Kaonashi Ga Suki

Back in college I totally got into the swing dancing phenomenon. It wasn’t because of the movies Swingers and Swing Kids, though I liked them both. To be honest, I really don’t recall how I got interested in it. I suppose it was partly because of the music. I’ve always liked that kind of upbeat music where you hear a lot of trumpets and bass; the kind that makes you want to get up from your seat and start moving even if you don’t know how to move. Also, it was partly because one of my new friends was already into swing dancing and started inviting me to go with her and her boyfriend to the Derby.

The Derby is a really fun swing dance nightclub. There are two rooms- a small and a large. The small room is where instructors conduct dance lessons, and as it says in the Derby website’s calendar, different classes are taught on different nights. After class finishes the small room is used as an extra dance room, appreciated especially by newcomers or shy dancers not confident with their dancing. The large room is the main room, which includes the main bar (there is a small bar in the small room), the dining area, and the stage for the live band. There is of course, a dance floor, and this is the same dance floor in Swingers in the scene where Jon Favreau dances with Heather Graham. The large dance floor is where you see the really good dancers- the ones who do the acrobatics like throwing people in the air and stuff. I think I danced on the large dance floor only once. I felt too intimidated by all the cool, good dancers, but I did enjoy being closer to the band.

In general I loved going to clubs during college, but one thing I especially liked about the Derby was that it wasn’t a meat market. People are there because they want to dance, not to pick up girls/guys. I felt more relaxed. I danced with guys of all ages- young guys my age, slightly older men, even much older men. I remember one time this very old grandpa asked me to dance. At first I was hesitant since I didn’t know if his heart would be able to take it, but believe me- the old guy could dance! I guess he had been swing dancing for a very long time. Afterwards he just said “Thank you,” and walked away. That’s another thing about male swing dancers: they’re such gentlemen, compared to the usual jackasses I had to fend off at regular clubs. Admittedly, there was one time that I got hit on at the Derby, but he seemed pretty nice and wasn’t pervy or anything.

Another cool thing at the Derby was that people liked to dress the part. Guys and girls would show up in either 1940’s or 1950’s gear. I also dressed up a bit. Although I couldn’t afford the vintage dresses some of the girls wore, I did have cute twirly skirts and coolio dance shoes. Other times I’d wear a short plaid shirt, jeans that were cut above the knee, and white Keds- much like Jennifer Grey’s character in Dirty Dancing.

The lessons at the Derby weren’t enough for me to learn the more difficult steps, so I started taking swing dance classes on campus. Yes, I was really THAT into it. I generally had a lot of fun in the classes and learned a lot, but my one complaint was that most of the time the girls would outnumber the guys, and so at certain points during a class some girls just wouldn’t have partners and have to “share” a guy. I have to admit, I learned a lot of cool moves- cool moves that sadly I have now forgotten.

I haven’t swing danced in about 5-6 years. Swing isn’t popular anymore, and that saddens me. I have all these swing CDs (the Brian Setzer Orchestra, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and some compliation CDs of older swing music to name but a few) that I don’t really listen to anymore because what’s the point if I can’t dance to it? I really had lots of fun swing dancing, but now I can barely remember the basic steps. Another thing is that even if I wanted to go dancing, no one can go with me. My boyfriend has a bum knee right now (he needs surgery) and even if his knee was ok, he’s well, not really a dancer.

Who knows? Since we’re moving to Pasedena, we will be relatively close to the Derby, and my boyfriend is planning to have his knee fixed this summer. Maybe…just maybe…I might start jivin’ and swingin’ again…