Who manages the Little Big Weekend?
The Little Big Weekend is a Swing Dance Sydney project, managed by Sam Carroll, and put into action by a team of local volunteers and managers. This mostly means that everyone we spoke to about the weekend volunteered an opinion.
The first Little Big Weekend lindy hop contest is managed by Justine Kinkade and Trish Carruthers, administrative big guns, and experienced competition judges, DJs, and entrants.
Laura Caesar is the Registrations manager. She's know for her meticulous approach to record keeping and calm, friendly manner at the door. Craig Bryan and Dave Byrne are floor and stage managers at events, wrangling musicians and making sure the parties work. Rosie Afford, Haofang Han, and Merilyn Pidgeon are door managers who get you in the door.
The core volunteer team includes: Siobhan de Little, Georgia Brooks, Michael Collins, Christina Phillips, Angelica Corsi, Spanish Alex, Francesca Testa, Dina, GK, Michael Jones, Luisa Hogendorn, Alex Kirwan, Tristan Hanlon-Burrowes, Claire Goldsbury, Chiara Balsamo, Leane Fowler, and Teena Hanson. They greet you at the door, set up for parties and bump them out, chauffeur teachers, and generally help you have FUN.
Big thanks to Alice Hatton for helping us navigate the complicated world of Australian visas for working artists.
Art and website design is by Sam Carroll. She'll make your website, too. For a price.
The fabulous sound is managed by Dave Clark from Atomic PA (making jazz sound good in big, echoey rooms).
Live music program manager and house band leader is Andrew Dickeson, leader of the Blue Rhythm Band.
Swing Dance Sydney
Swing Dance Sydney is a group of humans with a very great passion for jazz music and dance. They teach regular lindy hop and solo jazz classes, they run regular parties (almost weekly!) with live and DJed music, and they run occasional workshops.
They're also very interested in vintage fashion and design (Alice Roberts is a professional designer), stage craft and performance (Alice Hatton and Laura Caesar are experienced profssional performers and producers), and dance history and music (Sam Carroll has a PhD in vernacular jazz dance culture). Most importantly, they love to dance, and they love jazz. All their projects are concerned with preserving historic art forms, but in a way that makes them fun and useful for contemporary peeps.
Swing Dance Sydney is very much committed to equity in the jazz dance and music world. They are leaders in developing Codes of Conduct and broader strategies for preventing and responding to sexual harassment, they are actively engaged in projects which encourage diversity and equity in dance, and they are always prepared to act when people need help.
If you need help during the weekend, please consult our Safety page.