Well, another Edge Dance Convention is in the books! This was my third time attending in the 4 years since the event started and, The Edge just gets bigger and better each year! Following is my recap and experience of my weekend and while I will give a fairly exhaustive run down like I did last year, I’ll also highlight my highlights!
The Edge is a dance convention that is so packed with activity that it is hard to convey everything that happened since it’s impossible for any one person to take in everything–many things happen simultaneously! So, this is my weekend, which was probably different than a lot of people’s that were at the same event!
In a nutshell, The Edge has something for everyone. Young or old, new to dancing or seasoned. Focused on line dancing or partner dancing! It is ALL there at the Edge! Adia Nuno (founder, and proprietor of the Edge) continues to hone her command of organizing and putting on an amazing dance event for so many to enjoy.
The CRC Horse Ranch is a beautiful real ranch and adds a unique vibe to Adia’s event. When there, I feel like a kid back at summer camp except it’s a dance camp, and we’re grown-ups! And it’s more fun!
Last year’s late winter/pre-spring rain was a challenge, and this year it seemed we were on the same exact weather but Adia and the event organizers were even more prepared this time around.
A surprising and cool change this year was making use of the two giant covered arenas. And two more large tents. This helped shelter us from the rain and kept us dancing no matter what mother nature was bringing our way! I also liked all the AstroTurf that helped us clean our boots super quickly before walking out onto the floors–so smart!
Another change and a great addition to the workshops this year was the “Beginner Barn” dance floor where Marie Kelly and several other instructors taught several beginner line dances.
In total, there were six dance floors (and seven if you count the YESSS! Deck that was also used on Sunday). Below is a map of the CRC Ranch with the approximate positions of the different dance floors.
ADIA DANCE
With The EDGE Dance Event, Adia has created an extraordinary dance convention experience now held annually in Temecula. The EDGE exists for any and all to enjoy and grow in their own passion for all things dancing–to dance “ALL OUT, AS IS!”
Check out Adia’s site for all the other things she offers and has going on!
www.adiadance.com
The Edge Dance Event NEWS!
EARLY REGISTRATION for The Edge Dance Event, 2024 is NOW OPEN
March 8-10, 2024 Friday-Sunday In Temecula California!
3 DAYS, 2 NIGHTS OF WORKSHOPS, AND OPEN DANCING!
Held at the beautiful California Ranch Company
See more information including registration online at www.theedegedancevent.com
Table of Contents
The 2023 Edge Dance Event
This year’s Edge Dance Event went three days, two nights and featured line dance & partner dance workshops, live music, open social dance floors, dance competitions with prizes, a great Saturday night show, and much much more! This year it was held March 10-12, 2023, once again in beautiful Temecula at the very cool California Ranch Company. The dancing spread over a total of 6 dedicated dance floors.
Throughout the weekend there were four meetups where we were shown demos of the different workshops and dances available to learn. These always took place in the CRC (California Ranch Company) Barn–the main place of gathering during the event.
Each instructor or instructor duo did a brief demo of the dance or dance patterns they were going to teach. This is helpful to us who may be having difficulty deciding what classes to choose!
As mentioned above each day began with a welcome and demos of what that day held for us. Below is a video compilation from Friday afternoon as the whole event began. Philip Victor enthusiastically kicked off the weekend and introduced 25+ instructor demos for us.
The above compilation of a few moments of lessons is about all I took videos of–I was enjoying the event too much! But it was great taking classes from Candy Sherwin, Cindi Massengale, Leslie Perez, Adia & also (a new instructor to the Edge) Jen Workman, and many more! But read on for more about the classes I took etc.
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My Edge Experience
Over the course of the three days, I attended 16 workshops.
Even though I attended something almost every hour, I was still disappointed at what I missed. There was so much to do – you just had to choose something!
A lot of the weekend was very spontaneous, things are happening so fast, and as you see friends and connect and talk about what everyone is doing or not doing you just go with the flow. Before you know it, you are learning something you had no plan to learn!
Classes I attended:
| Line Dancing – 5 |
| Country Two Step – 4 |
| Country Swing – 3 |
| Cowboy Cha Cha Partner Dance (Jennifer W.) |
| Horseshoe Shuffle Partner Dance (Jennifer W.) |
| Bollywood with Neha (from India) |
| WTF Dance Is This? from Russ Bradchullis |
The most interesting of these moments was finding myself at Neha’s Bollywood class on Sunday! (See the video above and Sunday’s recap below). In general, for me, this year was even more fun than last year. I knew more people from the local dance community that came, and we had a blast.
