Our Teachers

Since 1997, Big City Swing has been Chicago’s destination for Swing and Lindy Hop instruction and performance. Our staff members study extensively with their peers and highly revered national and international instructors. In addition to completing the Big City Swing Teacher Training Program, Julee screens each staff member for patience, mastery of the material, and of course, a wicked sense of humor. We hope you get to meet each of our fabulous teachers.

Presenting in alphabetical order…

	Andrew Twiss – Senior instructor Andrew has been teaching and performing with Big City Swing since it was founded in 1997. Andrew’s keen sense of connection and incredible creativity has awarded him an international reputation as a fantastic dancer. Andrew is also a performance team coach.
	Christopher Aubin Chris is a true product of the Chicago Swing scene. Chris has studied extensively with the top dancers in Chicago since 1999 and has taught at DePaul University, The University of Chicago, Summerdance, and the Willowbrook Ballroom. As a teacher Chris brings an educated historical perspective to his classes and most importantly, he’s funny.
	Jackie George Jackie took her first lindy class back in 2000 at Northwestern University and was immediately hooked. Since then, she has studied several different dances, from ballroom to “Britney”, but Lindy will always be her first love. Jackie is known for her patience and enthusiasm in class, and those performance faces.
	James Pustejovsky After some early misadventures with ballroom dancing, James learned his first swing steps in 1999 and was soon hooked for life. He has been teaching and performing with Big City Swing since 2007, including choreographing and teaching full performance routines for the last two years. He also DJs at Big City Swing, Fizz, and most anywhere else that people don’t mind dancing to music that their grandparents thought was hip.
	Jenna Stworzyjanek – Programming & Special Events Director Jenna began her teaching at the University of Chicago and joined Big City Swing’s team in 2005. She specializes in Swing, Lindy, Balboa and Wedding Dance. Her teaching is concise and powerful and her supportive nature instills confidence in all of her students.
	John Holmstrom John began dancing in 2005 in Chicagoland and joined the Swing Society at the University of Illinois in 2006, where he grew as a dancer, organizer, DJ, and instructor. In 2009, he began traveling nationally to further his dancing through classes and competition, both individually and as a member of the Hoosier Hot Shots. Now that he is returning to Chicago, he is excited to share what a happy dance Lindy Hop is with all of you!
	Laura Przybysz – Studio Manager Laura is excited to be learning more about Swing Dance, Chicago, and contemporary online scheduling software with every passing day in her first office job in the city since graduating from the University of Michigan with a degree in theatre in 2009. She appreciates fine cheeses of both the edible and comical variety, but is terrified of snakes and people who think dancing is a crime.
	Louis Parks Lou is one of the incredible Swing I instructors. He has a wonderful rapport with the students and a great ability to break the movements down into understandable and doable chunks of information. And he dances with all the ladies on graduation night.
	Luke Holladay Luke has been dancing swing for over seven years and is very happy to have found his dance home at Big City Swing. He enjoys the many challenges of teaching and performing, and plans to be a lindyhopper for the rest of his life.
	Max Keirn-Whiting Max began dancing in the Chicagoland area in February of 2006. His love for the dance and its historical background grew into a search for instructors who specialize in historically accurate forms of dance. He has traveled nationally and internationally to learn more about his own technique and the techniques of original dancers. And we’re so excited he’s sharing that knowledge with us.
	Melissa Rutherfoord Melissa was introduced to lindy hop in 1997 in her hometown of Phoenix, AZ. She moved to Tucson in 2001 and briefly joined the University of Arizona’s swing dance club, the SwingCats. She took a hiatus from dancing and moved to Chicago to establish her career as a theatrical scenic artist. She rediscovered her love for lindy in 2010 through Big City Swing and has danced nonstop ever since. Instructing since 2012, she is grateful to have the opportunity to share her love of lindy hop with those discovering it for the first time, as well as those finding their way back.
	Nora McMahon Nora started swing dancing in 1997 in Philly, where she soon started teaching Lindy Hop. She moved to San Francisco’s eclectic dance scene in 1999, where she trained and performed for 7 years with Loose Change Dance Company, under the direction of the world renowned Eric Fenn. Nora looks forward to bringing her teaching experience to BCS.
	Stephen Cavill Stephen has been living in Chicago since 2010 but has been dancing regularly since 2007. Stephen enjoys moving to music that has good, strong beats – the kind of music that makes him want to dance! He likes learning and teaching new moves, refining his and others technique and making dancing feel fun.