About
Fast Feet Fest is Glasgow’s festival dedicated to Balboa and Collegiate Shag, brought to you by Glasgow Lindyhoppers and Glasgow Balboa. After a fantastic first edition, we’re excited to return in 2026 with a full weekend of high–energy classes, inspiring teaching and brilliant social dancing.
We’re delighted to welcome an exceptional international line–up:
Alberto Boffa & Elena Paiola (Italy) bring elegant, refined Balboa technique and will be teaching in the UK for the first time. Their smooth musicality and effortless flow have shaped dancers across Europe.
Arnas Razgūnas & Eglė Nemickaitė (Lithuania) return to Scotland with their explosive energy and world–class Collegiate Shag instruction, making them two of the most in–demand teachers on the global swing scene.
Across two historic Glasgow venues, dancers can look forward to fast footwork, uplifting music and a warm, welcoming scene. Whether you’re diving deep into Balboa, exploring Collegiate Shag, or mixing both styles, Fast Feet Fest offers a vibrant, friendly space to learn, dance and connect.
Join us for a weekend of rhythm, flow and fast feet – right in the heart of Glasgow.
Schedule
This is a draft schedule and may be subject to change.
What To Expect
Two days of Balboa or Collegiate Shag classes or mix it up with classes in both styles!
Two social dances:
• Saturday – Grand Ball
• Sunday – Farewell Party
Our classes and dances will take place across two beautiful venues in Glasgow’s West End and City Centre – perfect for dancing and exploring!
Saturday
Times | Saturday – Shag | Saturday – Bal |
|---|---|---|
10:00-11:15 | Shag Adventurer | Bal Adventurer |
11:30-12:45 | Shag Adventurer | Bal Adventurer |
12:45-13:45 | Lunch | Lunch |
13:45-15:00 | Shag Explorer | Bal Explorer |
15:15-16:30 | Taster | Taster |
Sunday
Times | Sunday – Shag | Sunday – Bal |
|---|---|---|
10:00-11:15 | Shag Explorer | Bal Explorer |
11:30-12:45 | Shag Explorer | Bal Explorer |
12:45-13:45 | Lunch | Lunch |
13:45-15:00 | Shag Adventurer | Bal Adventurer |
15:15-16:30 | Taster | Taster |
Choose your level
We recognise that different levels can mean a range of things across scenes and dance experience. We encourage you to read the level descriptions and place yourself on the track that most authentically reflects your experience and readiness to engage with teaching at that level. If you’d like to discuss the levels or schedule with us, please contact us anytime and we’d be happy to help.
Explorer:
You are completely confident with standard footwork and basic moves and ready to take on your next challenge!
You have caught the bug for your chosen style and are ready to work on building up your technique and vocabulary. You have probably been attending classes regularly for at least a year and have been to a couple of workshops or weekend festivals.
Adventurer:
You are in love with this dance and feel confident at higher tempos. You have been dancing for at least two years, perhaps travelling to international festivals or spending time practicing or teaching in your local scene.
You’re comfortable finding musicality and breaks in the music, working on styling and enjoying improvising with a partner.
Ticket Types & Prices
You can choose from the following ticket types:
-
All Shag Explorer – 3 core classes plus tasters
-
All Bal Explorer – 3 core classes plus tasters
-
All Shag Adventurer – 3 core classes plus tasters
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All Bal Adventurer – 3 core classes plus tasters
-
Shag Adventurer / Bal Explorer mix – 6 core classes plus tasters
-
Shag Explorer / Bal Adventurer mix – 6 core classes plus tasters
Prices
Early Bird – available until 15th December
-
Full pass (single dance style): £105
-
Full pass (both dance styles): £175
Regular Prices – from 16th December
-
Full pass (single dance style): £115
-
Full pass (both dance styles): £185
-
Party pass: £50
A note on tickets and levels
After consulting dancers in our own scene and beyond, and following feedback from last year’s festival, this time we are offering the chance to take classes in both Collegiate Shag and Balboa. The consensus from our polling suggests that most dancers consider themselves to be more proficient in one style rather than the exact same level in both. The schedule has been designed to accommodate the bespoke size of our festival and to cater to the expressed preferences of our dancers.
Should you wish to purchase a ticket with a variation of what is already on offer, please contact us directly. We will do our best to facilitate requests while maintaining sensible lead/follow ratios and room capacity.
Our Teachers
Alberto & Elena
Balboa & Slow Balboa | Italy
Alberto Boffa and Elena Paiola are Balboa and Slow Balboa dancers and instructors, appreciated for their elegant and harmonious style. With a background in contemporary dance and dedicated swing training, they bring their personal perspective to Balboa, emphasizing fluid dynamics and seamless partner connection. They are deeply passionate about Pure Balboa, and love to explore its subtleties and nuances to create partnership and complicity.
Their lessons are lively and engaging, with a special focus on body awareness and movement mechanics. Committed to creating a positive, supportive environment where dancers can grow in both technique and confidence, they strive to incorporate historical context into their teaching, ensuring that students gain a deeper appreciation for the roots of the dance.
In recent years, Alberto and Elena have been featured instructors at numerous international events and have achieved important results in several of the most significant Balboa competitions around the world.
Arnas & Eglė
Collegiate Shag | Lithuania
Eglė Nemickaitė is a swing dancer from Vilnius, Lithuania where she is dancing, performing, teaching and inspiring the community at What a Jazz dance studio everyday. Dance followed Eglė through all her life, but she found the real passion for Lindy Hop and later on for Collegiate Shag too. Dance has always felt like a big liberation for Eglė. Liberation from routines, thoughts, work, limits. Dancing makes her feel true to herself, music and partner. It gives her the power of total freedom and also a peace to the mind, body and heart. Her rich teaching experience is being increasingly appreciated at the international workshops as well. She shares her enormous passion towards a dance with great joy and commitment.
Arnas Razgūnas is a devoted swing dancer and teacher. True social dancer and explorer who often gets lost to surprise himself and discover things he didn’t think he could do. Acknowledged jazz enthusiast inspired mostly by African American vernacular jazz art forms and energetic effortless swinging music Arnas is actively seeking for deep understanding of what’s swing in music and dance. Rich experience in teaching weekly local classes grants quality and fun with clear explanation of his material by expressing music and yourself in it. Arnas is a co-founder of What a Jazz Dance Studio and co-organizer of Balboa & Shag festival in Vilnius, Lithuania – Swing Paradise.
