Posted on May 11, 2024
When the Elite Swing Dance Academy opened its doors in Munich's Ludwigsvorstadt district this March, founders Clara Brenner and Marcus Hoffmann had a specific goal: to create the training hub for competitors in the 2024 Swing Dance Showdown. With the competition set to begin on June 14, that ambition is now being put to the test—and the early numbers suggest it is paying off.
From Empty Warehouse to Training Headquarters
The academy occupies a converted warehouse at Lindwurmstraße 89, a five-minute walk from Sendlinger Tor. The 400-square-meter space features professional-grade sprung maple floors, floor-to-ceiling mirrors, and a Meyer Sound Constellation system—the same model installed at Munich's Gasteig concert hall. Brenner, a former sound engineer, made the investment after touring European dance schools and finding that standard PA systems routinely swallowed the syncopated rhythms crucial to Lindy Hop and Charleston.
"We wanted a room where you could hear every brush, every skip, every pause exactly as you intended," Brenner said. "If the sound lies to you, your timing lies to the judges."
The Instructors
The academy has hired four full-time instructors with combined competition experience spanning three continents:
- Elena Voss, 2019 European Lindy Hop Champion and former choreographer for the Berlin Swing Revue
- Diego Morales, three-time finalist at the International Lindy Hop Championships in Washington, D.C.
- Yuki Tanaka, 2022 Asian Swing Dance Open champion in the solo Charleston division
- Brenner herself, who competed on the European circuit between 2014 and 2019 before retiring with a knee injury
Voss leads the academy's advanced Lindy Hop program; Morales and Tanaka split Charleston and solo jazz duties. Group classes run six days per week, with private coaching available by appointment.
Morales, who relocated from Madrid in February, said the pre-Showdown atmosphere already distinguishes Munich from other training centers he has worked in. "In most places, you train for a contest and go home," he said. "Here, people stay after class to watch each other, to steal steps, to argue about tempo. That density of focus changes how fast you improve."
Who Is Coming, and When
The 2024 Swing Dance Showdown, now in its seventh year, will draw an estimated 340 competitors from 28 countries to Munich's TonHalle, according to organizer Stefan Fuchs. The event runs from June 14 to June 16 and includes strict tempo divisions for Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, and solo jazz. Spectator tickets start at €25 for day passes and are available through the showdown's website. Preliminary rounds are open to the public; finals on Saturday evening are already 80% sold out as of this writing.
Roughly 60 of the registered competitors have booked structured training packages at the Elite Swing Dance Academy, Fuchs confirmed. These range from weekend crash courses to four-week intensive programs that include choreography feedback, video analysis, and simulated judge panels.
Swedish competitor Linn Ekström, 26, arrived in Munich on April 22 for a five-week academy package ahead of competing in the advanced Lindy Hop division. She chose Munich over training camps in London and Stockholm primarily on instructor reputation. "I watched Elena's YouTube breakdowns of 1930s footwork for two years," Ekström said. "Being able to work with her directly, to have her stop me mid-count and say 'no, that variation telegraphs too early'—that's not something you get from a video."
Beyond the Competition
The Showdown's organizers have also expanded non-competitive programming this year. Friday and Saturday evenings include social dances open to all levels, and Sunday morning features a beginner-friendly crash course taught by Hoffmann. Academy drop-in classes, priced at €18 per session, will continue through the summer regardless of the event outcome.
"We're not building a contest factory," Hoffmann said. "We're building a school. The Showdown happens to be the moment that proves whether the room works."
Written by Jane Doe
