Blues in Toulouse

Introduction

Language selection:



	. The festival

		The first blues dance festival in Toulouse, France! The association Danse Avec Laurez brings the 30's/40's blues atmosphere to you! Classes, tasters, workshops, two blues parties, one featuring the amazing band Jambalaya. Our goal is to make you live a unique experience, welcoming and intimate at the same time.


	. Dates

		Friday 16th to sunday 18th of october 2009.

	. Venues

		The event will be held in Toulouse, beautiful city of the south of France.

		Saturday/sunday, day time:
		The venue for the classes is located at this address (downtown Toulouse, easily accessible by public transportations): EQUINOXE, 38 Avenue de Lombez, 31300 Toulouse. Subway: Patte-d'Oie or Arènes.

		Friday/saturday, evening:
		At night the venue is in La Salvetat Saint Gilles (15mins drive from Toulouse): KING LOUIS CLUB, 3 bis Avenue Léonard de Vinci, ZAC du Taure, 31880 La Salvetat St Gilles. A car-pool will be organized for out-of-town dancers.

Classes & Parties

. Content of Blues in Toulouse .

The event features a series of classes and workshops saturday and sunday. The participants will be split in two groups. Please do read the description of each level hereunder to help the organization staff sort the students. Each level will have 8h of classes with international teachers (Find more about our teaching team hereunder :). The pass for the festival includes the two blues parties: friday night and saturday night. Evidently you can join us for the parties even if you cannot attend the whole event!

You can register for the festival using this form.

	. Levels		. Parties

	Two levels are available for the classes. Each level includes 8h of classes equally split amongst our teachers. level 1: You want to learn how to blues dance from scratch. You might have taken some blues classes here and there but you would feel better going over the basics one more time. You sometimes feel that there is something missing in your connection with your partner. level 2: You already took several blues classes/workshops and you waited for such an event for a long time! Your lead/follow skills are known as good and you are a fast-learner in group classes. As the blues scene accoss Europe is rather small, we ask about your partnership skills so we can better evaluate your level and balance the two groups of students. Self-awareness is really important in order to satisfy everyone!		We will organize car-pooling to the venue, leaving from downtown Toulouse. Friday the 16th of october - Typical contemporary blues scene: DJ night. Start at 10.30pm, end at dawn... Casual. Come and enjoy the party wearing just a pair of jeans and a Tshirt. We meet. We dance. We get to know each other (Note that this atmosphere is the most representative of the contemporary blues scene!)... DJs will play blues in the main room and swing/lindy hop in the second room. Free for the attendees. Price is 6€ otherwise (payment at the door). Saturday the 17th of october - 'Vintage elegant' blues scene: Band night. Start at 10.30pm, end at dawn... Classy & elegant. The amazing band Jambalaya (seven musicians and a singer) will make you cry for more for THE Blues in Toulouse party! We dress to impress but we let the attitude at the door! Don't hesitate to come cool down with us at the lounge during band breaks! Hey, we are here to dance and have fun after all! Free for the attendees. Price is 15 € otherwise (payment at the door).

Teachers

Ursula & Dave teach Blues and Lindy Hop across Europe. They met "more years ago than they can remember" back when they were dancing at the legendary Herräng Dance Camp (Sweden).

Both Dave and Ursula (or, as she is more commonly known, "Ursi") actively taught on their own continents, and everytime they saw each other they discussed their desire to teach together.

So finally they decided to do something about it and they started travelling together for the purpose of teaching and sharing their love for the dance.

Video 1

Video 2

Video 3 (Dave & Lessa)
Note : the third video does not feature Ursi, however I feel this moment of dance so inspiring that I decided to share it with you anyway! :)

Shannon began dancing when she was no taller than her current knee height. From those early beginnings in ballet and going on to jazz and hip-hop, she discovered partner dancing in the world of Renaissance dance.

Now she has trained in over 20 different dance styles with a focus on lindy hop and blues. She began teaching both styles in Seattle but has now moved to San Francisco where she is diving headfirst into teaching the dance scene.

She is known for adding a lot of personality into her dancing and bringing playfulness to all her classes. Aside from that, Shannon has gotten an assortment of dancing references including being referred to as “Butterscotch Pudding,” “A Butterfly,” “Liquid,” and “The Perfect S’more.”

Shannon will teach with Lucky for this first Blues in Toulouse.


			Lucky has been swing dancing since 1996 and teaching since 1998. In that time he has taught and performed a wide variety of dances in Asia, Europe, and North America. He has had the privilege of working with such people as Neil Young, Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Katie Holmes, and Frankie Manning. Lucky teaches a wide variety of classes. In these classes he creates a fun and playful environment. He believes that play is learning and learning is fun! Lucky will teach with Shannon for this first Blues in Toulouse. Video 1 video 2 video 3 (teacher's jam)video 4 (performance)

Schedule

Download the schedule:

image (.jpg)

text (.doc)

	. Notes regarding the schedule

	. Saturday evening, 21h15-22h15 This class is NOT a party-starter taster! It is a regular class. As blues is fairly uncommon, we thought it would be a great idea to have a regular class just before the party starts. Get your groove on then dance all night long! . Saturday evening, 00h00-00h45 / Late Night Solo Blues What do you do between two band's sets? Dance of course! But why not dance differently?! We propose this Late Night Solo Blues routine to learn how to move and dance differently. Dance better on your own to dance better with your partner. The Late Night Solo Blues is FREE so anyone can attend! In the meantime DJ will continue to play music in the other room so you can keep on dancing if you do not take the class. It is scheduled during the band break so you are sure not to miss Jambalaya! . Sunday, 3 classes of 1h20 each?! Yes. Sunday's classes are 1h20mins long. If you know about blues, your know that the way of connecting to your partner is key. The option of less classes but each lasting a little longer seem perfect! You will dance differently during this festival, so why not learn differently too? :) . Sunday, practice + FAQ Our teachers will stay available to answer any dance-related question you might have during this practice + FAQ session. At the same time we will play blues music so you can work and try the material taught during the weekend.

Registration

. Prices

Three different prices:

Students/unemployed - €60

Foreigners (if you live outside of France) - €100

Regular fee - €120




	Lead Follow
	Level 1 Level 2

	€120 €100 €60

. Housing

We will do everything we can to house out-of-town guests at local dancers' places. If you would like our help in this matter, say so in the comments field (number of people to house + names + do you need transportations).

. Validating your registration / payment

You will receive an email as an acknowledgement of your registration. After receiving this email, you have to send a check at the address below, payable to Association Danse Avec Laurez:

Association Danse Avec Laurez

To Mlle Lauriane Fromonot

11 Rue Lamarck, appartement n°3

31400 Toulouse, FRANCE

IMPORTANT - Your registration will only be validated after receiving your payment or part payment. Your slot will not be kept otherwise! If you want to pay using another method (Cash, paypal...) let us know in the comments field. Also we propose to split your payment in two and cash each check a month apart.