Thanks to everyone who made this event a success. We’ll see you next year in 2012!

We are very excited about this year’s event, and we truly believe that you are will have an amazing time.  To make sure you are totally prepared for all that Baltimore has to offer, here’s a few things you should know:

1. If you weren’t able to register for the full weekend before we closed registration, please note that there will be tickets available at the door for all the dances. The Friday and Saturday late nights are very close to sell out, due to the smaller space, so make sure to buy your late night dance passes at the evening dance registration table that night when you come to make sure you get a ticket.

2. The housing assignments have gone out, so if you wanted housing and did not receive an email, then we did not receive your housing request prior to the cut off date of Oct. 5. We are at full capacity for our housing, so you will need to call and bug your Baltimore dancer friends directly if you need a place to stay at this point.

3. There is no alcohol officially allowed at the Broadway Pier for the Saturday afternoon dance. But there are plenty of places to grab a drink nearby. Please help us respect park rules.

4. The Sunday afternoon dance venue offers an awesome brunch buffet with bottomless mimosas.  The best way to recover from eight hours of dancing the night before, right?  Cost of the brunch (including tip for the wait staff) is $9 for weekend registrants and $19 for non-registrants.  Please remember also that this dance is included with your weekend registration, but all others pay a $3 cover to get in and see Seth Kibel and the Bay Jazz Project play on the beach at Bay Cafe!  If you did not register for the weekend and you want brunch on Sunday, bring $22 with you.

5. We’re fortunate to have great hardwood floors at the dances. On Saturday afternoon, we’ll be outside on a brick surface and on Sunday we’ll be in a pavilion with wood deck-style flooring as well as sand in the beach area. Plan your shoes accordingly.

6. Friday and Saturday evening dances will be at Baltimore’s newest, awesomest dance venue, the Mobtown Ballroom.  For those of you that attended the Mobtown Ballroom kick off party last week, we will not have access to the parking lot a few blocks away, so we all need to find street parking in the area.  For both convenience and safety, we recommend parking to the north and east of the Ballroom, in the general directions of the Inner Harbor and the two downtown stadiums.  Please keep in mind that, though we pride ourselves on our “Charm City” reputation, we are still a city like any other.  Please be smart about not leaving any valuables in plain sight in your car when you park.  Be smart.  Be safe.  Have fun.

7. We’re going to have some gorgeous weather this weekend: 77 to 83 degrees in the afternoons and around 60 in the evenings. Note that the Mobtown Ballroom does have air conditioning, but can get rather warm if we have a full house.  The late night venue, the Dickeyville Mill, is a smaller venue with very high ceilings, so it is cool early and tends to warm up later.  If you are like us and plan to dance all 24 hours of the 48 hours of the weekend, we recommend you plan accordingly regarding spare clothes. And don’t forget the sunscreen for the afternoons.

8. Bring your favorite treat to share at Saturday Late Night, and dancers will vote for their favorites to win the coveted Golden Spatula Award!  This year, we will have a sweet category winner and a savory category winner.  You may enter both categories, multiple times if you choose!  Finger foods are probably best, or please provide appropriate utensils so dancers can successfully eat your creation.

Safe travels everyone and save us a dance!

Registration has officially closed, but we will offer at-the-door sales for each event. For prices, check out our schedule.

See you this weekend!

Bring your favorite treat to share at Saturday Late Night, and dancers will vote for their favorites to win the coveted Golden Spatula Award!  This year, we will have a sweet category winner and a savory category winner.  You may enter both categories, multiple times if you choose!  Finger foods are probably best, or please provide appropriate utensils so dancers can successfully eat your creation.

Registration closes Wednesday

There’s only 48 hours left to guarantee your entry into all of the weekend dances. Pre-register before noon Wednesday!

Registration will stay open until we have 150 pre-registrants, or until Wednesday Oct. 5. If you’re hoping to snag a weekend pass, head over to our registration page.

We’ve added a T-shirt only option to our registration form for anyone who would like to pre-order. If you’ve already registered but would like to add a T-shirt to your registration and select the “T-shirt” only option. (There is no need to fill out the housing section again if we’ve already received your registration. Just select “I do not need housing). Hitting the “submit” button will automatically redirect you to PayPal where you to submit $15.

Pictured is the men’s T-shirt. The ladies’ shirt is a super-soft baby doll in a slightly longer length.

Come swing Sunday afternoon away with us at a beach-front cabana!

The Bay Cafe will be hosting our Sunday afternoon dance. DJ Jenn Shortway will DJ from 1 to 2 p.m. while you dine at the cafe’s brunch buffet, featuring bottomless mimosas. Then Seth Kibel and the Bay Jazz Project will kick it up from 2 to 5 p.m.

Brunch–and bottomless mimosas–will be available from noon until 3 p.m.

If you have a weekend wristband, the dance is included in your registration fee. The buffet will cost you only $9, tip and mimosas included.

For anyone without a weekend wristband, the cover charge is $3 and the brunch & mimosa special is $15.99+tip.

We’re happy to announce that Andrew Nemr, a tap dancer mentored by Gregory Hines, will be a special guest at Hi-De-Hon 2011.

Andrew was a special guest at ILHC last August where he sat in with Gordon Webster Thursday night and performed the Bill “Bojangles” Robinson Stair Dance on Sunday.

Haven’t registered yet? No worries. Bring $65 to the grand opening of Baltimore’s newest Lindy venue–Mobtown Ballroom–and register for the entire Hi-De-Hon weekend.

We’ll accept cash or check, and will have a laptop and Internet connection so that you can even pay via PayPal/credit card on the spot.

Mobtown Ballroom will be celebrating its grand opening Saturday, Sept. 24, at its new venue: an 1870s-era church featuring a 2,500-square-foot ballroom with a brand new, sprung wood dance floor.

859 Washington Boulevard, Baltimore Md. 21217
Saturday, Sept. 25 | 9 p.m. – 2 a.m. | Facebook event page
Featuring Meschiya Lake and the Little Bighorns

They’re up: the DJ schedules are posted on our schedule page, where you’ll also find dance times, locations and prices.

And we’re thrilled to announce that we’ve added another band to the lineup: Seth Kibel and the Bay Jazz Project. Check out the band’s information on our music page, where you’ll also find the bios for all of our amazing DJs.

After we work out a few more details, we’ll be making announcements about all of our fabulous venues soon. Keep watching this space.

Until then, there’s still time to get the $75 pre-registration special and to sign up to volunteer. See you in October!