About Rittenhop
We have been swing dancing for at least the past decade, every Sunday from 1:00 - 3:30 pm at Rittenhouse Square.
Our regulars typically do Lindy Hop and Charleston, but all jazz dance styles are welcomed. Balboa and Shag are less popular on the brick surface, but you do you, rebel.
In addition to our weekly DJ'd dance, we also sometimes invite live bands to play for us in the square, and we throw special events at bars the city. To discover our events, check recent posts and subscribe to our newsletter!
Rittenhop is a 501c3 nonprofit, so your donations are tax deductible.
Where to learn Swing Dancing
It is rare that we offer formal beginner lessons. Some dancers may be able to show you a few things to get you started, but the best place for beginners to try out the basic steps of Lindy Hop is Thursday nights 8pm at Jazz Attack, just across the street from us in the Ethical Society. Entry is $10 for an hour long drop-in beginner lesson followed by a two hour social. Please mention Rittenhop sent you :)
If you’re ready to take it up a notch, we recommend taking one of RagTag Empire’s 8-week progressive beginner series over at Urban Movement Arts, a few blocks west.
Meet the Organizers
A brief history of swing dancing
The primary dance we do at Rittenhop is known as Lindy Hop which is the original swing dance. Lindy Hop is a quintessential American dance which originated in the African-American communities of Harlem, NY during the late 1920’s. There are some who say the name Lindy Hop was a tribute to Charles Lindbergs famous “hop” across the Atlantic in 1927.
Lindy Hop quickly spread throughout the U.S. just as the Swing Era in music was at its most popular. From there different communities took Lindy Hop and made it their own which led to other swing dances such as Balboa, Shag, East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, etc.
Swing dancing has been a part of American culture ever since and we are proud to continue that tradition. We owe a lot to the originators of the dance and the music of that era and hope you will join us in being a part of this tradition.