Laura Glaess & Felipe Braga
Laura started dancing in 2001 in San Antonio. It wasn’t a very large scene, and her teachers hadn’t been dancing very long, but she quickly came to love lindy hop, the music, the history and everything involved.
Now Laura travels the world teaching, competing, performing and learning. She is a passionate believer in dancing with swing, with rhythm, with partnership, and with presence. She is madly in love with jazz music and movement and is a strong believer in music as a guide to better dancing. She has recently returned to San Antonio, and is involved in community organizing to help the scene grow. She firmly believes that good dancing starts at the local level. If you love swing dancing, make sure your community has what it needs to thrive; then it can give back to you.
Many ask how Felipe learned Lindy Hop so quickly: transitioning from a toilet-cleaning newbie dancer marveling at the Folkets Hus floor to a Herrang instructor in three short years. The explanation is simple: his pre-Lindy life prepared him for what was to come.
Training in theatrical acting gave Felipe body awareness and control as well as an ability to improvise – both in his energetic and now infamous class warm-ups, and in the competitions where he always shines. Felipe’s experience playing drums, as well as his youth in Brazil – where the music and dance culture are rich – gave him an innate sense of rhythm. And finally Felipe’s days as a dancing party-animator for a live music club in Brazil gave him plenty of training for getting people excited about dancing in his Lindy Hop classes today. But more important than any of this is that Felipe has embodied the Lindy Hop spirit since before he knew it existed. It is hard to find someone who doesn’t like Felipe.
His warm personality charms every dancer he meets, and his ability to connect with people in conversation carries over onto the dance floor. He leaves every follower with a smile, and anyone who has danced or talked with him will confirm he always makes you feel special.