Lynn Schwab …The Total Tap Dancer
Lynn on drums
Lynn Schwab distinguishes herself from most other professional tap dancers by using her total body in her performances. Her excellent body alignment and placement gives her a vibrant look. She dances in a smooth, effortless and natural style. Her dancing from head to toe makes her a joy to watch.
"Lynn is one of those special tap dancers who is as interested in refining the way rhythm sings through the body as through the feet," says Billy Siegenfeld, director of Jump Rhythm Jazz Project. "That is, she engages in what I call ‘full bodied rhythm-making': the goal of all Jump Rhythm dancing."
Schwab was born outside Chicago. She attended Washington University in St. Louis for undergraduate school and Physical Therapy training. The knowledge she gained as a physical therapist gave her an edge in seeing and understanding body motion and dynamics that she used in her later dancing career.
After she graduated in 1982, Schwab moved to Boston. She was not a dancer and began as a novice dancer by taking Jazzercise. Her teacher invited her to take her jazz class. Schwab studied jazz in Boston from 1983 to 1985, but was such a beginner that she did not even know about the Leon Collins' tap studio there. She moved to Santa Barbara, California in 1985, and took her first tap class at age 33 from Joy Hewitt. Schwab still remembers some of the techniques she learned there.
A group of friends who had been in Santa Barbara's Santa Civic Light Opera production of "42nd Street" formed a small tap company called Taps, Ltd. They invited Schwab to join them in producing a regional Tap Day concert. Schwab attended her first tap festival with their group -- The Portland Tap Dance Festival in 1993 -- only seven months after she started tap dancing.
Tap enchanted her. "I was totally overwhelmed and mesmerized at the same time," Schwab recalled. "It was exciting and intimidating and everything in between... I was taking private lessons with every teacher that came into town to teach a workshop (Sam Weber, Fred Strickler, Mark Mendonca, Jeannie Hill) and went to the Portland Tap Festival in 1994 and started going to New York City to study with Barbara Duffy. I would practice anytime I had free time. I had keys to the dance studio because I used to teach jazz class there."
Up until that point, tap was just a hobby. But then, in addition to her physical therapy job, Schwab started teaching tap. She moved to New York City in 1997 because she wanted to be able to study tap dancing more. "I had no intention of being a professional tap dancer; I just wanted to be good," Schwab states. "I continued to take classes mostly with Barbara [Duffy], also with Brenda [Bufalino] and Jeannie Hill."
Margaret Morrison asked Schwab to help with American Tap Dance Orchestra workshops and to substitute for her in her classes at Steps in New York City. Now Schwab teaches nine classes a week at Steps.
During her first few years in New York, Schwab worked with Jeannie Hill, Susan Hebach, Feraba-Aftican Rhythm Tap and Tina Baird.
"Not only is she cool and knows how to swing but Schwab understands deeply the meaning of community," says Jeannie Hill. "Her generosity is evident the minute you look at her résumé or meet her in the studio. No wonder she's so busy. Lynn is a choreographer's dream to work with: talented, smart and a risk taker; and as a fellow performer she is a delight -- present, dynamic and ready to share with a twinkle in her eye."
"Around 2000, Barbara Duffy asked me and Cintia Chamecki and Flavia Costa to learn some of her choreography," Schwab says. "In 2001, Barbara, Cintia and Pia Neises, a great tap dancer from Germany, and I performed together at the Tap City Festival. I guess that was the start of Barbara Duffy and Company."
"Lynn Schwab is one of my most favorite people to dance with, besides being a great friend," says Barbara Duffy. "After working with her for so many years, I have seen her grow into a wonderful tap dancer. On stage, she is very expressive and dances with everything she's got. She is always challenging herself, musically and artistically. She is also a dedicated teacher. Her classes are fun and inspiring. Lynn is an incredible asset to my company, ‘Barbara Duffy and Company.' She is always fun to work with, contributes great ideas, and is very supportive. I am so proud of all that she has accomplished and I am so happy to be able to dance with her."
In 2005 Max Pollak invited Schwab to be in his new choreography for the Tap City Show, "Viis."
Max Pollak says: "Lynn Schwab is one of a kind. A consummate, experienced professional, her investment in a project is routinely beyond what anyone can ask for. An open, adventurous spirit, and truly supportive, knowledgeable colleague, her dancing always resonates with the entire audience as well as the ensemble because her energy is so inviting and all-inclusive, radiating confidence. She is like your most trusted companion, always watching our back while she brilliantly and effortlessly takes care of her own job in the front line, meanwhile boosting everyone else's performance with all she's got. I consider myself very lucky to have her in my group."
When Schwab moved to New York she had no intention of becoming a professional tap dancer, especially after starting so late in life, but "here I am," Schwab says. "I know how it happened, but I often wonder why it happened. It's clear to me that the universe or my higher power of God thinks that this is my path. I wonder why, but I don't question it anymore. My purpose is to be a tap dancer and accept all the responsibility that goes with that. I guess that tap dancing is a way for me to continue to grow into the human being I want to be and to help others do the same."
Of her adopted home, Schwab said, ""I love New York City. I love the energy of the city. I feel very relaxed here. I love that I live in such a culturally diverse city and get to meet people from all over the world. I love sitting on the subway with people of all colors, backgrounds, cultures, ages, etc. I loved that I am never more than a short walk to grab a cup of coffee or a yogurt. … Some days I walk down the street and realize, ‘Wow, I'm living and working as a tap dancer in New York City.' It still surprises me.""
It doesn't surprise anyone who has ever taken one of her classes, seen her dance, or even just listened to her talk about her passion for tap. They say that you get out of something what you put into it. Lynn Schwab leads a very rich life of tap.
Read more of Melba's columns on www.melbasdance.com.