Nadiya & Josiah Keagy – California

Josiah Keagy began swing dancing in college back in 2012 when he was invited out to the local dance venue by some friends. Having been raised on films from the 1940s and with a sister who encouraged him to go out dancing, Josiah gave it a try. Over the course of his first year, he found that he liked it. A year in, he took his first dance trip and discovered that he loved it. Josiah is recognizable by the energy he brings to the dance floor. He emphasizes connection, creativity, musicality, and plain goofiness when he dances. As a dancer, he is always looking for ways to improve and push the limits of his own dancing, as well as his ability to communicate ideas on the dance floor.

Nadiya was first introduced to Lindy Hop in 2016 and instantly fell in love with it. Since then she has become a devoted social dancer, instructor, competitor and performer. With a love for social dancing, Nadiya highly values improvisation, musicality, and creativity in a dance partnership. She is especially passionate about fast Lindy, which for her is the perfect combination of artistry and athleticism. Based in Southern California, she teaches weekly at LindyGroove in Pasadena. As an instructor, she focuses on building the foundations of connection, technique, and awareness to create a conversational social dancing experience..

Laura Evans and Paul Riding – Los Angeles and Sacramento, California

Laura was first introduced to partner dancing at nine years old by her stepmother, a professional ballroom dance instructor. She discovered lindy hop in college through the University of Redlands Ballroom Dance Club and fell in love with the dance almost instantly. She attended Phoenix Lindy Exchange as her first weekend event in 2016, and it launched her into an unquenchable passion for lindy hop. She has traveled and competed regularly since 2017, winning or placing at events such as Camp Hollywood, Inspiration Weekend, and Lindy on the Rocks. Outside of dancing, Laura is a professional classical violinist and music teacher, and her passion for music has shaped the way she dances. In both her social and competition dancing, she values creatively expressing the music and interacting playfully with her partner. Laura lives in southern California and teaches regularly at Lindygroove and other local dances. She loves to inspire her students and share the dance with anyone willing to try it.

Paul has been dancing since 2004 and is passionate about sharing the joy of dance through social dancing, teaching, live streaming, competing, and DJing. In 2020 he was awarded Inspiration Weekend’s “Inspiration Award,” Camp Hollywood’s “Golden Budgie” and in 2022 Camp Jitterbug’s “Spirit of Lindy Hop” award for his drive to nurture and help the dance community via live streaming, scene building, and volunteering within the community.

Julie Roman and Jacob Spinney – Phoenix, AZ

Julie Roman – Julie Roman is a Phoenix-based artist. As a classically trained concert pianist/vocalist with a former career as a certified music educator, she is passionate about pursuing excellence and spreading a love for the arts. While she studies as many jazz dances as she can, Julie is madly in love with collegiate shag (and flying air steps). She has taught at, judged, and won contests at shag events such as the Warsaw Shag Festival, the Barcelona Shag Festival, Hot Jazz Jamboree, Camp Hollywood, Swingin’ by the Sound, the LA Shag Festival, and Hot Rhythm Holiday. Julie is an active contributor and learner in many global and local jazz dance communities. She has a passion for helping people hit their goals and creating spaces where people are encouraged to discover what they are fully capable of…whether that’s comfortable and safe social dancing, community growth, personal growth, contest dancing, performance, fitness, or anything else dance has to offer.

Jacob Spinney – Known by his friends as “Spinney,” Jacob Spinney began swing dancing socially after graduating high school in 2004 and by 2015 he turned that hobby into a full blown obsession. Having placed and won in several notable state and national contests, Spinney’s love for swing dancing has helped him create a unique style focused on creativity and expressiveness. Jacob has also performed in, choreographed for, and taught in several award-winning teams over the years. What he enjoys most is syncopation, tension and compression, slides, and being a goofball. He drinks a Roy Rogers, easy on the ice, extra cherries.

Bandi and Silke – Santa Fe, New Mexico

Bandi and Silke both started swing dancing in Santa Fe in the late nineties, which is how and when they met. They have been teaching locally for around 15 years and have been running Monday Night Swing at Oddfellows Hall for most of that time.  Over the past twenty-five years, they have danced all over the US and in Europe and have experienced how the dance has evolved over time. They really enjoy teaching and are dedicated to keeping the dance scene healthy, friendly, and thriving in Santa Fe. While they have competed here and there, they are primarily social dancers, who value fun, playfulness, and musicality. And spinning. They really like spinning… 

Nick Peterson – Las Vegas, Nevada

Nick started dancing in 1998 but he has been writing in the third person for much longer. .

He once performed decently in competitions, but you’d need a VHS player to see them.  

He teaches vintage swing and soul in Las Vegas.

Ashley Cohen Conner – Phoenix, AZ

Ashley was born and raised in Arizona, and first stepped into a dance studio when she was 5 years old. She started social dancing in 2015 with her sister, Sydney, who she later went on to place with at the International Lindy Hop Championships. Ashley and Sydney were also California Swing Dance champions for two consecutive years. 
Shortly after this, Ashley was introduced to Carolina Shag. Since then, she has dedicated much of her time learning about the history, important figures, music, and technique of the dance.   Recently, she has been committed to spreading Carolina Shag throughout the southwest. Between her monthly progressives, socials, and yearly “Summer Swing Fest” event, Ashley hopes people share the same enthusiasm for the dance.

Karen Vizzard – Phoenix, Arizona

Karen Vizzard first became enamored with Lindy Hop in 2003, when she was introduced to the dance at a Big Bad Voodoo Daddy concert in Santa Monica. Since then, she has watched dance clips on VHS tapes that were copies of copies of copies, done some stuff, and danced a lot in different places.