Lance Benishek (1960-2020)

“ I did it all because of love of the dances. Studied and worked hard to get perfection. Never really intended to teach and perform them but (this) gave me a chance to dance them” - Lance Benishek

We lost one of the most important figures in jazz dance over the weekend, Lance Benishek.

Lance had an incredible curiosity about the jazz era and was one of the foremost researchers on the period. Far beyond lindy hop, Lance was deeply knowledgable about the numerous dances, music, and culture of the period.

Katie and I have tried our best, with what knowledge we have, to connect our community to dance and its history. So much of the information we have to share came from Lance! From terminology to history to anecdotes, Lance was happy to share. Whenever you would ask a question that we didn't know the answer to, I would seek out the true answer from Lance.

Lance was also a very strong critic. While he was encouraging, if you said something that was not historically accurate (but claimed it to be) he would speak up. Sadly, his willingness to "tell it like it is" got him shut out of events and conversations around dance, particularly in the later years when his health continued to fade. But if you were willing to listen, Lance could guide you like no other.

I was happy and honored to call him a friend. He will be dearly missed.