St. Louis shag
St. Louis shag is a fast swing dance from St. Louis, Missouri. It comes from Lindy Hop, Collegiate Shag, and Charleston, and is done in a close held position to upbeat music with stomps, kicks, and boogie-woogie moves.
The common eight-count basics include triple-step, kick, triple-step, kick. Other popular versions exist, such as Kenny Wetzel’s triple-step, kick, step-stomp, run-run, and Eddie Plunkett and Dottie Spokesfield’s triple-step, kick, double kick. Dancers also use moves like inside crosses (over the tops) and fall off the logs, plus many stomps, taps, and holds. It’s danced to up-tempo swing, rock and roll, and blues, and dancers often mix in jitterbug steps.
St. Louis shag has a long history in swing, then jazz, jump blues, and R&B, which changed its look while keeping its core style. Pioneers include Tommy Russo, Dolores Shy, Virginia Shy, Mike Renda, Joe Renda, Eva Renda, Eddie Plunkett, Dottie Spokesfield, Jim Byrnes, and Lorraine Byrnes. In later decades, Kenny Wetzel, John Bedrosian, Valerie LaFemina, Bob Brooks, and Sylvia Sykes helped keep the dance alive.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 22:29 (CET).