ABOUT US
SwingMania is a not-for-profit community organisation run by a committee of volunteers in Launceston, and is home to an incredibly friendly bunch of dancers. We frequently host social dance nights and can often be seen performing at community events. Contact us at swingmaniatas@gmail.com if you are looking for a fun and welcoming performance or dance class for your upcoming event.
The Examiner and the Advocate have covered several stories of our dance adventures:
And you can see videos of several of our past performances below and on youtube.
MEET THE TEAM
Nathan; President,Teacher
Nathan is an avid swing dancer, honing his skills for 8 years so far...and believes there is always so much more to learn! A regular teacher at SwingMania since 2016, Nathan tries to introduce some of the more technical aspects of swing dancing, while trying to maintain the fun and creative side of the dance.
Nathan was introduced to swing dancing in 2011 by a friend, and it has seen him travel around to dance exchanges domestically and join performance troupes to push himself and help showcase the dance style to other people. Nathan enjoys social dancing, choreographed routines, and solo Jazz. SwingMania has a small, but welcoming and vibrant community, and is a lovely group of people to dance with... we can't wait to share the love of swing dancing with you!
Cassie; Vice President, Organiser & Teacher
Cassie is our dance teacher, organiser and dancer extraordinaire.
Finding her immense love of swing dancing in 2012 (After being told she couldn’t dance to save her life!!), Cassie finds places to dance wherever she goes! You’ll find her on the dancefloor, grinning or laughing; there’s nothing she loves more than dancing!
Cassie aims to share her passion for dancing and having fun with the whole world, starting right here in Launceston.
Emily; Committee Member & Teacher
Emily started swing dancing in 2017, introduced to the dance style and SwingMania by a friend. Having danced Jazz Ballet as a child, but nothing since teenage years, swing dancing has been a great style of dance to start as an adult as it is very approachable to people of all abilities and the school is very welcoming to people of all backgrounds.
Emily particularly likes swing dancing over other styles of dance because of the combination of control and freedom it gives. The dance style has rules and techniques that can be perfected while also having lots of freedom to add as much personality and style as you like.
Emily has enjoyed becoming more involved in organising and teaching, and she, along with the SwingMania committee, is always here to help and welcome new members to the school, and to address questions, concerns or suggestions that anyone may have.
Renee; Committee Member
Renee started swing dancing while traveling back in 2016, after chatting to some uni students on a bus trip from London to Glasgow. She took up their suggestion of attending a free Lindy Hop class in Glasgow the following night and immediately fell in love with the dance, the music and the community.
Returning home to Tassie two years later, Renee was thrilled to find a local swing dancing group in her home town of Launceston and has joined the SwingMania committee to share her enthusiasm for dancing and to promote a welcoming, inclusive community. She hopes to continue learning and developing her dancing, as well as to share her skills with others through the SwingMania teaching team.
Other Committee Members:
Sue; Secretary
Eileen; Treasurer
Anne; General Committee Member
Tobias; General Committee Member
Austin; Teacher, Harvest Market Wrangler & Door Person
Austin started swing dancing in 2013 when the school was still a part of Swing Patrol. He was roped into joining swing dancing by a very enthusiastic group of swing dancer friends. Austin had never done any form of dancing before and decided to start regular classes as a way to fill in time, but it wasn’t long before it became a real passion.
Austin has attended classes regularly since he first started and has recently joined the teaching team, working alongside the other teachers to work on various techniques and moves he has learnt over the years. This year Austin has taken on the role of Treasurer and you’ll likely see him at the door greeting you at your next class.