Hallo, I'm Dan. I'm from Wales but have lived in London, on and off, for 20 years now. I live in Clerkenwell and work down the road in Blackfriars, although I've been working from home since you-know-what.
I started dancing about ten years ago when I signed up for a lindyhop class with a pal. Originally it was a way of meeting people and socialising on a weekday without going to the pub. It was brutally embarrassing to begin with but also a great laugh and I was hooked quite quickly. Since then I've done some terrific classes in ballet at the Place in Bloomsbury, some Argentine tango (this is impossible) and had a great time on a production of West Side Story at the Bishopsgate Institute near Liverpool Street. Mariiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
What I am trying to do now is set up a weekly class or two for older neighbours in Clerkenwell. When lockdown began I signed up for the local Mutual Aid group and I've met a few of my older neighbours through that. It would be great to get some of them out and about and I wonder if dancing could be a way to do that.
I've done some teacher-training online and had a few teaching experiences over the past few years. To begin with the classes will be along the lines of a beginner lindyhop class.
The plan is to use some of the lovely local bandstands to do the classes. There's a fabulous one at Northampton Square, just behind the City Lit building on St John Street, and another one on Wilmington Square, behind the pub of the same name.
Classes will run during the spring and summer of 2021. I am looking for a wee bit of funding to get the portable dance floors. Thanks a million!
Dan
