(Photo Rock That Swing Finals 2014, see YouTube below)

DanceTime Global curated these videos featuring swing dancing across the globe! Swing has always been popular since it began in the early twentieth century. Over the years, the swing has evolved into many different forms. At times, some of the forms vanish and then are brought back or reappear like the original, Lindy Hop.

The videos in this video blog include most of the popular forms of swing including Lindy Hop, Charleston, St. Louis Shag, Carolina Shag, Jive and West Coast Swing.

Boogie Woogie

Boogie Woogie at the Rock That Swing Finals  (2014)

Boogie Woogie is one of my favorite swing genres! It is the European version of an East Coast swing dance. It incorporates features of Lindy, West & East Coast swing, Jitterbug with fast, energizing music.

Carolina Shag

Carolina Shag Spotlight Dance at Shag Atlanta 2013

There are many similarities among the different swing dance genres. What is unique to Carolina shag is that the lead part is spotlighted rather than the follow part. Also, the arms and hips stay more still while the flourish is in the amazing footwork and tricks that the lead performs. It is mostly done on the East Coast in the Carolina’s.

Charleston Solo

Charleston Solo Final Spotlights at the ILHC 2014

The solo Charleston originated in the 1920’s with the Flappers during the Roaring Twenties. The freedom found in the dance genre preceded the woman’s suffrage movement and eventually voting rights for women.

Read about the Charleston dance here!

Jive Dancing

A Jive routine performed by world International Latin champions!

Two of my favorite International Latin dance champions: Riccardo Cocchi & Yulia Zagoruychenko. This Jive routine is from 2010. While International Latin dance genres are perfect for competition, American style rhythm dances work well for social dancing. Do you want to learn to dance, here is some important info – Dance Lessons FAQ’s.

Lindy Hop

I enjoy watching the Lindy Hop, the original swing dance evolve from when it was brought back in the late 1990’s to early two-thousands by some swing dance professionals and Frankie Manning himself. It is evolving again even as it did back in the 1930’s.

This is the International Lindy Hop Championship’s Invitational Strictly Lindy Hop Finals (2013).

West Coast Swing

Ben Morris & Jennifer DeLuca at the Euro Dance Festival 2014 in Germany. I chose this Westie video because it infuses a lot of hip hop and contemporary dance movements into the routine. West Coast swing technique has continued to evolve since the 1960’s when it was developed in Southern California.