General Stuff

New Year’s 2026 Falcon Bowl Swing Dance

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Dance into the New Year with Brew City Big Band playing at Falcon Bowl. A spacious ballroom wood floor, an exceptional swinging 20+ piece big band, and 3 hours of dancing plus a blues/soul/swing dance afterparty!

Tired of going to music events and not being able to squeeze onto the tiny floor? Or, the venue oversells the space? Or, worse, you are seated for the performance? Gasp!!! Not this time. This is a dance put on by dancers for dancers. The pricing is as low as we can go to give you the dance experience you want without the fluff.

Dress fancy if you want. We will be! This dance starts late. Consider going to dinner at one of the fine local restaurants beforehand.

9:00 to 12:00 Brew City Big Band

12:00 to ??? Blues/soul/swing DJ afterparty

$25 per ticket bought before December 31

$35 per ticket day of event

Order tickets – click here

First Friday Dances – Andy Stefancin

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October brings cooler weather, crisp leaves, and the return of the First Friday swing dances. Held at the Elk’s Lodge in Waukesha each month from October to May, this is Wisconsin’s largest dedicated-swing dance event. It was previously hosted by Maureen of the Jumpin’ Jive Club for nearly 20 years. Revived after the pandemic shutdown, this dance has a new home and a new organizer – Andy Stefancin of Andy’s Events, LLC.

As a teenager in the 1970s, Andy fell in love with dancing after being a “practice partner” for his older sister. He went to his first “First Friday Swing Dance” in 2000 and became a regular attendee in 2007. He is a familiar face around the Milwaukee dance scene. 

The First Friday Dance shuttered along with all other dancing during the 2020 pandemic lockdown. After a couple of years of hesitancy, all of us dancers were feeling the itch to get back on the dance floor. It was time to rebuild. Andy knew the scene and the city. He had the connections and the dance experience. Could he manage a dance event of this caliber?

First Friday was revived in January of 2023. Andy recounts that attendance was upwards of 200 and the traditional lesson before the dance resembled a cat rodeo. The rotation was a disaster. Maureen had done it for so long, she made it look easy. After a very steep learning curve, Andy and his partner adapted quickly and now teaching the lesson is the highlight of the evening.

Teaching a crowd of people with varying dance experience is challenging. It takes planning and a lot of preparation. Andy says, “Every dancer is always learning. There is always a new move, or a new twist on a move.

“One thing I especially enjoy is getting people out to dance.” To that end, Andy also puts out a weekly email. It lists multiple dance opportunities in the greater Milwaukee area and goes out to scores of people. To receive the emails, send him a message at: standy2026@gmail.com and use the subject: Weekly Dance Email

Andy believes it is important that dancers are exposed to a range of danceable music. His First Friday band line-ups reflect a variety of blues, swing, rockabilly and rock n’ roll. Included in the 2025/2026 season are regional bands such as The Jimmys and Swing Nouveau as well as homegrown favorites like The Hungry Williams and bluesman Big Al Dorn. The season opens October 3rd with The Incorruptibles.The charge for a terrific evening of entertainment is $20 (cash only).

Location: Elk’s Lodge #400 – 2301 Springdale Road, Waukesha

Time: First Friday of the month, 7:30 to 8:00 basic swing dance lesson – no partner needed. Band plays from 8:00-11:00.Find Andy on Facebook at the page Andy’s Events Swing Dancing, by email at standy2026@gmail, and at dancing events all over.

CANCELLED: August 24 – Lizzy & the Triggermen!

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This August 24, 2025 event has been delayed to April 2026. See an update in the future!

LA-based big band, Lizzy & the Triggermen, is coming to Milwaukee for one show on August 24, 2025 at the danceable venue Vivarium. This band will transport you back to the glamour of the Prohibition Era, but with a sound and swagger that is thrillingly new. As NPR raves, they are “one part Eartha Kitt, one part Ella Fitzgerald, on part Amy Winehouse.”

Their show is a “joyously subversive” (Broadway World) mixture of vintage swing and biting originals that highlight Lizzy’s wicked sense of humor (which she previously used to create Emmy-nominated TV shows). Like the great tunes of the ’30s which so inspire them, their music boldly tackles our modern troubles and turns them into killer dance songs that fill you with joy the way only a wailing horn section can.

Their debut album, “Good Songs for Bad Times,” hit #3 on the iTunes Jazz Charts alongside jazz royalty Miles Davis and Kamasi Washington. They quickly went from performing in speakeasies to selling out top venues and jazz festivals across the country, co-headlining festivals with Samara Joy and Nancy Sinatra, touring with Squeeze and being chosen for SXSW.

The band is helmed by operatically-trained Lizzy with arrangements by living legend, Dan Barrett (who played with and arranged for Benny Goodman). But the star power emanates through the entire incredible band: a multi-generational dream team of crushers who have toured with everyone from Woody Herman to Harry Connick Jr. to Rachel and Vilray to Panic! at the Disco.

