BLUES IN COUPLE

Shivani is a born and raised South African of Indian descent and began dancing (Bharatha Natyam and other Indian dances) even before she could walk. She discovered dancing to swing and jazz music while living in London but found a passion in dancing to the blues and has since been a part of the London The Down and Outs blues dance troupe and has won or placed in a number of competitions in Europe. Shivani works as a doctor in a busy hospital and believes that dancing can be medicine in motion. She appreciates the varied range of emotions that can be evoked by blues musicians as it invites a more mindful connection between yourself, the music and with a like community of people. 

Stephen is a fresh young talent emerging from the new generation of Lindy Hoppers. Balancing successfully a career as a Mechanical Engineer with his artistic pursuits this UCL alumnus is equally at home tutoring STEM subjects as he is dancing in front of the camera shooting tv commercials.  He is also a Parkour and Wing Chun Kung Fu practitioner.  In 2017, Stephen traveled to South Africa to spend a month working with the charity Sing Inchanga. There he shared skills with local children & young people across their own dance styles and lindy hop. Following three years representing Swing Patrol as a core teacher, Stephen began his apprenticeship with Angela in 2018 to delve deeper into the roots of jazz dance, and further lindy hop education from Ron Leslie.