My favorite moments were probably the classes I was in with people I knew and then all the open social dancing Saturday night. Also, many of us honored local Long Beach line dance instructor Cindi Massengale, all wearing T-shirts with her logo on them! I got into a couple of the many group shots we did over the weekend. Check out the one that Bodie, the CRC Ranch dog poked his head into!
Recaps of most of the classes I took are here below. Three videos–each a compilation of the classes for that day.
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The Edge Dance Event by the Numbers!
Here are some quick numbers, just to give an idea of what the weekend was like.
3 Days of Workshops, 2 Nights of Open Dancing, and/or Special Events, Show & Competitions
6 Dance Floors
27 Instructors
4 DJs
88 Workshops
29 Line Dance Workshops in which about 30 line dances were taught
30 Different Line Dances (click to see the list)
49 Partner Dance Workshops
10 Misc. Workshops (Such as Burlesque, Bollywood, Technique & Tune Up classes)
1 Great Special Show Saturday Night
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Instructors & DJs
The Edge Dance Event featured 27 great instructors and/or DJs. See the list below and click on the instructor’s name or team to pop down to the summary of what workshops they each taught this year at the event. To read more about the 2023 instructors check out some of their bios over at The Edge Website.
Adia Dance (California)
Russ Bradchulis (California)
Joel Bartlett (Arizona)
Philip Victor Ongert (California)
Mackensie Kiester (California)
Sarah Stokes (California)
Candy Sherwin (California)
Cindi Massengale (California)
Marie Kelly (California)
Aleigha Easton (California)
Travis Swartzlander (Arizona)
Jen Workman (Seattle)
Gabriel Sebastian (Arizona)
Robert Royston (New York)
Robert Campos Jr. (Arizona)
Brigette Campos (Arizona)
Brunno Cezar Theororo (California)
Yana Trubin (California)
Souraya Lorenz (Louisiana)
Stefanie Vasturo (Florida)
Juan Aguirre (California)
Jason Peterson (Massachusetts)
Aaron & Pam Miller (Texas)
Sarah & Chris Ivy of Red Dirt Dancing (Texas)
Leslie Perez (California)
Neha (India)
Herman Charles III
Darius Zi (Canada)
DJs
Christian “DJ Keahi” Summerfruit (California)
Rick Dominguez (California)
Ron Major (California)
Dustin “DJ Dvious” Valcalda (California)
Marie Kelly (California)
Jason Peterson (Massachusetts)
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Adia Dance
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Sounds Like Something I’d Do | ADV | Adia Nuno & Satu Ketellapper |
Adia Dance & Joel Bartlett
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Dips & Leans–Spice Up Your Dancing…Safely | BEG |
| Country Swing | BEG |
| Country Swing | INT |
Adia Dance & Gabriel Sebastian
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Country Swing–”Baseball Throws” | ADV |
Adia Dance & Russ Bradchulis
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Two Step–”Float on Hardwood with 2-Step Techniques” | BEG |
| Technique–”Partner Connection: How to Make Each Dance AMAZING” | ALL |
| Dips & Leans | INT |
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Russ Bradchulis
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Technique–WTF Dance Is This? | ALL |
Russ Bradchulis & Souraya Lorenz
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Waltz | BEG |
Souraya Lorenz
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Technique–Simplifying Turns | ALL |
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Joel Bartlett & Sarah Stokes
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Country Swing–”The Basics of Country Swing” | BEG |
Joel Bartlett & Burgundy Weathersbee
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Country Swing – “What Is Country Swing” | BEG |
| Country Swing | BEG |
| Country Swing–”Counter Balance” | ADV |
Joel Bartlett & Mackenzie Keister
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Country Swing–The Ins and Outs of Lead/Follow Rotations | ADV |
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Sarah Stokes & Stefanie Vasturo
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Two Step | BEG |
Philip Victor Ongert
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Country Boys | HB | Adia Nuno & Aleigha Elston |
| Jumanji | INT | José Miguel Belloque Vane & Guillaume Richard |
| Party in the Hills | ADV | Fred Whitehouse, Shane McKeever & Joey Warren |
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Mackenzie Keister
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Honky Tonk Floors | INT/ADV | Mackenzie Keister & Tara Bianco |
Candy Sherwin
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Southern Soul Bounce | BEG | The King & I, Roy Verdonk & Ira Weisburd |
| Spicy Margarita | INT | Fred Whitehouse & Jean-Pierre Madge |
| Sounds Like Something I’d Do | ADV | Adia Nuno & Satu Ketellapper |
| Two Step–”Making Two Step Easy” | BEG |
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Cindi Massengale
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Tick Tick Boom | INT | Brandon Zahorsky |
| I’m Begging You | ADV | José Miguel Belloque Vane & Roy Verdonk |
| Fake ID | ADV | Jamal Sims & Dondraico Johnson |
Cindi Massengale & Jason Peterson
