Judi Rivkin
English Country and Contra Dance Leader
Based in Central New Jersey		 photo of English Country Dance leader Judi Rivkin by Jim Dugas

Email Judi Rivkin at
judi.rivkin-AT SIGN-alumni.usc.edu

rivkinetic.org

Past Engagements

Upcoming Engagements

Judi Rivkin has been dancing all her life, and started on her path as a dance leader when she moved to Seattle from New York in 1991. Her weekly English country dance workshops have been the source not only for dancers of all experience levels to grow and expand their knowledge and repertoire, but also for several Seattle bands to develop.

Judi's goals as a dance leader are to maximize dancing time through initial clear and concise teaching; offer "style points" to raise the level of dance; calling in such a way that dancers feel she is their “personal prompter” – hearing the calls if you need to, without intruding on the music; and creating an atmosphere that is comfortable for all, and conducive to goodwill and learning. She never forgets that dancing and socializing in the community is meant to be fun, that discretionary time (and funds) are at a premium, and that there's more than one way to learn a dance.

Judi's main influences in dance leadership have been Genny Shimer, Sue Salmons, Brad Foster, Fried de Metz Herman, Bruce Hamilton, Helene Cornelius, Christine Helwig, and her parents, who met while folkdancing in New York City. Her dad (a former Pinewoods camper and lifeguard) was at one time a ballroom dance teacher at Arthur Murray's own Fifth Avenue studio; later on, for many years, he led square and round dancing.

In November 2001, Judi left Seattle for the East Coast to be closer to her young nieces and nephews. She currently resides in Ewing, NJ (between Princeton and Trenton), and is an active participant in dance communities up and down the coast.

Her latest endeavor has been a series of English Country Dance classes taught through the Princeton Adult School. She and Sue Dupré began the "English Country Dance: Jane Austen and Beyond" class in Fall of 2005; Judi continued in the spring term, and the Spring 2009 class is scheduled to run once a week, on eight Tuesday evenings in February and March. The class grew out of a series of workshops for newcomers to English Country Dancing, entitled "Jane Austen on the Dance Floor," co-led by Sue Dupré, which ran weekly in Princeton in the Autumn of 2004. That series ended with a gala evening, "The Austen-Tatious Assembly."

In April 2001, Judi went on a 10-day tour with the Tricky Brits/Bag O'Tricks, a Seattle ECD and contra band, performing at the New England Folk Festival; Amherst, MA; and White Plains, NY. In September 2001, she led a dance weekend in Victoria, BC. And in October, she was dance master at the Regency Ball, a highlight of the Jane Austen Society of North America's annual meeting in Seattle.

Nearly every Valentine's Day for the last several years, Judi has presented an evening of “Romantic English Country Dances in Waltz & Triple Time,” and December would not be the same without her dance evening toasting the holidays. She led a Regency Ball for the Seattle “Somewhere In Time” chapter, and taught a special dance session for the Jane Austen Society's Seattle branch. Judi has been on staff at the English-Scottish Session at Pinewoods Camp in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and is delighted to be joining a fabulous staff for Family Week at Pinewoods in Summer 2009, July 18-25.

Judi is currently heading up program for the Princeton-area Head for the Hills dance weekend, and is a long-time member of Lambertville Country Dancers, the Country Dance & Song Society and CDS Boston Centre. She helped produce the Fried-for-All Northwest in Seattle, June 16-18, 2006 (and also in 1996). She was also a founding board member of Country Dance*New York. In addition to her work as a dance leader, she has produced many English and contra dance events, weekends, and English country balls in both New York and Seattle, as well as a couple of dance websites, including one featuring several animated ECD figures, with music by Bare Necessities. She is web mistress for the Lambertville Country Dancers website.

When not dancing, Judi enjoys time with her nieces and nephews, sings, is the events manager for a program at Princeton University, is an ardent baseball (and USC football) fan, and works on websites.

If you would like to contact her about leading a dance for your group, please email her at judi.rivkin-AT SIGN-alumni.usc.edu

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UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS:
 
last updated 3 July 2009