1 hour workshops in succession. That way the instructor can take their time and build from one lesson to another. ALSO, there is a 1/2 Hour social dance time between every Friday/Saturday workshop...and 15 minutes between the Sunday workshops. No rushing out of the room and starting a new workshop with a different instructor immediately. That 1/2 hour(15 minutes) allows you to practice what you just learned and hopefully retain more of the material presented. That time also allows the instructor to run a little longer if necessary to make sure he/she completes the intended lesson in it's entirety.
*Back in 1995 I attended an event set up like this out in California, and to this day I still retain and use most of the material I learned at that weekend. So, I gave it a try last year (2008), and with the rave reviews of this format I intend to keep it this way for the forseeable future. Hopefully this works for you too
One room is designated for beginner/Novice workshops that concentrate more on technique and variations of basic moves. These workshops are for newer dancers, and more advanced dancers alike. They are especially recommended for instructors or those considering teaching.
The Main Ballroom is dedicated to the more advanced workshops. The Intermediate/Advanced Workshops tend to be more "Move & Footwork Oriented"...with less time spent on basic technique. Obviously, the instructors will still mandate proper technique for the moves taught, but will spend less time on it, assuming you have heard it before. By the time you are ready to step up to take these workshops, you should be well versed in proper technique. If you can be honest with yourself and realize that your technique on basic moves is what I call "Stage 1" variations of the basic moves, then the Intermediate/Advanced Lessons might be over your head and you may want to consider the Beginner/Novice track.
At Swingin' Into Spring, we keep the competitions to a minimum. The Jack'N'Jill is the
epitome of social dance competition. Since we only have West Coast Swing Competitions, that
limits the time required for the 6 competition divisions offered:
Newcomer, Novice, Intermediate, Advance/All Star Jack'N'Jills, and an
Open Strictly Swing. They are all held in the afternoon. NO EVENING COMPETITIONS!!!
If need be, I will cancel one of the workshops in order to keep the competitions in the afternoon.
Best yet, we are a World Swing Dance Council Registry Event...meaning YOUR POINTS COUNT
NO EVENING COMPETITIONS!!! Social dancing starts after the evening workshops...about 9:30PM, and goes to at least 3:00AM, but the DJ's will continue to play if people are dancing. If you add up the hours of social dance time between the workshops, and the uninterrupted dance time in the evening, Swing'in Into Spring provides more social dance time than every other WSDC event that I am aware of. Maybe there is another set up this way, but I do not know of one.
