The MJDA
MLX5, MLX6, MLX7 and MLX8 are all Melbourne Jazz Dance Association projects. The MJDA is a non-profit organisation devoted to the preservation and promotion of vernacular jazz dance and music in Melbourne, Australia.
Founded in 2005, the MJDA began with its first event, the fifth annual Melbourne Lindy Exchange - MLX5: the Shoestring Exchange. The MLX5 theme reflected not only the MJDA's budget for the event, but also their commitment to providing affordable, quality social swing dancing events in Melbourne.
In 2006 the MJDA followed the success of the Shoestring Exchange with MLX6: the Fat Lotta Good Exchange, and in 2007 they took the Melbourne Lindy Exchange to a new level with MLX7: the Kick Ass Exchange.
The MJDA was founded by Sam Carroll, Di King, Brian Renehan, Wendy Rehehan and Darren Witt but welcomes new members, encouraging them to make contact for more information.
MLX8 organising team
This year's MLX is run by the MJDA and steered by Di, Sam, Sally, Jaymee, Keith and Darren.
Additional help is provided by a team of volunteers, sponsors and 'consultants', without whom this exchange could not be run.
Sam Carroll
Sam began swing dancing in Brisbane in 1999, and has travelled all over Australia and overseas trying to get someone to dance with her. She's been pushing lindy on people since 2001, helping to organise events like Melbourne's weekly Ballyhoo, annual Easter Hop and the inaugural Australian Hellzapoppin' Prize. She was in at the start with MLX, volunteering in 2001 and organising in 2002. But in 2005 Brian, Wendy, Di and Darren convinced her that partying all weekend long on the social dance floor would be far more fun than running classes, and they held the first all-social dancing Melbourne Lindy Exchange: MLX5. The same group founded the MJDA to run the whole thing.
Keith Hsuan
A relative newcomer to the swing scene, Keith started dancing in 2004. He quickly got involved, volunteering at SwingCity Melbourne six months after learning his first swingout. Since then, he's volunteered at a variety of swing events, including MLX5 and the inaugural Melbourne Swing Festival. In his other life, Keith has been involved with running many other clubs, organising many successful events along the way.
Dianne King
Dianne has been swing dancing since 2000. She has traveled throughout Australia to dance and has been a big part of MLX from the start. She has been managed registrations for all previous MLX's, in 2005 taking on the role of managing not only registrations but also the workshops for Swing City. She was one of the main organisers for MLX5 and MLX6. She is wondering if she is slightly insane in volunteering again this year, but is surrounded by such a great group of people that she is confident that it will all turn out for the best.
Jaymee Lee
Ever since falling over in his first class, Jaymee has been inventing new ways to stay on his feet whilst dancing the Lindy Hop. From humble beginnings in a famously little town called Lismore back in 2004, he has hopped, skipped and jumped on dance floors all around the globe. An avid social dancer and musician, he thrives on the vibe of a swinging live band and can always be found swingin’ out tune after tune in the centre of the dance floor. Recently settled in Melbourne, Jaymee joins the MLX team contributing his logistical, technical and event management skills from a background of music, dance and amateur theatre productions.
Sally Winter
Sal began swing dancing in Melbourne, and has travelled and danced all over Australia (love those Perthies) and Europe (did someone say Herrang?). She is usually found on the dance floor busting out with some wicked solo stuff or harassing people to "swing ooooout like Frankie & Norma". She's been pushing the MLX team with event ideas, themes and been part of the decorating team since 2003. Having worked in major events, from The Australian Open to Cirque du Soleil, she comes to the table with more than enough madness, practical experience and "think big" dreams for the entire committee. Her mantra for MLX8 is that partying all weekend long on the social dance floor is nothing without glamorous outfits, venues and decor that echo the golden era of lindy, and showing off the city of Melbourne. We are proud to have her join the MJDA in a major organisational role in 2008.
Darren Witt
Darren has been swing dancing since 2002, and danced in many Australian cities. In 2005 he spent three months in the US where he attended a number of swing dance events. Darren was a volunteer with MLX in 2003 and 2004, and with many other swing dance events in Melbourne during that time. He was also involved in running Swing Aid 2005, a Tsunami relief event. Darren began DJing for swing dancers in Melbourne in early 2004. He has also been involved in several Science Fiction conventions in Melbourne. Darren has been a part of the MJDA from the start and after a year's break we welcome him back on board.
Melbourne Lindy Exchange
The first Melbourne Lindy Exchange was run in 2001 by Matthew Riddle and a team of volunteers and featured workshops taught local and international teachers. The second Melbourne Lindy Exchange - MLX: Get On The Floor - was held the following year, again run by a team of volunteers with Matt Riddle and featuring both local and international teachers, yet this time hosting the first annual Australian Hellzapoppin' prize, whose goal was to provide funds for Australian dancers to attend the first Hellzapoppin' competition in the USA. The third MLX - MLX: Harlem Comes to Melbourne - was again a volunteer-run event, this time seeing Matt's partner Lotte Geldoff involved as a key organiser, and featured workshops with international teachers. In 2004 the Melbourne Lindy Exchange was run in conjunction with Swing City over a week, and again featured a host of volunteers and organisers, and showcased both local and international teachers and musicians.
The 2005 Melbourne Lindy Exchange was steered by the MJDA as MLX5: the Shoe String Exchange, in 2006 as the MLX6: the Fat Lotta Good Exchange and in 2007 as MLX7: the Kick Ass Exchange. MLX8: the Exchange of the Living Dead is the third MJDA-run Melbourne Lindy Exchange.
MLX8 website
The MLX8 site was written by Sam Carroll using CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) and Movable Type. The MLX8 logo was produced by Scott Fraser. Hosting and technical support for the MLX8 site was provided by Dave Cheney.
We recommend using the web browser Firefox.
All content and code beyond the Movable Type material and photos remain the property of the MLX8 team and the Melbourne Jazz Dance Association.