INstructors

The weekend will feature two class tracks: Intermediate and Advanced. Both tracks will get time with both Sylvia & Javi and local instructors.

 

Sylvia Sykes

Sylvia Sykes is an OG of modern Lindy Hop. She began dancing in 1966, competing in 1970, and teaching in 1979. She has studied with many of the dance greats, including Frankie Manning, Dean Collins, Maxie Dorf, Willie Desatoff, and Connie Wydell. Her extensive studies and travels have made her an expert on regional dance styles and she is known for her expertise in, and the preservation of the older forms of Swing dance. In addition, she is credited with helping to preserve the Balboa by introducing the dance World Wide. Her dance troupe (with Jonathan Bixby) ran for fifteen years, performed with some of the great Swing bands, and nurtured other International teachers. She is a founding partner of ILHC, has taught at the University of California, and has appeared in many TV shows and in several documentaries on Swing dancing over the years.

Sylvia is actively judging and teaching various forms of Shag, Balboa, and Lindy Hop, throughout the U.S., Europe, Australia, and Asia. No longer an active competitor, she has won or placed in virtually every Swing event she has entered, in a multitude of Swing forums.

 

Javier Johnson

Javier Johnson is a rocket scientist by trade, and he brings a powerful analytical sense which joins the mechanics of dance and the soul of expression. He is well versed in all the swing dances, and he specializes in Balboa and soul. As an international swing dance instructor, he's traveled around the world sharing his joy of teaching and his passion for jazz dances.

  • Hannah

    Hannah Lane is a dancer, researcher, and historian from Baltimore, Maryland. Throughout her time in the swing dance community, Hannah has developed a loving appreciation for jazz music, and for jazz dances including Lindy Hop, snake hips, and Charleston.

    Alongside dance, Hannah is passionate about sharing research that centers jazz and nightlife histories of African American communities in her home state, Maryland, and throughout the U.S. She is also passionate about uplifting the stories of Shake Dancers through her research and oral history project, Queens of the Nightclub.

    Currently Hannah serves on the board of Collective Voices for Change and is a participant in the Al Minns Next Generation Project. You can learn more about her work via instagram at @hannahpilarrr and @queensofthenightclub . Stay tuned for her  upcoming Queens of the Nightclub Substack!

    Nii

    At the suggestion of a friend, Nii discovered Lindy Hop at the University of Delaware in 2016. Known for always having his headphones on, he quickly fell in love with the sounds of big band swing. Now based in Baltimore, he DJs locally at Mobtown Ballroom and has also staff DJed at events both nationally and internationally. As a DJ, Nii’s goal is to create a night filled with a variety of moods and themes that dancers will regret stepping away from. While his favorite bandleader is currently Duke Ellington, he has recently been exploring the works of Earl Hines, Francis Panama, and Charlie Shavers.

  • Carla Crowen (formerly Carla Heiney) is a celebrated Lindy Hop and vintage swing dance instructor known around the world. Formerly based in the DC metro area and later in San Francisco, she now resides in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Carla is a US Open Swing Dance Champion and holds some of the most prestigious titles in the swing dance world. She has choreographed and served as creative director for national television productions, including So You Think You Can Dance, has appeared in films, and is a member of the California Swing Dance Hall of Fame.

    Rye Crowen is a seasoned swing dancer, instructor, and pillar of the dance community. Over the years, he has been a member of several prestigious dance groups, including the renowned Lindy Hop performance team The 3 Minute Maniacs in San Francisco, the hip hop group Loose Change in San Francisco, JT Swings in the DC area, and many more. Along with Carla, Rye co-leads The Rhythm Lounge in Central Pennsylvania.

    Together, this energetic and enthusiastic couple brings decades of experience, joy, creativity, and inspiration to the dance floor. While their roots are deeply grounded in Lindy Hop and vintage swing, these days Carla and Rye happily divide much of their social dancing and teaching time between both Lindy Hop and West Coast Swing, while also beginning to explore and dabble in Salsa and Bachata as part of their continued love of music, movement, and connection through dance.

    Outside of dance, Carla and Rye are avid book lovers, devoted cat parents, and a homeschooling family who deeply appreciate a delicious pour-over coffee, long walks, and the simple joys of connection, creativity, and community.

  • Kyra & Charlie are champion dancers based right here in Baltimore City.