Dance Is Everything!
Dancing in the mid-Hudson Valley, NY (and nearby)
Look Ma, no hands!
A free-style swing dip with MYM, one of my favorite partners
people have waltzed through here since 2 March 1999.
WHAT'S HAPPENING?
Mostly swing, C&W, Cajun, Zydeco and Latin --
Contra dancers, please go to the Fiddle and Dance News Dance Calendar
updated 6 August 2008
Some Hudson Valley dancing
No partner necessary for any of these dances!
Every Tuesday Latin Night at Pinto and Hobbs, 32 Dove St., Albany, NY. For more info Christine@albanyhotspots.net.
Every Tuesday Lindy at Malt River Brewing Company, Latham Mall, Latham, NY. Dance ($3) 8:15-10:30pm, lesson ($2) 7:15pm.
Every Tuesday Latin, with a bit of East & West Coast Swing at Skyline (formerly Big House), 4 Sheridan Ave., Albany, NY. Lesson 7-8pm, $10; Dance 8-11pm, $7; Both $15. For more info danceclubinfo@yahoo.com or call 518-782-0608.
Every Wednesday Swing Dance (to live music!!) at Savannah's, 1 South Pearl St., Albany, NY. 9pm-12am. For more info call 518-426-9647.
Every Wednesday (July 30 only cancelled!) West Coast Swing Wednesday at the First Presbyterian Church of Highland, Grove St., Highland, NY. Dance 8:30-11pm, $5 or $2 with lesson; Basic lesson 7-7:45pm, $10; Intermediate lesson, 7:45-8:30pm, $10. For more info swingdance@earthlink.net or call 845-679-4464.
Every Wednesday California Mix at Malt River Brewing Company, at Latham Circle Mall, Latham, NY. Lesson 6:30-7:30pm, $5; Dance 7:30-11pm, $6; Both $10. For more info danceclubinfo@yahoo.com or call 518-782-0608.
Every Thursday The Muddy Lindy (Swing) at The Muddy Cup, 516 Broadway, Kingston, NY. For more info muddylindy@gmail.com.
Every Thursday West Coast Swing Dance at the Hibernian Hall, 375 Ontario Ave., Albany, NY. For more info swingdance@earthlink.net or call 845-679-4464.
Every Thursday East Coast and Lindy at Envy Lounge, No. Pearl St., Albany, NY. 9pm.
Every Thursday Blues Jam at Daniel J's, 2970 Rte. 22, Patterson, NY. 9pm, no cover. For more info call 845-878-3838.
Every Thursday Salsa practice at AlbanySalsa Dance Studio, 20 Learned St., Albany, NY. $10. For more info call 518-445-5177.
Every Thursday Ballroom at the Ukrainian American Citizens Club, 1 Pulaski St., Cohoes, NY. $10, 7:45-11pm, lesson 6:45pm.
Every Friday Latin at Chef Ef Latin Cafe, 48 Raymond Ave., Poughkeepsie, NY. 10pm. For more info call 845-454-1105.
Every Friday Latin at The Wave Dance Club, behind Motel 8, New Paltz, NY. 10pm-???. For more info call 845-485-1390.
Every Friday Latin at Bombay Garden at the Quality Inn (formerly Holiday Inn) on Rt. 17K, Newburgh, NY. 10pm, ladies free before 11pm, $5 after, gents $10.
Every Saturday Latin at El Coqui Latin Jazz Cafe, 21 Broadway at the Strand, Kingston, NY. 10pm, $3. For more info call 845-340-1106.
First Tuesday Blues with Big Joe Fitz & Special Guests (Sept. 2) at the High Falls Café, Rte. 213 & Mohonk Rd., High Falls, NY. You can West Coast to some of it, East Coast to some of it, and some of it is just plain Rock. 7-10pm, no cover. For info call 845-687-2699.
First Tuesday West Coast Swing Jam (Sept. 2) at the Muddy Cup, 516 Broadway, Kingston, NY. 8-10:30pm, free, beginners lesson 7:30pm. For more info hudsonvalleywcs@yahoo.com
First Thursday Hyde Park Argentine Tango Practica (practice, practice, practice) at Moose Lodge 904, NYS mleage marker 9G 30 61, Hyde Park, NY. 8-10:30pm, $5. For more info call 845-229-7269.
