Dancers

A dance school with its own dance hall

Dancers, the Dancers Tanzschule, is a dance school and dancing venue at Gewerbehallenstrasse 2 in 8304 Wallisellen, just outside Zurich. The homepage says it has been giving dance courses in Zurich Wallisellen for 47 years, and the prices page dates its offer back to 1978. For wedding couples it runs Honeymoon workshops, short courses built around the dances that matter on the day, and it offers private lessons for weddings. What sets it apart is that the same building hosts weekly dance evenings, so a couple can practice their first dance among other dancers before the wedding.

The site is in German, and it does not say whether lessons are given in English. The team page does note that one teacher, Philip Banyer, was born in England and now lives in Switzerland, but that is not a promise about the teaching language, so ask.

Honeymoon workshops and private lessons

The Honeymoon workshops are described as wedding dance courses for couples who want to learn the essentials for their big day in a short time, or to refresh the dancing they already know. The syllabus is short and sensible: slow waltz, Viennese Waltz, Disco-Fox and the basic step of Cha Cha Cha. That combination covers a traditional first dance and the party dancing that follows. The homepage links to details and registration; the homepage gives no dates or price for the workshops, so check the Honeymoon page or ask.

Private lessons are the other route. The school lists them for private lessons, company events, birthday parties, weddings and dance teacher training alike. A couple who wants a routine to a particular song, or who can only train at odd hours, would start there.

The school has a clear view on how much practice beginners need. Its prices page says a beginner needs 5 lessons, in its opinion, to decide whether dancing is the right hobby, and that fewer or shorter lessons do not achieve the goal. It compares learning to dance with learning a foreign language: those who use what they have learned regularly deepen it. After the Grundkurs 2 (the second basic course), participants are invited to a 7th lesson on a Saturday evening, followed by their first free dancing in the school's dance hall.

Learning aids and practice nights

Since summer 2020 the school has offered learning videos for almost all course types, included in the course price and available until 30 days after the last lesson. For a couple squeezing lessons in around wedding planning, being able to review the steps at home is useful.

Course participants pay a reduced entry to the Saturday dance evening, Fr. 10.– instead of Fr. 18.–, for the whole duration of their course. Saturday Dancers runs every Saturday from 20.00 until about 02.00, with a mix of standard, Latin, Disco-Swing and Disco-Fox, Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Jive, Rock'n'Roll, West Coast Swing and Night Club Two Step, and one hour of Tango Argentino in a second hall from 21.00 to 22.00. The Sunday Tanzplausch is a tea dance from 14.00 to 17.00 with a DJ or with the live duo Gabriela & Jack, at Fr. 15.– or Fr. 18.– with live music. There is also a monthly Tango Argentino Practica on Fridays, led by Alain, at 40 francs per couple.

For a wedding party, one line on the events page stands out: groups needing more than 8 places can reserve a Loge, and on Saturday evenings groups of 10 or more get a cheaper entry if they reserve more than 24 hours ahead and no tournament is on. A couple could bring their witnesses and friends to a Saturday evening to practice together.

The premises

The school describes three large dance floors with about 200 square meters of parquet each, pleasant air conditioning and enough parking. The Saturday page gives the floor of Saal 2 as 175 m² and Saal 3 as 215 m², and says the three floors together come to 605 m² of sprung parquet. There is a self-service bar with low prices and modern dance lighting. The building also houses the school's dance shoe shop, and its online shop sells shoes for standard, Latin, Salsa, Tango and other styles.

Getting there

The homepage says it plainly: your car parks free. The directions page confirms there are enough free parking spaces and gives the tram connections. Tram 12 runs from Stettbach station via Glattzentrum, Wallisellen station, Belair and Herti to the airport, and the stop for the school is Herti. Tram 11 runs from Zurich city via Oerlikon to the Auzelg stop. The events pages add bus 79 from Schwammendingen to Auzelg Ost and point to the ZVV online timetable. For guests flying in, the page's note that tram 12 connects to the airport is practical.

The team

The school is led by siblings Oliver and Sandra Baumann. Oliver Baumann, dance teacher and managing director, is a couple-dance teacher with a federal certificate (Paartanzlehrer mit Eidgenössischem Fachausweis), a qualified swiss dance teacher and Salsa teacher, a trainer and examiner for swiss dance in Latin and Salsa, and holds IDTA London Licentiate diplomas in Standard and Latin. The two were 6-time Swiss champions and finalists of the 10-dance European and World Championships together. Sandra Baumann, dance teacher and member of the management, holds the same federal certificate, the swiss dance diploma and an IDTA Licentiate in Standard.

The wider team includes Marianne Windler, Nadia Wullschleger, Alain von Allmen, Simone Schärer, Alice Briner (whose teaching focus is West Coast Swing), Philip Banyer (a standard dance sport trainer whose career high was a win at Blackpool), Renato Minnig, line dance instructor Claudia Beeler and children's teacher Sabrina Stäbler. The school says all its teachers have passed the swiss dance teacher exam or are in training for it, and that most hold higher diplomas.

Health insurance and other offers

The school is certified by Fitness-Guide, and says customers of AXA, CSS, Glarner, Helsana, Kpt, ÖKK, Sumiswalder, SWICA, Sympany and Visana can receive contributions. It issues up to two course confirmations a year free, then Fr. 20.– each. Other courses include Disco-Fox, allround courses for singles and couples from 16, Cuban-style Salsa, Boogie-Woogie, line dance, Swing Workout, Tango Argentino, West Coast Swing and children's classes for ages 3 to 16.

What the site leaves open, and who it suits

The homepage and the course information page do not give the dates, length or price of the Honeymoon workshops or of private lessons, the teaching language, or whether a teacher can come to a wedding venue. Those are questions for 044 830 10 33 or info@dancers.ch.

Dancers suits couples in the Zurich area who want solid instruction from a large, experienced team and a place to keep practicing, with free parking and trams that reach the airport. It is less suited to couples who need English confirmed up front or prefer a small, informal studio.