“Swing dance” is a group of dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s-1940s, with the origins of each dance predating the popular “swing era”. During the swing era, there were hundreds of styles of swing dancing, but those that have survived beyond that era include: Lindy Hop, Balboa, Collegiate Shag, and Lindy Charleston.
Jean Phelps Veloz, the icon of the Hollywood-Style Lindy to new generations of swing dancers, provides a living bridge from the Los Angeles dance scene of the 1940’s to the present-day Lindy Hop revival that has swept the United States and the rest of the world since the late 1990’s.
Since the 1940’s, Jen Phelps Veloz has been dazzling audiences with her dance moves. From Lindy Hop to the Jitterbug to ballroom dancing, there was nothing Veloz couldn’t do, which is why she had such an illustrious career until her retirement in 1981 after the death of her beloved husband.
She stopped dancing until 1992, when she was approached by Rudy Linan to come out of retirement. Rudy was a swing dancer from Las Vegas who was working on a swing documentary, and encouraged Jean to start dancing again.
It’s clear from the following clip from her 90th birthday celebration that she hasn’t lost her passion or her talent!
At 90-years-young, Veloz is an inspiration.
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