New About Us!
HepCat Productions, founded by Chris Chapman, is Seattle's premier organization for classes in Swing Dancing, Lindy Hop, and Authentic Jazz Dance. It hosts the city's longest running all-ages Swing Dance, the Battle of Swing, and the American Lindy Hop Championship performance team - Zah-Zu-Zay. HepCat Productions has a goal of sharing the incredible joy of Lindy Hop and Swing Dancing while delivering high quality instruction to its students.
Chris Chapman
For over a decade Chris Chapman has studied Lindy Hop with a variety of other Authentic Jazz Dances, and feels fortunate to have trained with many legends of the dance. Having toured extensively across North America as an instructor, Chris brings to dancers his study of biomechanics and various philosophies of movement acquisition along with his deep appreciation of the dance's history. He's an American Lindy Hop Champion, a Pacific Northwest Lindy Hop Champion, and an Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown Champion. Chris has choreographed and performed for numerous plays, musicals, and shows. Founder of HepCat Productions, he offers many levels of lindy hop classes and Seattle's longest running all-ages weekly Swing dance. Chris formed, trained, and choreographed the American Lindy Hop Championship performance team Zah-Zu-Zay. Above all, Chris believes in keeping active on the social dance floor, where he finds the most joy!
Lucy Falkner
Lucy is an expert teacher in Lindy Hop, Charleston, Vintage Jazz, and Blues having travelled extensively to dance, train, and teach and was included as a teacher at the world-famous Herräng Dance Camp, in Sweden. She has extensive training in the roots of the dance, such as her training in Ghana for African dance, and the honing of her vaudeville performance skills from her years in the circus, to name a few. While she is a respected teacher, she continues to stay in touch with the experience of being a student and push her own dancing skills through her continued studies in African, Jazz, Tap, and even Ballet - all in service of her first love of Lindy Hop. Don't miss out on this rare treat to take a full 5-week class series with an out-of-town visiting instructor - Lucy Falkner!
Cheryl Crow
Cheryl has often been referred to as the unofficial "Welcome Wagon" to new dancers in the Seattle area due to her insatiable love for making new dancers feel at home and comfortable on the social dance floor. She has found a happy home in co-teaching Introductory Lindy Hop courses and is known for her mid-swingout squeals of glee and frequent uttering of the phrase, "Whee!" With a background in high level soccer, Cheryl brings an energetic and dynamic athleticism to the dance and firmly believes that if a former "jock" like her can learn to dance, anyone can!
Madeline Hopkins
Madeline began dancing Lindy Hop in August of 2004 and has been having a blast ever since. Her particular love for solo dancing grows daily, and as a member of Seattle's own vintage chorus girl team Sister Kate, Madeline feels fortunate to be able to share vintage jazz dance with audiences of all varieties. On the dance floor Madeline is known for her approachability and her ability to dance with people of many different skill levels. Madeline loves social dancing and is always happy when new people ask her to dance. Madeline attempts to embody the lighthearted, playful nature of Lindy Hop, which shows in her seemingly ceaseless smile and periodic fits of laughter on the dance floor.
Melissa Petersen
Melissa Petersen has been dancing Lindy Hop for five years, mostly in the Seattle area but also spending some time in Denver. Melissa is glad to be back in the Northwest as she currently lives in Bellingham, studying speech pathology at Western Washington University. Melissa loves performing Lindy Hop, and she was a member of the championship winning team - Zah-Zu-Zay. Quickly becoming a favored teacher, Melissa has a reputation of integrating her quick wit, skill, and sound effects to give her students a multi-modal learning experience.
Alex Yan
Alex Yan is a Seattle Lindy Hopper and Jazz Era DJ whose love of the music drove him to begin collecting jazz era music and video clips. His goal in DJ'ing and dancing are to bring out the best in dancers' creativity and excitement in ways that offer tribute to the original jazz era musicians and dancers. Alex is proud to have organized Seattle's New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Fundraiser in 2005, and contributed to the Killer Diller Ball at the Century Ballroom, the Century Masters of Lindy Hop and Tap 2006. His upcoming projects are Seattle's new Lindy Hop competition: the Battle of Swing, as well as the Century Masters of Lindy Hop and Tap 2007. His favorite jazz musicians are Fats Waller, Louis Armstrong, Lil Hardin Armstrong, and Duke Ellington. Alex encourages everyone to ask him to dance, except when he's busy debugging the sound system.
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