Dance hall days

By Michelle Richter · The Mainstream
Published May 4, 2010

With an exuberant attitude and a thousand moves, Isaac Ashby appears to be a natural-born dance instructor. Wildlife biologist by day, Big Band Swing dancer by night, Isaac and his wife, Stephanie, teach Big Band Swing, Umpqua Community College’s first-ever dance class, to a small group of students.

“There are no limitations to swing dancing, unless of course, you’re dancing on the Sabbath—then you need to count your steps,” Ashby joked to put the students at ease before he started the class by guiding five couples through a review of the prior week’s dance steps, performed to a variety of musical styles and beats. Isaac and Stephanie then demonstrated new steps to eager students. The class performed their moves with increasing confidence and ability as the evening progressed.

Student Kay Russell, who took the class with her husband Bruce, said that they enrolled after seeing the course listed in the spring catalog. “Our 45 anniversary is this summer and we wanted to be able to dance well and have fun,” Russell said.

Ashby has taught a variety of swing styles which include the Lindy Hop, Charleston, East Coast and Jitterbug Scroll. Ashby has also been taught and practiced Hip-Hop, Latin Dance including Merengue, Ballroom, Tap, Ballet, Country Swing and Belly Dance.

Ashby became interested in dance about a decade ago because of a girl. The girl may have been forgotten, but his love for dance and passion for teaching has only grown. He claimed to have been a horrible dancer when he started, and had to spend a lot of money and time for private lessons “to keep people from laughing at him,” he joked. He said this experience has helped him become a good instructor because he remembers what it was like to be new to dancing and uncomfortable on the floor. Dance student Becky Husen said, “It’s a blast; he’s a really good teacher.”

Ashby said that swing is one of the more popular dance styles. “People just like it,” he explained. Big band also has a wider variety of moves compared to other styles. At Utah State, his dance classes proved to be so popular that he taught two beginning and two advanced classes.

Ashby has taken lessons from people who are “quite literally the best,” but the one he was most excited to talk about was Frankie Manning, who passed away last year shortly before his 95 birthday. Manning continued teaching well into his 90’s and was considered to be one of the founders of the Lindy Hop. He was also famous for adding lifts or aerials to his style of big band swing, which first appeared, to the astonishment of the audience, at a contest in 1935. Ashby has not taught aerials in his course at UCC, though, because in addition to being exciting and fun to watch, they are also somewhat dangerous and can result in injuries when done without adequate training and precautions. However, Ashby said that he “sometimes teach[es] workshops devoted to lifts or aerials.”

Potential students should be aware that they do not need a partner to sign up for the class, which is being offered again fall term Tuesday and Thursday mornings 8 a.m. to 9:50 a.m. Ashby hopes to add an advanced class in the future.