Congratulations to the numerous Orange County winners and competitors at the International Lindy Hop Championships (ILHC) in Alexandria, Virginia this past weekend! Not only did California show the international community that our scene is strong, dedicated and hard working, but Atomic Ballroom dancers walked away with lots of award bling! It was quite a show and we are so proud of everyone who competed.
For those of you who missed the live-streaming competition this weekend or haven’t had a chance to watch the videos, here are some highlights of Atomic and Orange County’s top dancers swingin’, swayin’, jumpin’ and jivin’ at ILHC.
The ILHC is one of the premiere competition weekends for swing dancers everywhere. Dancers go here to show off their stuff and stake a claim among their peers. There is also great social dancing and lectures, but really, people go to see and be seen doing the latest, greatest, and wildest moves on the floor. It’s no joke! Dancers come here to give their all and this year was no different.
For those of us who could not make it, Yehoodi did a live webcast for most of the competitions allowing viewers from Newport to Shanghai and Stockholm to cheer on their friends from afar. We are eternally grateful for the opportunity to feel like we were part of the experience.
Unfortunately, they aren’t able to broadcast all of the competitions , although they are available online. This inevitably leads to the several hours of excited anticipation from the time you see posts on Facebook like, “OMG that was sick!” or “Teams were Amazing this year!”, and the time you can finally watch the videos.
Which brings me to our first video – the biggest, most spectacular Team routine by OC’s The Fly Rights! Apparently there were a number of teams signed up this year and competition was fierce (watch all the team videos here). The Fly Rights were last in the line up, which means they needed to wow the judges and the crowd who had already witnessed some amazing tricks.
That’s when this happened…
and the crowd was on their feet! From the nice stomp rhythms in the beginning to the unique chain of aerials at the end of the routine, these cats kept up the energy in tight formations, ultimately leading to them walking away with 1st Place! Way to go team! We can’t wait to see it (or something new) at Camp Hollywood this weekend.
Another dance we didn’t get to see was the Pro-Am competition. During the live broadcast later that evening, commentators were raving about Atomic Ballroom’s own Mikey Pedroza and Andrea Gordon. Well, Mikey and Andrea brought home a 1st Place for this joyful and musical dance.
Andrea also brought home a 1st Place in Open Strictly Lindy with OC dancer, Jack Chen (video not available yet)!
Mikey went on to compete in the Pro Classic with Gaby Cook (from Seattle) and the Strictly Balboa Finals with our Atomic Ballroom Owner, Nikki Marvin! And he brought home another award, 2nd Place in the Slow Division with the inspirational, Jo Hoffberg.
We did get to see two of OC’s most renowned dancers, Nick Williams and Laura Keat, compete in the Pro Showcase Division. Here they are making lindy hop look effortless for 2nd Place!
Congratulations to all of the competitors and a special hooray for all of Atomic Ballroom and OC dancers who represented at ILHC!
Camp Hollywood – Aug 30 to Sept 1
If you missed any of these competitors or want to check out one of California’s longest running swing camps, then head up to Los Angeles this Labor Day weekend for Camp Hollywood and the National Jitterbug Championships. Cheer on your friends and show dancers from around the world that Southern California dancers are friendly and fierce!
Wednesday Dance at Strutter’s Ball
Come dancing in Orange County at Strutter’s on Wednesday before Camp Hollywood. There will be international instructors Alex Parker & Cat Foley, an Open Strictly Contest with awesome prizes, and Guest DJs Mikey Pedroza & Nikki Marvin.
