Jen Reed

Project manager, event organizer, teacher, competitor and coach – Jen loves being involved in the dance community in all the ways!  

Jen began dancing Balboa & Lindy Hop in the early 2000s with Valerie Salstrom, Joel Plys & Get Hep Swing in Cleveland, Ohio. 

Currently she lives in Austin, TX where she teaches local classes, coaches the Capitol City Feetwarmers, and sits on the advisory boards for The Austin Swing Syndicate and Hot Rhythm Foundation. She also co-organizes the California Balboa Classic and Hot Rhythm Holiday.

Jen has a classic, graceful style. She highly values partner connection, the “swing” feel, and connection to the music. A long time musician, Jen likes to bring a bit of music education to her classes, and she strives to pass on the things she loves about dance to students and ultimately help others fall in love with Swing dancing. 

Jen loves to talk shop! Hit her up if you want to talk classes, contests, scene-building, organizing, etc. 

Matt Mitchell

Since 1998, Matt has been honing his dance skills; starting with East Coast, he quickly moved into Lindy Hop and other Swing-era dances–with very short detours into Ballroom and Blues. He’s studied with top Lindy Hop and Balboa contemporaries as well being influenced by the original greats (Frankie Manning, Dean Collins, Maxie Dorf and Willy Desatoff). 

From 2007 through 2011, he was one of the lead instructors for Get Hep Swing (assisting the incomparable Valerie Salstrom) and helped choreograph Hustle and award winning Swing routines. He strives to bring solid fundamentals and just-the-right amount of connection to Lindy Hop and Balboa, while creating room for musicality and playfulness. In 2011, he relocated to his hometown of Austin, Texas, where he’s enjoyed teaching Lindy Hop and Balboa for Four on the Floor and the Austin Swing Syndicate, and is a contributing instructor for BalAustin. 

Nationally and internationally, Matt has been an instructor at Boogie By The Bay, the Eastern Balboa Championships, Dance Renaissance, and the Canadian Balboa Championships, Northwest Balboa Fest, Hot Rhythm Holiday, BalAstOff, Rocky Mountain Balboa Blowout, GLBE, and the California Balboa Championships, among other great events. He competes regularly in Balboa, consistently making the finals, invitationals, and has several placements at ABW, EBC, CalBal, ILHC, and Camp Hollywood. 

He was also a stand-in for Kevin Bacon in Footloose.* 

*Recreating the famous dance scene in a skit. C’mon, he’s not that old.