West Coast Swing (WCS)

What is West Coast Swing?

West Coast Swing (WCS) is a swing dance style known for its smooth and sophisticated aesthetic, its focus on partnership, and the variety of contemporary and retro music it can be enjoyed to. It began as a form of Lindy Hop inspired by the great dancer Dean Collins, and evolved to become the amazing modern social dance it is today.

West Coast Swing today

Today, West Coast Swing is a very popular dance worldwide, done to blues and contemporary R'nB and pop music. WCS is known in particular for being a very versatile dance that can be adapted to many styles of music.

Modern WCS dancers, or "Westies," enjoy the highly developed dance and partnering technique of West Coast Swing. WCS allows followers a degree of freedom not usually seen in other partner dances, emphasizing the interaction and conversation between dance partners. West Coast Swing is done to slower tempos than vintage swing styles such as Lindy Hop or Shag, usually in the 70-115 bpm range.

The Westie Bombers

The Swing Dynamite "Westie Bombers" are Ottawa's first and only competitive West Coast Swing team! Coached by teachers and choreographers Natalia Rueda and Byron Alley, the team is composed of dancers with a range of experience levels, from our WCS teachers to some of our recent star students!

West Coast Swing to Blues Music

Blues is one of the original popular styles of music for WCS. West Coast Swing dancers enjoy many different kinds of music in the blues family, ranging from slow and sultry to funkier and upbeat. Here's an example of amazing West Coast Swing to blues music.

West Coast Swing to Pop Music

One of the things many dancers love about West Coast Swing is that it can be enjoyed to most of the music that you hear at parties, on the radio or in the clubs! This next clip features WCS champions Ben Morris and Melina Ramirez dancing to contemporary music.

All Ages

West Coast Swing is also popular with a wide range of ages, from teenagers to dancers in their 70's! Younger dancers love WCS because they can dance it to the same pop music they listen to on their iPods. And many adults love the partner connection and slower tempos that are easier on the knees than fast swing styles.

West Coast Swing in Ottawa with Swing Dynamite

If you're looking to start dancing West Coast Swing in Ottawa, check out our West Coast Swing I class! You'll learn the basics of West Coast Swing in just six weeks! We recommend you take our Swing I before trying West Coast Swing I, to learn the basics common to all swing dances. Sign up for classes here.

Double Trouble nights at Saturday Night Swing!

We feature "Double Trouble" nights about every two weeks at Saturday Night Swing, where we have two rooms running with separate DJs and dance floors: one room for West Coast Swing, and the other for vintage swing dances such as Lindy Hop. Check out Saturday Night Swing for more information!