Come early and take a basic swing lesson with dance instructor Hot Jazz Cass and friends, no partner or experience needed.

For YouTube videos of the band: click here, here, and here.

Summer Outdoor Dancing

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Summer is a short commodity in Wisconsin. DJ Tory (swing and blues) is an avid dancer and parent of a tiny human. Outdoor concerts are the perfect time to both catch a dance with friends and entertain the little ones. Here is her list of local outdoor music that will have you (or your family) groovin’ in the sunshine:

June 12 (Thursday), 6:30-8:00 PM: Center Street Park, Troubadours of Rhythm (Blues, Swing, etc.)

June 14 (Saturday), 10:00-12:00 PM: Fox Point Farmer’s Market, Steven Cohen (Blues)

June 29 (Sunday), 11:30-1:45 PM: Cathedral Square, Might Miss Erica (Blues)

July 17 (Thursday), 6:30-8:30 PM: Boerner Botanical Gardens, Altered Five Blues Band (Blues)

July 23 (Wednesday), 6:00-8:00 PM: Washing Park Bandshell, Big Style Brass Band (Swing, Charleston)

August 6 (Wednesday), 6:00-8:00 PM: Washington Park Bandshell, The Mighty Miss Erica (Blues)

August 15 (Friday), 6:00-8:30 PM Gordon Park (Riverwest), The Mighty Miss Erica (Blues)

August 13 (Wednesday), 6:00-8:00 PM: Washington Park Bandshell, Milwaukee Hot Club (Swing, Charleston, Balboa)

September 12-13 (Friday and Saturday): Thiensville Best Dam Blues Fest

Traditional Tuesday Dance – Black History Month!

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The hot jazz we love and the swing dance to which we groove were created and enriched by Black Americans. The weekly Traditional Tuesday night swing dances (with live bands!) is adding to the typical routine in February to pay homage to the Black artists and dancers that have forever changed the world.

Each Tuesday night at Falcon Bowl we will be teaching the swing line Dance “Shim Sham” from 7:30 to 8:00 (basic swing lesson at 7:00) and we will have a 2-hour Shim Sham lesson on Sunday February 23 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. All free! Lessons by music/dance educator Meaghan Heinrich. Video below is Meaghan demonstrating the entire routine, along with us dancing the Shim Sham on a recent Tuesday night.

The DJ breaks feature a different pairing of early Black musicians who have inspired each other. The pairings and sets are being crafted by band leader John Mroz (Troubadours of Rhythm).

Week 1: The band break musician pair was King Oliver and Louis Armstrong. Based in New Orleans, Oliver shaped the landscape of early jazz. His move to Chicago in 1918 marked a turning point and in 1922 he summoned his protege – Louis Armstrong – to join his Creole Jazz Orchestra. Armstrong flourished and this duo ignited a musical revolution. Listen to the bands Creole Jazz Orchestra, Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five, and Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven.

Week 2: Fletcher Henderson was paired with Duke Ellington – both influential band leaders, composers, and arrangers. Henderson was a pioneer of big band jazz and paved the way for many other band leaders, such as Ellington. In turn, Ellington became a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance, blending blues, ragtime, and swing into a uniquely Black American sound. Henderson and Ellington both played in New York City and would be inspired by each other’s work. The great depression was hard on Henderson and he began composing for Benny Goodman. Henderson essentially created the structure for the sound of the swing big band era.

Week 3: Black women were highlighted by DJ and music educator Meaghan Heinrich during this week’s band break. Black women have deeply shaped swing jazz and swing dancing, often with the their contributions overlooked or under-appreciated due to the double hit of both misogyny and racism. Big Maybelle, Big Mama Thornton, Julia Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Mildred Bailey, and Norma Miller are a few of the Black women we honored this week through the music we played and the Lindy Hop we danced.

Learn Swing Dance with Paté: No Partner Needed!

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If you have not been taking swing dance lessons during the week due to your work schedule…you now have a weekend option! 

Starting on the first Sunday in January 2025, dance instructor Paté (Patrice) Nassalang will be teaching 90-minute beginner/intermediate swing dance lessons almost every Sunday at Casa Collective in New Berlin. Both 6-count (“East Coast Swing”) and Lindy Hop are being taught. No experience or partner needed. Details below.

Growing up in Senegal, Paté was surrounded by the joy of rhythm and dancing from birth. There were drums in his house and drums in the neighborhood. Music, drumming, and dancing were an integral part of his culture and childhood. That love for music and movement shaped his entire life. Around 1995, Paté was chosen to be the choreographer for his region in a national televised dance competition similar to So You Think You Can Dance. At this time, he was teaching, dancing, and choreographing traditional African dance along with Hip-Hop, Salsa, and many other dance styles.

