Whirl With Merle

Being passionate about bringing “dancers” out of everyone, Akemi Kinukawa has extensive experience in teaching Lindy Hop to diverse students including youth, ESL speakers, seniors and adults. She currently teaches partner dancing to children in public schools as a teaching artist of Dancing Classrooms, known as “Mad Hot Ballroom.” She has performed and choreographed Lindy Hop routines for various events, including Midsummer Night Swing at Lincoln Center.

Akemi Kinukawa is the founder of Project Connect (the company that is putting on Savoy), the lead choreographer for Savoy, and a dancer in the show.  "Savoy! Dancing Through the Swing Era" will take you on a journey through the swing era following Lillian Carlyle, an inspiring dancer from Hollywood. Tap your feet to authentic jazz music from the 1920-40s by Big Band greats such as Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman and enjoy the high energy Lindy Hop dance that began during this time. Cheer for the senior participants walking the runway during out vintage fashion show! We invite our audiences of seniors and children alike to participate in the show and sing and dance along with us. To culminate the performance, together we will dance a historic line dance, the Shim Sham, to celebrate the joy of dance and music.