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Denver Cha Cha (Pattern Partner) | BEG/INT |
Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, & Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn)
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| What Makes You Country | BEG | Rob Holly |
| The CowBoi Boogie | BEG | Big Mucci |
| Purple Chicks | BEG | |
| Cowboy Up | BEG | Barbara Hile |
| Make The Rooster Crow | BEG | Mark Paulino |
| Call Me Señorita | BEG | Rick Dominguez |
| Bang Bang (EZ) | BEG | Annemaree Sleeth |
| Walker AA | BEG | Deanna Nemes |
Aleigha Elston
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Drop Your Tailgate | INT | Aleigha Elston & Brianna Faith |
| Ring On Your Wranglers | INT | Aleigha Elston & Brianna Faith |
| I’m Fabulous | INT | Rebecca Lee, Debbie Rushton, Jean-Pierre M |
| Honky Tonk Way | INT | Landon James Purvis & Mark Paulino |
| Come On And Jump | INT | Mark Paulino |
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Travis Swartzlander
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| West Coast Swing–”Stretch & Return” | ALL |
| Technique–MST 100: Intro to Music Theory | ALL |
Travis Swarlzlander with Kenzie Keister
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| NJM100: “Threading 100” | BEG/INT |
Travis Swartzlander with Adia Dance & Aleigha Elston
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| NJM200: “Threading 200” | INT/ADV |
Travis Swarzlander & Souraya Lorenz
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Technique–Dance Lab “Feetwerk” | ALL |
Travis Swartzlander with Burgundy Weathersbee
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| West Coast Swing–GRV101: “Walks, Stops, Cutoffs” | INT/ADV |
Jen Workman
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Honky Tonk Sway | ADV | Jennifer Workman |
| Gives Me Shivers | BEG | Brandon Zahorsky |
| Slappin’ Leather | BEG | Gayle Brandon |
| Cowboy Cha Cha (Pattern Partner) | ALL | Unknown |
| Horseshoe Shuffle (Pattern Partner) | INT | Unknown |
Gabriel Sebastian & Sarah Stokes
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Country Swing–”Learn to Utilize the Floor” | INT |
| Country Swing–”Making Your Basic Movements Look Advanced” | INT |
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Robert Royston
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Two Step | BEG |
| Dance Techniques to improve all dances | ALL |
Robert Royston, Juan Aguirre & Kenzie Keister
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Thieves Only–Steals Class | ALL |
Robert & Brigette Campos
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Two Step | INT |
| West Coast Swing | BEG |
| West Coast Swing | ALL |
| Waltz | BEG |
| Technique | ALL |
Brigette Campos
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Technique–”Burlesque for Everyone” | ALL |
Brunno Theodoro & Yana Trubin
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Zouk | BEG |
| Zouk | BEG/INT |
Brunno Theodoro & Kenzie Keister
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| West Coast Swing | BEG |
Brunno Theodoro & Sarah Stokes
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| West Coast Swing | INT |
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Juan Aguirre
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Technique: Fancy Feet–Footwork Drills for Line and Partner Dancing | ALL |
Juan Aguirre & Mackenzie Keister
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Country Swing–”I’m Gon’ Ride, I’m Gon’ Ride” | INT |
| Country Swing–”Swing Like Pros” | ADV |
Jason Peterson
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| Countdown | INT | Abby Cahill |
| Banjo Remix: Traditional & Contra | INT | |
| Don’t Overthink It | INT | Chris Jacques |
Aaron & Pam Miller (Hardwood Hearts)
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Dips & Tricks | INT/ADV |
| HH Signature Moves | INT |
| Technique | ALL |
| Two Step–”Texas Style” | BEG/INT |
| Steals | ALL |
| Steals–”Technique & Etiquette to Smooth Out Your Steals” | ALL |
Sarah & Chris Ivy (Red Dirt Dancing)
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Lifts 101–”Building Blocks for Lifts” | |
| Lifts 201–”Intro to Overhead Lifts” | |
| Dips & Tricks–”Combos for All Styles” | INT |
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Leslie Perez
| Dance or Style | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|
| She’s A Natural | BEG | Jonno Liberman |
Neha
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Bollywood | ALL |
Herman Charles III
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Hip Hop Line Dance | ALL |
Darius Zi
| Dance or Style | Level |
|---|---|
| Zouk | FUNDAMENTALS |
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Line Dancing at the Edge – Lessons & Levels
It was hard not to see and be amazed at all the great partner dancing at the Edge, but the line dancers were not forgotten! There were a total of 29 line dance classes to attend, in which about 30 different line dances were taught. In all 10 instructors helped teach. The line dance lessons were given by Adia Dance, Candy Sherwin, Cindi Massengale, Philip Victor Ongert, Aleigha Elston, Marie Kelly, Jason Peterson, Jennifer Workman, Mackenzie Keister, and Leslie Perez.
