Austin Swing Syndicate

Disclaimer: I haven’t danced here in at least 4 years, so a lot of things have probably changed. But I plan on going back soon, and I’ll update then.
I remember this place being awesome! It was a lot of fun, and this coming from someone who can’t dance his way out of a paper bag. The lessons were cheap, like 5 or 6 bucks, and you got an hour or so of instruction before actually getting on the dance floor.
The atmosphere is a lot of fun, pretty chill. You can dress however you want, but I remember most people tended to dress up a little bit, get in the swanky mood.
It’s great for beginners and experts alike. It’s all about learning this dance (a *real* dance) and then practicing with and meeting new people.

If you aren’t sure about swing dancing but want to give it a whirl, this is the place to go. Forget going to dance studios or heaven-​forbid the ballroom dance studios where you’ll spend $ 20 – 50 an hour for lessons. Just try this place out first. Oh and just to clarify this place is for swing DANCING (not swingERS). Sometimes people hear «swing» and their minds go to the gutter.
The Austin Swing Syndicate (non-​profit) holds their event every Thursday at the Texas Women’s Federation building (the Fed). The schedule is pretty easy:
8:15pm to 9pm — Beginner swing dance lessons
8:15pm to Midnight — Social dancing (usually DJ’ed swing music, but sometimes there’s a live band)
The lessons are geared towards getting new dancers dancing and able to partner dance. Now here’s the best part, it’s only $ 6 to get the lesson (and the social dance is included in the price). That’s the cost of a coffee at Starbucks! Totally worth it. Oh and these lessons aren’t taught by Joe-​Schmo that learned stuff on youtube, but by local professional dance teachers who volunteer their time! It’s a good way to meet new people at the dance lesson before you have to social dance.
The price of admission of $ 5 gives you the lessons + the social dance (so you can practice what you learned!). Also admission gets cheaper if you become a member of the Syndicate. If you become a member the admission is $ 3! (memberships are $ 20 for Students and $ 30 for non-​students).
Oh and did I mention that main ballroom is 4,000 square feet of oak floors? It’s pretty nice dance floors. :)
Overall, a very good way to spend an evening out. The tl;dr version:
— Cheap quality lessons ($ 6!)
— Nice location
— healthy and good for you (it’s exercise)
— meet new people
Oh and pro tip: park caddy corner to the Fed at Free-​Wheeling. The Syndicate has the lot on Thursdays for it’s attendees.
Quick Edit: Forgot to mention they have some live band nights sometimes which is great since it’s rare to have a LARGE ballroom with a jazz band performing only to dancers. The price is a bit more expensive than the usual $ 3/​$ 6. It’s more like $ 7 for members and $ 9 for non-​members.
Also they are CASH only so make sure you have cash so you don’t have to make that trip to the ATM. The front desk people say they’ll be doing credit cards in the near future.

As someone who used to swing dance YEARS ago, I’d been looking for a place to get back into it, and after hearing about the Austin Swing Syndicate for a couple of years, I decided to bite the bullet and check it out… All I can say is that now I’m kicking myself for not getting to the Fed sooner.
Great combination of new and experienced dancers; everyone is friendly and welcoming, a wonderful group of partners to dance with, and everyone was just having fun, no jealousy or cliques that I could see.
Really, a great place to swing, whether you’re a newbie or been dancing for years. I had a blast and now can’t wait for Thursday to hurry up and get here!

SWINGERS class… My wife and I started a beginners east coast swing class last week with instructors Sally and Johnny, what a hoot! The instructors are patient and provide tons of feedback all the while putting you at ease with their disarming charm. There is even a dance after the classes for everyone to attend and practice what you’ve just learned. Get off your fat tooshies and learn to dance at the Austin Swing Syndicate!

The Austin Swing Syndicate is amazing! They host this dance on Thursday’s where everyone from around Texas comes in just to swing dance the night away! The beginner lessons at 8 are so helpful to getting all the kinks worked out before the music starts too! Not only is it amazing exercise for all ages, but it’s a great place to be hosted in the Texas Federation of Women’s Clubs mansion, it’s beautiful. I recommend it for everyone.

The Syndicate dances are an institution of the Austin swing/​lindy scene. They’ve been going since 1999, and are still growing. I started going to the Thursday night dances at The Fed almost as soon as they started, though I took a hiatus for several years when I moved away to go to college. Now that I’m back, I go out almost every week! It’s a great group of people and an easy place to make friends.
There’s a fantastic system in place for processing beginner dancers… and the consistency of this system over the past 10 years is definitely a major reason why swing dancing survived its «fad» status in Austin, and continues to attract new dancers. People hear about the Thursday dance, come early for the 8:15 beginner’s lesson, get hooked, and everyone tells them to take lessons from Four on the Floor (classes are conveniently held at The Fed on Tuesday nights). There are several great options in town for learning how to dance, but Four on the Floor has been going since 1997 (yes, I took their early classes in the Starlite Gallery), and is definitely a crowd favorite. There’s also The Lindy Project, Go Dance, not to mention tons of private instructors.
The Thursday night dances are all-​ages, smoke and alcohol-​free, set in a beautiful historic mansion. No partner necessary! Cheap to get in, especially if you pay for a yearly membership. The Fed has a small private lot on 24^th St., as well as some street parking, but most people try to park across the street at the bike shop’s parking lot. There’s usually a DJ, but sometimes there’s a live band for special events. There’s also a side room for dances other than swing/​lindy, usually balboa, blues, or west coast swing. Variety is the spice of life, after all! There’s a beginner lesson for these alternate dances at 8:15, at the same time as the beginner swing lesson (in another room).
Austin Swing Syndicate is involved in more than just the weekly dance. Special events like The Austin Lindy Exchange, workshops, competitions, and more bring dancers from around the world to Austin.
I gave them a four out of five stars primarily because the very consistency which makes them such a great avenue for getting new dancers dancing, means that it can also be a rut, and people sometimes forget that Austin is the Live Music Capitol of the World. So many people only go to the Thursday night dance, which is safe, but sometimes boring. Please, visit
and go dance to some live music!

The Austin Swing Syndicate is your source for swing in Austin. I’m a beginner, but have been interested in swing dancing since high school. This organization has various events around Austin every week for dancing. Their weekly dance is on Thursday at the Federation of Women’s Clubs at 24^th and San Gabriel. Pay $ 5 at the door, take a free lesson at 8:15, and then dance your heart out ’til midnight. The venue is perfect for these dances– it really matches the atmosphere. The Syndicate also has tons of other dances and parties around town for lots of other kinds of dancing like Lindy and Blues. Check out their website for more info– it’s really informative and well-​designed.
I went to my first Thursday dance last night, and it was a blast. My husband and I took an intro course as an informal UT class, and our instructor recommended the class try out our skills here. It took us almost two years to do it, so we were way rusty, but no one cared. There were tons of people, equal gender ratios, and no snobbery. Everyone danced with everyone, and I didn’t see anyone get turned down. Some of the dancers are fantastic and really fun to watch, so even being a wallflower is entertaining. I’ll be back, for sure.