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West Coast Swing Sequences

·2 mins
Dance West Coast Swing

Being the lead is hard because it requires being able to quickly remember a sequence of patterns to dance to. Eventually these patterns become second nature and memorization is not necessary because new sequences can be created on the spot, but in the first half year of dancing it is useful to memorize sequences. Learning sequences is like learning phrases in a new language. Eventually you will know the language well enough to create unique phrases you never learned anywhere.

Basic sequences #

These sequences do not add up to 32 beats, so they are better suited for songs that do not have breaks.

Minus 18 beats (14 beats):

  1. sugar push to goofy right-to-left handhold
  2. pass-through whip

Minus 2 beats (30 beats):

  1. right side pass
  2. right side pass to double handhold
  3. hustle whip
  4. car-wash whip

Plus 10 beats (42 beats):

  1. left side pass into handshake
  2. reverse whip
  3. passing tuck into handshake
  4. reverse whip
  5. right side pass into handshake
  6. reverse whip

Basic Choreography #

This is a basic sequence, or choreography, designed to be danced to songs with 32-beat phrases. Each sequence section contains four 6-beat patterns and one 8-beat pattern, such that each section adds up to 32 beats. The last section also adds up to 32 beats but it only has 8-beat patterns. Also, each section gets progressively harder.

  1. sugar push
  2. left pass
  3. sugar tuck
  4. right side pass inside turn
  5. whip

  1. sugar tuck
  2. sugar push inside turn
  3. right pass leader inside turn to handshake
  4. sugar push
  5. reverse whip to regular handhold

  1. left pass inside turn
  2. right pass inside chain turns
  3. sugar push to goofy right-to-left handhold
  4. free spin to regular handhold
  5. fold (8 steps) don’t put in shoulder lock

  1. passing tuck
  2. sugar push to goofy right-to-left handhold
  3. roll-in-roll-out
  4. free spin to regular handhold
  5. basket whip

  1. left side pass
  2. left side pass
  3. right side pass
  4. right side pass into double handhold
  5. car-wash whip

  1. basket whip
  2. hustle whip
  3. whip with inside turn
  4. whip with outside turn