Below is the full list of 30 Line Dances Taught at the Edge, listed alphabetically.
Click on the dance name to go to the Copperknob web page for the dance.
| Line Dance | Teacher | Level | Choreographer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bang Bang (EZ) | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Annemaree Sleeth |
| Banjo Remix: Traditional & Contra | Jason Peterson | INT | |
| Call Me Señorita | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Rick Dominguez |
| Come On & Jump | Aleigha Elston | INT | Mark Paulino |
| Countdown | Jason Peterson | INT | Abby Cahill |
| Country Boys | Philip Ongert | HB | Adia Nuno & Aleigha Elston |
| Cowboy Up | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Barbara Hile |
| Don’t Overthink It | Jason Peterson | INT | Chris Jacques |
| Drop Your Tailgate | Aleigha Elston | INT | Aleigha Elston & Brianna Faith |
| Fake ID | Cindi Massengale | ADV | Jamal Sims & Dondraico Johnson |
| Gives Me Shivers | Jen Workman | BEG | Brandon Zahorsky |
| Honky Tonk Floors | Mackenzie Keister | INT/ADV | Mackenzie Keister & Tara Bianco |
| Honky Tonk Sway | Jen Workman | ADV | Jennifer Workman |
| Honky Tonk Way | Aleigha Elston | INT | Landon James Purvis & Mark Paulino |
| I’m Begging You | Cindi Massengale | ADV | José Miguel Belloque Vane & Roy Verdonk |
| I’m Fabulous | Aleigha Elston | INT | Rebecca Lee, Debbie Rushton, Jean-Pierre M |
| Jumanji | Philip Ongert | INT | José Miguel Belloque Vane & Guillaume Richard |
| Make The Rooster Crow | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Mark Paulino |
| Party in the Hills | Philip Ongert | ADV | Fred Whitehouse, Shane McKeever & Joey Warren |
| Purple Chicks | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | |
| Ring On Your Wranglers | Aleigha Elston | INT | Aleigha Elston & Brianna Faith |
| She’s A Natural | Leslie Perez | BEG | Jonno Liberman |
| Slappin’ Leather | Jen Workman | BEG | Gayle Brandon |
| Sounds Like Something I’d Do | Adia Dance and Candy Sherwin | ADV | Adia Nuno & Satu Ketellapper |
| Southern Soul Bounce | Candy Sherwin | BEG | The King & I, Roy Verdonk & Ira Weisburd |
| Spicy Margarita | Candy Sherwin | INT | Fred Whitehouse & Jean-Pierre Madge |
| The CowBoi Boogie | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Big Mucci |
| Tick Tick Boom | Cindi Massengale | INT | Brandon Zahorsky |
| Walker AA | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Deanna Nemes |
| What Makes You Country | Marie Kelly, Cindi Massengale, Jen Workman, or Candy Sherwin (Beginner Barn) | BEG | Rob Holly |
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Partner Dancing at the Edge – Lessons & Styles
For those interested in leveling up their country partner dancing game, the Edge Dance Event always has a wide range of styles and levels to choose from.
