Events Page

Here are the classes, dances and events

we currently have scheduled,

listed in chronological order

Live Music Dances – Every Month!

We’re pleased to announce that GottaswingCharlotte will now be hosting dances with live music on the third Saturday of every month (holidays and scheduling conflicts aside)! It is our firm belief that live music adds an element of excitement and spontaneity to a dance and allows us to present a variety of musical styles, once again proving that you can swing dance to just about anything! So come on out!

Friday, February 26, 2010

Hop for Haiti with

The Alan Kaufman Swing Band and

The Intergalactic Dust Bunnies

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

Swing dancers in cities all over the country are dancing to raise money for the victims of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Here in Charlotte, a Hop for Haiti will be held on Friday night, February 26, at Chantilly Hall, 2101 Shenandoah Avenue. Live music will be provided by The Alan Kaufman Swing Band and The Intergalactic Dust Bunnies. This is a perfect combination of classic swing standards from Charlotte's premier swing piano stylist and vocalist and good old classic rock n' roll from the group formed by swing dancers for swing dancing. There also will be DJs, great food and lots of good fun, all for only $12. The hall is being donated by the Charlotte Country Dancers, and the entertainers will be performing for free so that every penny taken in will go directly to benefit those so desperately in need. So don you now your 50's apparel and come on out for a great night of dance, fun and frivolity - all for a great cause. For all of you who have wanted to do something to help, this is your opportunity to do so and have a wonderful evening in the process.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

FREE Swing Dance with The Intergalactic Dust Bunnies

Morehead Street Tavern

300 E. Morehead Street, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:00 - 8:00 PM

Dance 8:00 – 11:00 PM

FREE

Come one, come all to a great FREE swing dance starring our own Intergalactic Dust Bunnies.

FREE live music, FREE DJ music, great food and adult beverages – what a winning combination!

Starting Tuesday, March 16, 2010

New Beginner & Intermediate Lesson Series Start at

Morehead Street Tavern

300 E. Morehead Street, Charlotte

Beginner Lessons – 7-8PM / 8-Week Series - $99 on Tuesday nights

Intermediate Lessons – 8-9PM / 8-Week Series - $99 on Tuesday nights

Open Dancing – 9-11PM

Taught by Joe & Denise Polsgrove

GottaswingCharlotte is part of America's largest swing dance instruction and dance event promotion company. Lessons are very reasonably priced (only $99 for an 8-week series) and require no long-term contract. You don't need to bring a partner, experience is not required, and we welcome dancers of all ages at our events and classes. What makes us special is our attention to creating a community of swing dancers through our events.

Whether you’re looking to stay physically active, meet new people, or just want to survive that next wedding with your dignity intact, look no further. We’re certain that once you get started you’ll be hooked on the best music and dancing around, because…

…it don’t mean a thing if it ain’t GOTTASWING!

Starting Thursday, March 18, 2010

New Beginner & Intermediate Lesson Series Start at

The Grape/Forte – Northlake Mall

The Grape/Forte

Northlake Mall, Charlotte

Beginner Lessons – 7-8PM / 8-Week Series - $99 on Thursday nights

Intermediate Lessons – 8-9PM / 8-Week Series - $99 on Thursday nights – learn the Fun, Fun, Fun dance routine!

Open Dancing – 9-11PM

Taught by Jeff & Diana Greene

Here’s your chance to learn the very cool moves that our own Hepcat Hoppers use in their dance performances.

Learn the Fun, Fun, Fun routine! Join the team for performances or just learn the very, very cool moves to wow people on the dance floor!

…it don’t mean a thing if it ain’t GOTTASWING!

