Teachers
Bọla
Adjomalé
Nourished by Afro-descendant dance and music since childhood, Bọla Adjomalé became a swing dancer in 2017 and her passion for Jazz has steadily grown ever since.
Her dance emphasizes groove, improvisation and swing, and she aims to explore different body paths and movement to make the dance as organic as possible.
As a teacher, she aims to pass on the artistic heritage of the musicians and dancers who carry this tradition, emphasizing the cultural context in which it is embedded while encouraging improvisation, individual expression, movement exploration, musicality and sharing.
Since 2021, Bọla has been teaching vernacular jazz at the Shake That Swing school in Paris. In her classes, she encourages her students to express their singularity.
Karl Brochard
Karl Brochard teaches swing (solo jazz & lindy hop) and afrodance. He shares his passion through classes in the heart of Paris as well as abroad.
He has won several prestigious competitions, including Jazzroots , The Battle in Toulouse, and was a finalist in the ILHC Europe in Sofia, Bulgaria…etc.
His teaching principles include caring for his students and creating an environment conducive to learning.
His relationship to swing goes beyond a simple chance encounter. He’s now embarked on a journey of sharing and passing on this passion, based on mutual respect and shared pleasure.
Korantema Anyimadu
Korantema is a jazz dancer and Lindy Hopper born and raised in London. She believes in the power of dance for resilience, healing, community and joy.
After co-leading and performing in a chorus line for five years, she became part of Cookie and Her Black Mambas (@blackmambasjazz) a collective created by Lindy Hop legacy holder, Angela Andrew. Korantema is also a community dance artist, working in schools and community centres in east London.
When she’s not dancing, Korantema is a museum curator and a zine maker, usually exploring heritage, dance and the cultural experiences of Black folks.
Stephen Atemie
Stephen Atemie (he/him) has been teaching Lindy Hop for many years in the UK and abroad. He is also engaged in charity projects, such as working with local kids & youth in South Africa, and has performed in multiple films (The Six Triple Eight, Wicked I).
Stephen is a board member of Collective Voices For Change, an ngo that advocates for cultural and racial equity within the Lindy Hop and Jazz scene. For CVFC, he organizes talks and webinars, and advocates for cultural appreciation within the Lindy Hop and Jazz Dance communities.
Waithera Lena Schreyeck
Waithera (she/her) is an artist in the contemporary dance field with afrocentric and street-club culture dance roots.
After studying Contemporary Dance in Denmark, London and Salzburg, she went on to work as a freelancer based in Cologne, NRW Germany for five years.
Working with various artists such as Ben J. Riepe, Renan Martins, Kristof Szabo, Willi Stark, Khadidiatou Bangoura and many more. And touring internationally for two years with Cassiel Gaubes „Soiree D’Etudes“.
She created in collaboration with Margherita Dello Sbarba, Jovana Zelenovic, Margareta Firinger and the female urban collective „Hood of Sisters“. Since 2020 she has been developing participatory and site specific choreographies, based around the topics of identity politics.
Since 2024 she works for the Unusual Symptoms Company at Theater Bremen. Meanwhile she facilitates House Sessions to the local scene and continues to invest time in the Street-, Club- and afrocentric Dance Cultures.
Bands
The Gramophoniacs
The Gramophoniacs is a band from Saarbrücken that has devoted itself entirely to swing music since 2015. In recent years, it has become a fixture in the region, particularly in the Lindy Hop scene.
Their repertoire encompasses all facets of swing music, from Dixieland to blues, from old classics of the Golden Twenties through well-known jazz standards of the ’40s to rock-infused dirty swing. Even though swing has been around for quite a few years, every Gramophoniacs show is fresh and full of energy.
Anyone who has already experienced a performance by the Gramophoniacs knows that the infectious joy of the musicians is guaranteed to get any ballroom rocking until the early hours of the morning!
The New Brooklyn Social Club
The New Brooklyn Social Club is a diverse ensemble featuring Hamburgs top musicians. First and foremost it is one of Hamburgs most popular swing bands.
The band has played for all the major swing dance events in Hamburg as well as swing dance events all over Germany.
The New Brooklyn Social Club plays original arrangements and swings like a band right out of New York City.
DJ's
DJane Swing Kitsune feat. Lykke Fox
Our own fellow dancer and DJane SwingKitsune aka Steff loves a heavy saxophone riff and will make you groove to artists like Jacquet, Butera, McNeely, Hodges, Prysock, Basie, Ellington, Singer but also The Schwings and Hot Swing Sextet among many others.
MC
Eléna
Hey, it’s me, Eléna. Hi. I’m talking to you directly, breaking the 4th wall if you will, because I’m also doing the website and general design and all. I hope you like it by the way.
I’ve been the MC for the last 3 years and so far so good, which is why you’ll see me again for a 4th round this year.
Cheers!
Photographer
Manja Hermann
Manja Herrmann is a Bremen-based freelance photographer with a degree from the Hochschule für Künste in Bremen. Since 2007, she has specialized in theater and stage photography, capturing the essence of live performance.
Expert at portraiture and cultural documentation, Manja brings her sharp eye for movement to the festival. She is dedicated to preserving the vibrant energy and spontaneous moments of the swing dance floor.
Matthias Frank
Matthias Frank lives and works as a photographer in Berlin. He studied at the Ostkreuzschule für Fotografie (2022-2025) but first trained as goldsmith. With empathy and an eye for stories, he captures authentic moments.
At SMT!26, he will offer individual portrait sessions. Wether freshly styled or glowing from the last dance, he will preserve the festival’s most beautiful moments.
Visual Artist
Fini Guder
Fini is a visual artist from Berlin who creates portraits of dancers in the moment. Her fast linework was first inspired by the atmosphere of late-night jazz clubs. An avid dancer herself, it wasn’t long until she started drawing at lindy hop socials, finding ways to capture the movement and energy of the fast-paced dance. Since 2019 she offers her life drawing at lindy hop and tango festivals, capturing memorable moments in her dance portraits.
Awareness Team