First Friday Albany Swing Dance (Sept. 5: Ernestine Anderson, other bands during weekend, see link) at the Albany Elks Lodge, 25 South Allen St. (just one block South of Rt. 20 -- So. Allen is where Western and Madison meet), Albany, NY. 8:30pm, $12, basic workshop at 7:30pm. For more info su_chick@yahoo.com or call 518-292-0133.
First Friday Albany Milonga (Sept. 5) at The Center for Body Mind Awareness, 4 Central Ave., Albany, NY. 8:30-midnite, lesson at 8pm, $8. For more info cherylfisher@mac.com
First Saturday Fishkill Milonga (Sept. 6) at the Fishkill United Methodist Church, Broad & Smith Streets, Fishkill, NY. 8pm-midnite, $10. For more info call 845-896-4166.
First Saturday Club-style Ballroom Dance at The Fuze Box, 12 Central Ave., Albany, NY. 8-10pm, lesson at 7:40pm, $2.
First Sunday Poughkeepsie Swing Dance Jam (Sept. 7; Oct. 5; Nov. 2; Dec. 7) at the Arlington Reformed Church, southeast corner of EASTBOUND Route 44/55and Raymond Avenue, Poughkeepsie, NY. Lindy and West Coast to favorite CDs. 6-6:30pm beginner's lesson, 6:30-9 dance, $5. For more info, contact Arlene at 845-339-3032.
First Sunday Schenectady Swing Dance at 1020 Barrett Street, Schenectady. West Coast, Lindy Hop, East Coast, Jitterbug and Foxtrot to a "request-responsive" DJ. 6:30-10:15pm, $8 ($4 students), air-conditioned. For info call Jana at 518-435-8042.
First Sunday Ballroom at the Ukrainian American Citizens Club, 1 Pulaski St., Cohoes, NY. $10, 7-10pm, lesson 6:15pm.
Second Tuesday West Coast Swing Jam (Aug. 12) at the Muddy Cup, 305 Main St., Poughkeepsie, NY. 8pm, free, beginners lesson 7:30pm. For more info dancerali36@yahoo.com
Second Wednesday Second Friday Salsa (Aug. 8; Sept. 12) at the Rosendale Cafe, 434 Main St., Rosendale, NY. 9:30pm, $5. For more info call 845-658-9048.
Second Saturday Swing Dance Party (Aug. 9) at the Reformed Church of Port Ewen, Atrium Hall
(off 9W), Port Ewen, NY. $10, $6 students w/ ID, 7:30-10pm, 7pm basic workshop. For more info call 845-236-3939.
Second Saturday Milonga (Aug. 9) at Strictly Ballroom, 5208 Rte. 9W, Newburgh, NY. $10, 8pm-midnite. For more inf call 845-783-6002.
Second Sunday Woodstock Cajun Dances with Cleoma's Ghost (cancelled for summer; check back for new fall location). For more info call 845-384-6673 or e-mail faisdodo2@hvc.rr.com.
Second Sunday Albany Dance at DDB, 724 Watervliet Shaker Rd.
(Albany Med. Prof. Bldg.), Latham, NY. Swing, cha cha,
mambo, samba, waltz, foxtrot, etc. to recorded music, 7-10:30, $10 ($7 students). For info call
518-786-7780 or 518-783-9829.
Second Sunday Ballroom at the Ukrainian American Citizens Club, 1 Pulaski St., Cohoes, NY. $10, 7-10pm, lesson 6:15pm.
Third Tuesday Blues with Big Joe Fitz & Special Guests (Aug. 19; Sept. 16) at the High Falls Café, Rte. 213 & Mohonk Rd., High Falls, NY. You can West Coast to some of it, East Coast to some of it, and some of it is just plain Rock. 7-10pm, no cover. For info call 845-687-2699.
Third Tuesday West Coast Swing Jam (Aug. 19; Sept. 16) at the Muddy Cup, 516 Broadway, Kingston, NY. 8-10:30pm, free, beginners lesson 7:30pm. For more info hudsonvalleywcs@yahoo.com
Third Thursday Hyde Park Argentine Tango Practica (practice, practice, practice) at Moose Lodge 904, NYS mleage marker 9G 30 61, Hyde Park, NY. 8-10:30pm, $5. For more info call 845-229-7269.
Third Saturday West Coast Socials (Aug. 16) at Strictly Ballroom, 5208 Rte. 9W, Newburgh, NY. $10, 8pm-midnite. For more info denisandlee@cs.com or call 845-569-7192.
