Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, February 2, 1995                   TAG: 9502020023
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: SCOTT BUCKO SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG                                LENGTH: Medium

BRINGING SWING TO THE VALLEY

I caught my reflection in the full-wall mirror of a dance room. And then, all of a sudden . . .

BAM! A dream, a daydream.

It was the late 1930s in a large, dimly lit room filled with hundreds of decked-out dancers, and I was dancing the swing.

As I swung my partner around my back and stepped to the left, I looked around the room. There was a large band at one end with a piano, bass, percussion set and wind instruments playing lively, fast-tempo songs. It was jazz, cool jazz.

Stepping back to the right and lifting my partner off her feet, I never thought dancing could be so much fun. But it was, and it was the swing.

For me, though, this was only a dream, lasting one night. For Charlie and Lisa Cottingham, it is reality.

Only a year ago, Charlie and Lisa were taking a swing dance class through the YMCA. Since then, they've been swinging it up with hundreds of other couples on dance floors in places such as Washington, Baltimore and New York.

Why do they travel such distances to dance? Because if they want to swing and really swing, that's where the action is. To find quality swing with great bands, Charlie Cottingham says, the two nearest places are Charlottesville and Durham, N.C.

There is no active, regular swing dancing or the like in this area. So what are they going to do about it? Save gas and start the Southwest Virginia Swing Dance Society.

``It's fun, that's the main thing,'' Lisa Cottingham said of swing. ``The music sends you into a different level of energy, and it makes you feel looser.''

Now for those of you not up to date on what swing dancing is, here's what I found out:

The ``Swing Era'' of the 1930s and '40s was one of the hottest times for jazz and the dances that accompanied it.

The jitterbug, one of the most popular dances of the swing variety, is a lively, acrobatic dance for couples with a range from composed steps to wild improvisations of turns, lifts, and other moves. Other dances include the Lindy Hop, the West Coast Swing and the Shag.

Charlie Cottingham says the purpose of the society will be ``to promote swing dancing, sponsor regular dances, hold workshops, and bring high quality music and instructors to the area.''

The society's first information meeting and dance will be Feb. 4 in the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship hall on Gladewood Drive in Blacksburg. The evening will begin with a workshop by Ann Kilkelly, a dance enthusiast, instructor and scholar from Tech's theater department. Dancing will follow to recorded music.

The Cottinghams' hope is that ``people around here would see how much fun it is and be excited as we are.''

No previous experience is necessary, nor is a partner. The cost is $4, covering expenses, and the dance will be held from 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.