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Swing Dance with Gene, Gene & the Blues Machine

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

This is the third appearance of this great jump blues band. We keep bringing them back because of their talent and unequalled energy – and because swing dancers love them so much! Collectively they have over 80 years of experience playing “live” under their belts, so come and experience what they call “electric blues.” They put on a fabulous show and have tweaked their repertoire to include fabulous swing tunes, so be sure to put this night on your dance calendar.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Swing Dance with The Ethan Uslan Band

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

Ethan Uslan is one of the hottest names on the ragtime/traditional jazz scene today. The first-place winner of the 2007 World Championship Old-Time Piano Playing Contest, Uslan has performed on NPR's A Prairie Home Companion and with The Charlotte Symphony as well as at various concerts and festivals nationwide. Uslan studied classical piano as a child in South Orange, N.J., and later majored in classical piano performance at Indiana University. All the while, he secretly harbored a ragtime and jazz addiction, and complimented his classical piano studies by learning to play like Fats Waller, Jelly Roll Morton, and George Gershwin. Now Ethan has added classic swing tunes to his repertoire. This is his second appearance with us and one not to be missed.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Swing Dance with The Mighty Mystery Fish

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

This is the third time we have had this great band with us and for good reason – the dance floor is constantly flooded with dancers, song after song! The group was formed in early 2007 when Michelle Belanger, Mark "Buddy Ro" Harrison, Calvin Johnson and Chip "Memphis" Click came together to play music drawn from a wide spectrum of music styles. Their songs are mined from history and tradition, past and present, familiar and obscure, with a few of Mark's originals mixed in. All four players bring talent, skill and a good-natured sense of humor to every performance. They've entertained folks of all kinds and ages at parties, juke joints, street fairs and swing dances. They figure as long as people keep inviting them back -- and we do -- they must be doing something right….and that they are!

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Swing Dance with The Atomic Rhythm All-Stars

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

We are thrilled to be able to bring this Triangle-area favorite to Charlotte for the first time! The Atomic Rhythm All-Stars is a 7-piece band dedicated to authentically recreating the sounds of the 1920's and ‘30's. Their three horns, three rhythm and one vocal line-up faithfully recreate the red hot jazz bands of the mid-late 1920s and early 1930's, such as the Wolverines, California Ramblers, and the Louis Armstrong Hot Five and Hot Seven bands.

Their influences range from Louis Armstrong to Bix Beiderbecke, Paul Whiteman to Jimmy Lunceford, and Bing Crosby to Fats Waller. If Art Deco had a soundtrack, the Atomic Rhythm All-Stars would be it. Bandleader George Knott painstakingly recreates historic arrangements to present the most authentic prohibition-era musical experience possible.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Swing Dance with The Alan Kaufman Swing Band

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

Led by pianist/arranger/composer Alan Kaufman, The Alan Kaufman Swing Band is comprised of the area’s top musicians, culled from various experiences in jazz, big band, symphonic orchestra, Broadway stage, TV and pop. This is a full-sounding band that brings back the sounds of the big-band era with the music of Frank Sinatra, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Nat King Cole, Louis Jordan, Louie Prima and much more.

Alan was Music Director, pianist and arranger for “Swing 1000” in Charlotte and has produced albums and/or has arranged for The Buddy Rich Band, The Glenn Miller Orchestra, Oliver, The Chairmen of the Board, The Embers, and many more. He has performed with Luciano Pavarotti, Patti Lupone, Joe Williams, Sarah Vaughn, Clay Aiken, The Modernaires, The Tommy Dorsey Band, The Glenn Miller Orchestra, and others.

In the world of swing, Alan is as good as it gets!

Saturday, August 18, 2010

Swing Dance with The Stragglers

Chantilly Hall

2101 Shenandoah Avenue, Charlotte

Beginner lesson – 7:30 - 8:30 PM (FREE with paid admission)

Dance 8:30 – 11:30 PM

$12

The Stragglers’ last appearance with us generated more than one “…they are the best…” response from the crowd, in no small part due to the adjustments they have made in their repertoire to reflect only those tunes that get dancers off their chairs and out on the dance floor! They play Americana roots-rock at its finest -- vintage rock ‘n’ roll & jump blues with Latin and Cajun spice, featuring tight 3-part vocals. They combine the finesse of Asleep at the Wheel, the drive of Commander Cody, and the passion of Santana, and their musical savvy and stagemanship and the energy they generate gets the crowd moving early and leaves them yelling for more at the end.