He moved to the United States in 1997 and started the weekly African drumming/dancing class at Danceworks in Milwaukee in 2003. He left for a time to work for prestigious dance groups (AADE) African American dance Ensemble of Durham  in North Carolina and Muntu Chicago. When he returned to Milwaukee in 2205, he started a Non-profit  company “Jam Ak Jam Afro Dance Theater”. Through this company he choreographed and taught dance classes throughout Midwest  schools (Milwaukee Public Schools and Universities). He has also performed with the company in some of the biggest theatres around.

Swing music and swing dance may have been created in the United States, but the roots of the sounds and movements originated in Africa. Pate has been motivated to dig deeper in doing research in African American Vernacular jazz dances’ link to traditional authentic African dances. 

The Milwaukee area has a deep and rich swing dance community. Meet new friends and confidently strut your stuff on dancefloors as there are dance events every week in and around Milwaukee. Join Paté on Sundays for the fun, the exercise, and the lifelong skill of dancing.

Location: Casa Collective Dance Studio

Time: 4:00 – 5:30 (see flyer below for dates)

Fee: $10 to $15 per class (see flyer below) 

Facebook event link: https://www.facebook.com/share/wCx1ZztxhLyYcGEU/

Traditional Tuesday Swing Dance Returns!

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After a summer hiatus, the weekly “Traditional Tuesday” swing dance returns to Falcon Bowl on September 3, 2024. Every Tuesday is the free 7:00 to 7:50 basic dance lesson followed by free bands and swing DJs playing from 8:00 to 10:00 (sometimes 10:30).

The band lineup has expanded with Sweet Sheiks, 3rd Ward Jazz Band, John Carr Band, and others joining the familiar Tuesday bands of Extra Crispy Brass Band, Old Sam and the Tear Drops, and Sliphorn Jazz Band.

The dance lessons will be primarily the basic style of swing that is danced ubiquitously around Milwaukee – East Coast Swing (“6-Count Lindy Hop”) with certain dates dedicated to Blues, Balboa, and other such styles when various dance groups are preparing for their weekend workshops or special dances. The lessons are crafted to produce dancers with strong fundamentals and an appreciation of the local and greater swing/blues dance community.

How can you get involved?

This weekly event is a unique partnership between the musicians and the dancers with the shared vision of vastly expanding the Milwaukee audience that listens to – and dances to – music from this era. Being hosted at Falcon Bowl gives this partnership a boost. The venue is a wonderful and sizable dance hall surrounded by thousands of diverse citizens within a couple minutes of walk. Falcon Bowl is also the current home of Cream City Swing, the dance organization that hosts the Monday night Lindy Hop dance lessons – the only only place in Milwaukee to follow a leveling-up style of swing lessons that builds each week to produce dancers of advanced skill.

As a dancer or musician, this should excite you!

If you are interested in getting involved as a musician, dance teacher, host, DJ, promoter, or with some other skill or effort, email us at MilwaukeeStomp@gmail.com. Tell us what you have to share (time, energy, skills, resources) and to what extent you can share them with the community and we will gladly accept your offer. No effort is too small to be appreciated.

August 9, 2024 Sweet Sheiks at White Oak Festival

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The White Oak Festival is back and they are kicking off the first night with a swing dance! Come join in Dodgeville for music and movement with the Sweet Sheiks. Chelsea Dvorak will be leading instruction before the music starts so even beginners can join in. You can get a ticket for just Friday night, or join us for the whole fest with a weekend pass. The fest kicks off at 5pm August 9th with the dance starting at 7:30. The dance is held in a charming converted barn, see pictures below for the dance space.

Tickets for the whole weekend festival or just for August 9th can be purchased at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/white-oak-festival-2024-tickets-837460987357?aff=oddtdtcreator

Facebook event link: https://www.facebook.com/share/5fSFoFg2pnpZPYZ1/

For the history of this venue: https://www.whiteoaksavanna.com/history

July 20, 2024 Summer Chandelier Dance

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The annual summer dance at the Chandelier Ballroom in Hartford is on July 20. The event features ballroom dancing from 5:30 to 8:30 and swing dancing from 8:30 to 11:30. Music DJing is provided by instructors that teach these dance styles. Cost of entry is $15 with dance instructors having free entry.

The Chandelier Ballroom is one of Wisconsin’s larger open ballrooms with a pristine wood floor. The ballroom has a rich history of dances and social events. Read more of the history by clicking here. Access to the space and parking is easy. Make it a day trip and enjoy the local scenic views.

Memorial Sunday Swing/Blues Party – You Are Invited!

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Wayward swing and blues dancers: join Good Land Balboa for a (always) free intermediate Balboa lesson followed by 2 hours of swing and blues dancing this Memorial Sunday from 7:00 to 10:00 PM.

Good Land Balboa has the guest instructor Aidan Patrick from the Twin Cities dance scene giving the lesson at 7:00.

The event is hosted at 4125 North Larkin Street in Shorewood. DJ Hot Jazz Cass is spinning.

https://facebook.com/events/s/memorial-sunday-dance-party/819708106675447/