Third Saturday Club-style Ballroom Dance at The Fuze Box, 12 Central Ave., Albany, NY. 8-10pm, lesson at 7:40pm, $2.
Third Sunday Kingston Swing Dance Jam (Aug. 17; Sept. 21; Oct. 19; Nov. 16; Dec. 21) at White Eagle Hall, 487 Delaware Ave., Kingston, NY. 6-9pm, $5, Beginner lesson, 6-6:30pm. For more info, contact Arlene at 845-339-3032.
Third Sunday Ballroom Dancing at the Polish Community Center, Washington Ave. Ext., Albany, NY. Class 6:15-7:00pm; Dancing 'til 10pm; Members-$9; Non-$12; College-$5; Free under 18.
Fourth Tuesday West Coast Swing Jam (Aug. 26) at the Muddy Cup, 305 Main St., Poughkeepsie, NY. 8pm, free, beginners lesson 7:30pm. For more info dancerali36@yahoo.com
Fourth Wednesday Fourth Friday
Poughkeepsie Swing Dance (Aug. 22: Big Joe Fitz & the All Star Review; Sept. 26: The Solomon Douglas Quartet; Oct. 24 [$15]: Paul Tillotson Trio; Nov. 28: The Blue Rays; Dec. 26: The Saints of Swing) at The Poughkeepsie Tennis Club, 135 S. Hamilton St., Poughkeepsie, NY (see link for directions). 8:30pm, $13 / $8 students with ID, 7:30 beginner's workshop. For more info call 845-454-2571.
Fourth Saturday Swing at the Gym! at Healthplex Fitness Center, 1673 Route 9, Clifton Park, NY. 8-11pm, 7pm lesson, $6, $10 with lesson. For more info hlcoleman2002@yahoo.com.
Last Saturday Woodstock Milonga (Aug. 30), at Mountain View Studio, Mountain View Ave., Woodstock, NY. 9pm-1am, intro lesson 8-9pm, buffet, $15. For more info call 845-246-1122.
Fourth Sunday Lefty's Sunday Salsa Socials at Maximum Fitness/Dance Studio, 59 North Plank Rd., Newburgh, NY. $5, 1-5pm, must have dance shoes or sneakers, 17 or older. For more info call 914-527-5075.
Fifth Sunday Albany Dance at DDB, 724 Watervliet Shaker Rd. (Albany Med. Prof. Bldg.), Latham, NY. Swing, cha cha, mambo, samba, waltz,
foxtrot etc. to recorded music, 7-10:30, $10 ($7 students). For info call 518-786-7780 or 518-783-9829.
Fifth Sunday Schenectady Swing Dance at 1020 Barrett Street,
Schenectady. West Coast, Lindy Hop, East Coast, Jitterbug and Foxtrot to a "request-responsive" DJ.
6:30-10:15pm, $8 ($4 students), air-conditioned. For info call Jana at 518-435-8042.
Fifth Sunday Ballroom at the Ukrainian American Citizens Club, 1 Pulaski St., Cohoes, NY. $10, 7-10pm, lesson 6:15pm.
Shorty King's Clubhouse (swing), Friday, Aug. 8th, at Clinton Community Library, 1215 Centre Rd., Rhinebeck, NY. 7pm. For more info chrisdifrancesco@yahoo.com.
SummerDance at Ashokan--Southern Dance Party: The Red Stick Ramblers with Jay & Molly sitting in, Saturday, Aug. 9th, at the Ashokan Field Campus, Olivebridge, NY. $10, 9:30pm, 8pm Contradance, Dinner by Michael Hughes and staff ($5-10) available from 6-8pm. For more info office@ashokan.org or call 845-246-2121.
Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble, Sunday, Aug. 17th, at the Ossining Eagles Hall, 7 Old Albany Post Rd., Ossining, NY. 6-9:30pm, 5pm workshop, $20. For more info laurarice26@yahoo.com or call 914-528-7612.
If you know any other dances or events that could be listed here, please contact me
at FeatherSite -- questions and comments (I had to link this in to my Poultry Page web form as
I was getting much too much spam off the address that was here).
Here's a few links to dance information on the web.
LindyRick's Dance Connection has a bias toward Lindy events in the Hudson Valley area.
Wanna Go Shopping?
"We are fools whether we dance or not,
And now for some band and music info . . .
Here's some general historical info on Western Swing.
Direct questions and comments to Barry at FeatherSite -- questions and comments
Other Dances and Special Events
Information on Country Western
dance floor
etiquette.
