Swing, Swing, Swing: UWSP’s Benny Goodman Approved Tuesday Night
Any Swing Goes practicing at the Health Enhancement Center. Photo courtesy of Colton Oltesvig.

Swing, Swing, Swing: UWSP’s Benny Goodman Approved Tuesday Night

Twirling partners, dancing feet, jazz music and having a ball: Any Swing Goes has it all.

The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point student club, Any Swing Goes, organizes weekly events where anyone can come and learn how to swing dance.

On Tuesday night, participants filed into the dance studio of UWSP’s Health Enhancement Center to kick off their shoes and enjoy an evening of partner dancing.

Swing dance refers to the style of partner dancing characterized by its accompaniment of jazz music, a style which came to prominence in the 1920s. While the popularity of swing dance peaked in the early twentieth century, it made a comeback in the 1980s and is still practiced today by groups like Any Swing Goes.

Erin Foth, psychology and sociology major and president of Any Swing Goes, said, “We learn more than just swing dancing, teaching anything else under the sun, pretty much, that is with partners.”

The night began with Foth calling the attendees into a group circle to talk about the club, share in introductions and pair up for the start of the dancing. Some came in pairs and some spontaneously found partners at the event, but all members were happy to unite with new faces in the name of swing.

After going over the basics of swing dance for any newcomers, Foth reviewed what had been taught at the previous swing night so all attendees would have the same knowledge basis for the new moves to be taught that night.

swing-dance-2Of course, the night was not all instruction. After the leaders of the night demonstrated a new move, couples spent a few minutes practicing what was being presented as the jazzy music that set a jovial tone of the evening played.

The lighthearted quality of the evening’s music was augmented by the playful names of each dance move, including “sliding doors,” “the clock” and “the belt.”

Over the course of the evening, the club played classic swing songs from as early as the 1930s like Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood” to “Beyond the Sea,” a song recognizable to contemporary audiences from its use in the Disney Pixar’s “Finding Nemo.”

The club executives circled around the room helping out anyone still nailing down the new moves.

Spencer Schultz, a UWSP alumnus, recently moved back to town and decided to revisit one of his old clubs on campus, Any Swing Goes. While the faces have changed, the heart of the club remains intact.

“When I first joined there were three people,” Schultz said. “I think the biggest when I was here was about 60 couples… But it’s pretty much the same. It’s a lot of cool people, and it’s a lot of people having fun.”

Any Swing Goes welcomes swing veterans like Schultz and any newcomers with an interest in trying something new.

Nikole Blodgett, junior history major, came to swing night for the first time on Tuesday.

“It’s nice and active, but at the same time fun,” Blodgett said.

Austin Teunissen, junior web and digital media development major, also enjoys the relaxed and fun-loving environment of Any Swing Goes.

“It’s just something different,” Teunissen said. “It’s really fun learning a new dance.”

Any Swing Goes is currently looking for students who enjoy the club to fill government positions.

Students and community members are welcome at their weekly meetings which are being held in Room 154 of the Health Enhancement Center from 8:30-10 p.m. on Tuesdays for the fall semester.

“It’s something you don’t necessarily have to be great at to look good and have fun with it, so I think it’s always going to be around,” Schultz said. “And I mean, hey, it’s almost the 20s again, and it’s going to come back. But I think one of the reasons it still sticks is because, as you can see, there’s just smiles all over the place.”

Kathryn Wisniewski

Reporter

Kathryn.E.Wisniewski@uwsp.edu

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