Hello and welcome to Swing Dance Galway!

Norma Owens started teaching swing dancing in 2011 to rekindle the enjoyment of swing era dances in the city of Galway and beyond. She frequently travels to events all around Europe and the United States to work with the best instructors and dancers in the world. She also competes regularly at international dance competitions, and has placed at several contests in both Europe and America - including the prestigious All Balboa Weekend in Cleveland, Ohio. (Find out more by visiting the Contests & Performances page.) As an instructor, she is known for her cheeky sense of fun, and her background in education means that her focus is always on making the dances that she loves accessible to all. She is privileged to have been invited to teach dancing and to DJ at dance events all over Ireland, as well as the UK, Canada, and the USA.

So come along and let's put a swing in your step!

If you would like to book dance classes or workshops, or to avail of a specialist swing music DJ service, we would love to hear from you. For enquiries, please use the contact form and you will receive a response within 24 hours … unless we're attending a dance event, in which case you will hear from us as soon as possible thereafter. 

Dozens of dancers from all over the world have taken to the streets of Galway in celebration of an almost century-old dance craze: the Charleston.

'I Charleston’ is a swing dancing phenomenon that has spread around the globe in recent years, from Japan to San Francisco, from Stockholm to Australia. Now the spectacle has come to Ireland with the production of I Charleston Galway!

The 'I Charleston The World' project sees dancers perform traditional jazz steps at famous landmarks of a particular city or country. The performances are recorded and compiled into a mini-film format to be published online through video-sharing websites.

The soundtrack for the I Charleston Galway film is ‘Django’s Tiger’, a manouche jazz composition by Django Reinhardt performed by local band, I Saw Stars. The track is from the band’s debut album entitled ‘Django Abú’.

I Charleston Galway is the latest initiative by Swing Jam, an organisation dedicated to fostering swing-era culture in Galway and around Ireland, working in conjunction with SwingStep (Germany), Holy Lindy Land (Israel), as well as the Galway-based Vaudeville Vamps and the McDonagh-Byrne School of Irish Dancing. In total, over sixty dancers were involved, coming not only from Galway and all over Ireland to take part, but also the UK, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Israel, Australia, and Tasmania. Every person gave their time and expertise voluntarily, driven by sheer love for the dance and their desire to share the spirit of the swing dancing community with the wider world.

"Galway gets in on the I Charleston action. I like the effort they put into to not only making it city specific, but also culturally specific to Ireland. Great job. Bonus Pro Tip: It's a great idea to work with local musicians and get them involved in projects like this." Jerry Almonte, Wandering & Pondering.

"I wanted to say thank you again for contributing "I Charleston Galway" to the contest! We had more than 100 people at the screening to watch the films! The audience was very appreciative of the beauty of the city as captured in the film, and there was much amusement at the calling of "Shark!" at the end! I also heard people mention that they liked the music that you used, and that you were able to include the tap/step dancers into the film!" Alex Yan, 2013 Jazz Dance Film Festival.

Beginners Welcome

We always look forward to meeting new people!

Follow this link for some extra tips if this is going to be Your First Dance Class. 

Also, do be sure to check out our Facebook page for week-to-week updates.

Please note that it is not necessary to register in advance for classes - you may also just come along on the first night of the course and join in the fun! 

Course Descriptions

Registration for our current series of classes is now closed. Please check back for information about upcoming courses.