West
Coast Swing, anybody?
Westiemonkey is another West Coast Swing site.
Michael Yusim's dance student site, with West Coast Swing moves demonstrated.
Here's a site with a history of Swing Dance.
lindyhopper.com links to several histories of Lindy Hop
And for another favorite dance form (of mine), here's
The Clogging Page.
Here's Henry Neeman's great
Dance Hotlist!
Dance Me
Tonight has links to lots of dances and live music, all by area.
The SAVE AS: DANCE page has links to a variety of dance resources.
Yehoodi.com leans toward Lindy info. There's a calendar here for various areas of the country.
Here's the Hudson Valley
Community Dance page of the HVCD. It includes their swing dance schedule, along with contra information.
MHV Dance Connection
has a page of Hudson Valley links.
The
Dance Floor: Dancing in the Mid Hudson Valley leans toward ballroom.
Ballroom dancing in the Albany, NY, area
Where to go
Ballroom Dancing in Berkshire County, MA, and the Capital District, NY.
Ballroom Dancing Resource in the Berkshires, MA: Berkshire County USABDA
Lindy in the
Valley -- a site for Lindy Hoppers in Western Massachusetts.
This is Aria's list of places to
dance in New York City.
Carlos has put together a
Calendar of Swing Dance events
for New York City.
Here's Swing
Out -- another NY swing site.
SwingCraze! is a site promoting independent swing bands. Some great music available
here.
And for you Argentine Tango fans, here's the
Hudson Valley Tango page.
And a Capitol District (Albany-Troy) Swing Dance calendar.
And since you're in the area, check out the home page of
Hudson-Mohawk Traditional Dances.
If you're in the western New York State area,
check out the Rochester,
Syracuse and
Ithaca dance calendars.
Here's the New York (City)
Cajun Connection's dance schedule.
Or check out Arn Burkhoff's Northeast USA Cajun and Zydeco Schedule.
Let's Zydeco! Zydeco and Cajun in NYC.
And here's another site on Cajun/Zydeco Music and Dance.
Somebody Scream NY: Zydeco and Cajun in Ossining, NY.
For summers in NYC, here's where to find out about Lincoln
Center's Midsummer Night Swing.
This is the site of the
Connecticut Swing Dance Society.
Hartford Country Dance keeps schedules for Contra,
Swing, Cajun and Zydeco in central Connecticut.
The Mid-Hudson Valley (and beyond) Dance Calendar covers contra, square, swing
and Cajun dancing. This great listing is part of the Fiddle and Dance News (spam: of which
I'm the production editor).
Ashokan:
Friends of Fiddle and Dance sponsors
three great weeks of dance in the summer: Western and Swing Week, Southern Week
(clogging, Cajun and Old-Timey) and Northern Week (contras and French Canadian).
Check out their pages for further info on these camps and other dance events
held at the Ashokan Field Campus in Olive Bridge, NY, home of "Ashokan Farewell."
More great dance can be found at the Augusta
Heritage Center's Dance Weeks.
And finally, here's the Dance Connection -- maybe you can find a dance partner here.
Skirts, tops and things at the Take Me Dancing Storefront
so we might as well dance." -- Japanese proverb
For some great radio listening in the Hudson Valley, try
tuning in WHVW, 950 AM (Yes! AM!) They play great old music, old country, Western
Swing, R&B, some fifties, some Old Timey and "hillbilly." The stuff you never get to hear almost
anywhere else.
Also, you might want to check out Mike Gross's program Swingin' West, WVOF, 88.5 FM, Fairfield, CT, every Sunday from 6:30-8:00 A.M.
This is the Cajun & Zydeco Radio Guide - Louisiana's Cajun and Zydeco music resource.
Bob
Wills was the King of Western Swing, and here's a page with a lot of biographical info and some
discography.
Here's the cyberhome of Asleep At The Wheel, a modern Western Swing band.
Fans of old Western Swing music might want to drop
by the home page of the Light
Crust Doughboys.
For some local American Roots music . . . Delta Blues, Country, Western Swing, Bluegrass, Gospel, Hawaiian and more . . . check out the Hudson Rhythm Boys.
For the Cajun oriented, Balfa Toujours also has a page.
Here's the home page of the Cowboy Junkies. This isn't danceable music, but I can listen to Margo
Timmins sing for hours.
If, like me, you play a Kay acoustic upright bass,
there's now a registry for them.
Back to the home roost