Profile

Sarah Farrelly

Name:  Sarah Jane Farrelly
Born:  Frankston Hospital, Victoria in 1975
Star sign:  Libran
Favourite movie:  Annie
Favourite thing (outside swing):  My boyfriend Anthony and spending time with my friends
Best feature:  My fun & playful nature
Day Job:  Account Manager
Qualifications:  Qualified Primary School Teacher
Favourite Swing Bands:  Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, Lucky Millinder, Erskine Hawkins
Favourite food:  Thai Green Curry & anything Seafood
Favourite Drink:  Sparkling Apple Juice, Vodka Cranberry & Lime, Coca Cola, Snake Bites, Red Wine
Best friends:  Anthony, Marisa, Kate, Shaz & Shacks, Ben & Yvette, Lindy, swing buddies and many more...

Sarah took her first swing class with Swing Patrol at the end of 1999 at Silvers Nightclub in Toorak. The teachers were Scott Cupit (in a Zoot Suit!) and Claudia Funder (all frocked up!) and Sarah was completely bitten by the Swing Bug. Hungry to learn as much as she could, Sarah was soon seen at almost every Swing Patrol venue and went to every dance, social event and workshop that was offered.

Sarah was thrilled to be asked to be a cadet teacher with Swing Patrol in 2001 and she opened the very successful Swing Patrol Frankston Venue with Henry Kovacevic. In 2002 Sarah ‘re-opened’ Golden Gate (South Melbourne) with Anthony Wheaton and continued on with SP Frankston with Henry. 2003 saw Sarah join Scott Cupit at Swinburne, continuing on as the anchor teacher there throughout 2004 and into 2005 with Anthony Wheaton & Tim Oon.  **Sarah and Anthony have taken a break from weekly classes for the meantime, but keep your ear to the ground for when they run some workshops in Melbourne, Geelong or interstate!**

Lindy Hop is a true passion of Sarah’s and she has worked hard to learn about the history of the dance and incorporate this into her dancing and teaching. You can see this in the way that she dances – her energy and love of the dance has made her a favourite of leads in Melbourne and the world over. She can groove to the slower swing tracks and can simply fly to those super fast tracks. With her dance partner Anthony Wheaton, together they have proven themselves to be leaders in the dance with a particular strength in teaching fast dancing, intermediate/advanced technique, aerials and tricks.

Swing Dancing has provided many highlights for Sarah – teaching, performing, competing, travelling and otherwise. Here is a list of some of the great moments:

Teaching

  • Teaching my delightful students every week at Swing Patrol since 2001 (4 years!)
  • Teaching at Sale & Echuca in country VIC
  • Teaching at Canberra in 2003 & 2004
  • Teaching in Sydney in 2003 & 2005
  • Teaching at Tasmania in 2004 & 2005 (twice!)
  • Teaching at Brat Pack & Scat Pack
  • Teaching aerials to enthused dancers who want to fly
  • Teaching with my wonderful dance partner, Anthony Wheaton

Performing

  • Sarah was one of the original members of Scat Pack, Swing Patrol's famous troupe and has performed at many different corporate and community events
  • Being invited by the organisers of Camp Jitterbug - Seattle WA, USA to perform with Anthony Wheaton (2003)
  • Performing for the Prime Minister with the Charleston girls together with some professional tap dancers
  • Performing/Teaching at the Homeside Lending Corporate Gig at the Sheraton Mirage on the Gold Coast with Scott Cupit

Competitions

  • 2005 – 2nd Place – Australian Jitterbug Championships – Fast Foot
  • 2005 – 2nd Place – Australian Jitterbug Championships – Strictly Lindy
  • 2005 – 2nd Place – Sydney Jitterbug Championships – Quirky 30s
  • 2004 - 2nd Place - Australian Jitterbug Championships - Strictly Lindy
  • 2003 - Winner - Australian Hellzapoppin' Prize
  • 2003 - 1st Place - Australian Jitterbug Championships - Strictly Lindy
  • 2003 - 1st Place - Australian Jitterbug Championships - Triples
  • 2003 - 3rd Place - Catalina Island (CA, USA) Jack'n'Jill
  • 2003 - 1st Place - National Capital (ACT) Dance Championships - Lindy Hop Open Invitational
  • 2003 - 1st Place - National Capital (ACT) Dance Championships - Harlem Swing Open Invitational
  • 2003 - Competitor - World Hellzapoppin' Competition (Harlem, NYC, USA!!)
  • any many more...

Travelling

  • Herrang Dance Camp (2 Weeks) 2001
  • Camp Jitterbug, Seattle, WA, USA 2003
  • Camp Catalina, CA, USA 2003
  • Various travelling for dance reasons through San Franscisco (incl. Cat's Corner) 2004, Los Angeles (Incl. Lindy Groove) 2003 & 2004, Harlem Jazz Dance Festival 2003, Seattle 2003 & 2004, & London 2001