First of all, there were Two Step workshops of course. The Two Step, as the country dance staple in bars and dance halls across the country, is a great place to begin if you’re wanting to get into country dancing. So, appropriately the Edge workshops had Two Steppers covered. There were classes from beginner to advanced and that covered many different patterns and techniques. Teachers for Two Step were Robert & Brigette Campos, Robert Royston, Adia & Russ, Sarah & Stefanie, Aaron & Pam Miller, and Candy Sherwin.
Next, there were Country Swing workshops. This dance style, also, a great favorite in the country bar scene was very well covered and also taught and covered by many of the instructors.
West Coast Swing, was the third main partner dance covered. There were several WCS classes primarily given by Travis Swartzlander with some from Robert & Brigette Campos as well as Brunno Theodoro.
Then, for those ready and/or daring enough there were also some workshops covering lifts, dips and tricks! I love that for those that are at that level there are opportunities like this to be challenged and grow.
Lastly, the interesting and beautiful Brazilian partner Zouk dance was offered again, as well as (a new one to me) a “Steals” class. So, I guess this is a thing! How to have fun stealing a partner from another lead, but of course with craft and style–all in fun of course.
One last class to mention that was of particular interest to me was Russ Bradchulis’ class on songs and what songs work with what dances. There weren’t too many people there for that on Sunday afternoon, but I’m really glad I dropped in. Russ’s experience and understanding of what makes a good song for Two Step or a Cha Cha etc. was very interesting.
Social Dancing at the Edge – Many Dance Floors!
The social dance opportunities really round out The Edge dance convention weekend well. I believe there was social dancing available on at least four of the dance floors: Hall of Fame, ECLAP, The Bring the Fun (Beginner Barn), and the CRC Barn, which was the main floor. Saturday night the James Kelly band played for a while in the Hall of Fame dance floor-covered arena, and later he was over in the beginner barn joining us for the Outlaw line dance (see below!).
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The Edge Dance Competitions
Like the title of this article, The Edge is a non-stop weekend of dancing and fun for everyone! On Friday and Saturday nights, the more advanced and competitive dancers are served well with tons of opportunities to compete and show their dancing chops off!
On both Friday and Saturday, the competition activity began in the afternoon and continued late into the night! See below for the competition categories. And a quick video showing the line dancers 50 and over competing for the “Rhinestone” belt buckle!
Friday Competition Categories
Two Step
Slotted Swing
Freestyle Progressive Strictly
Freestyle Progressive Novice/Beginner
Freestyle Progressive Intermediate/Advanced
Line Dance All Level
Choreography
Sat. Competition Categories
Country Swing Strictly
Country Swing Novice/Beginner
Country Swing Intermediate/Advanced
Line Dance (50+)
Click here for detailed information about all The Edge dance competitions as well as this year’s final results!
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Final Thoughts on the Edge!
The Edge 2023 was the best one yet as far as I’m concerned. Despite the rain that greeted us again, a large group of attendees seemed to get through and have a great time. It was fun to connect with friends meet new people and be in all the classes and enjoy social dancing in the unique venue of the CRC Ranch. Speaking of meeting new people, it was fun to meet Jen Workman from Seattle, and Todd the Data Cowboy – creator of the new app for line dancers called Bring The Fun. Download it and check it out! And also, it was so great to see Candy Sherwin again and finally take her Two Step class!
And everyone was happy to meet the CRC Ranch dog, Bodie! He was a very happy dog, greatly enjoying all the dancers lovin’ on him all week! And he never left the ranch vehicle!
The Edge Dance Convention is truly an innovative approach to a country dance workshop event. Held in beautiful Temecula, you get the best of dancing, and being with friends as well as a beautiful weekend getaway. If you can do it and haven’t been before, for sure put this on your 2024 calendar! You won’t regret it!
But wait! Say, you can’t wait that long, and wish you could partake in such an event sooner. Check out the up-and-coming YESSS convention! this year in Scottsdale, Arizona. Say Yesss! to the Yearly Epic Summer Step & Swing National Dance Convention and Competition.
SEE YOU SOON!
Nice job covering the Edge event, Brian. You work hard bringing all the latest and greatest c/w news to the masses. Will you be covering Stagecoach this year?
Thank you so much Jo Anna! Sadly, I don’t plan on going this year to Stagecoach, even though the line-up looks very enticing. Especially Sunday with Chris Stapleton, Brooks & Dunn, and Parker McCollum finishing up the weekend! We’ll see! Maybe I’ll change my mind. But I’m also open to a guest post from someone who wants to write it up this time!