Excerpt from Buffalo Rising, written by Joseph DiDomizio
This Saturday, June 28th, Swing Buffalo kicks off its summer series of dances, “Buffalo Hop!” at the Unitarian Universalist Church on Elmwood. Starting at 8:00 pm with a beginner lesson taught by perennial swing instructors Rob Leach and Arlette Tucci Kirk, the dance will also include an exhibition from “Queen City Swing”, Buffalo’s debut swing dance troop.
The dance is open to all ages and to dancers of all skill levels–beginners are welcome! “Buffalo Hop!” is a dance focused on various swing elements, Lindy Hop, Balboa, Charleston, and Jitterbug. These are 30’s and 40’s era “big band” dances that are all about fun.
However, this first dance of the season is about a little bit more than just dancing. All of the proceeds from this month’s “Buffalo Hop!” are being donated to Grassroots Gardens of Buffalo. Helping people create and sustain community gardens on city-owned vacant properties, Grassroots Gardens helps residents beautify and strengthen the neighborhoods around them with ornamental, mixed-use and produce gardens throughout Buffalo.
So grab a partner (though you don’t necessarily need one), and swing on down to the Unitarian Universalist church at 695 Elmwood Ave, on the 28th, to have a great time, and help out an important part of the Buffalo community. The dance is only $5 for students and $8 for everyone else at the door.