For many people, old age is scary due to thinking that you can’t do all of the things that you used to do when you were younger. Some, however, act as a reminder that age really is just a number, and we’re only as old as we let ourselves feel. What is important is how we approach life, and to be unafraid of any opportunity that comes our way, especially if it’s a new experience that we may never get the chance to chase again.
Take the focus of today’s article, the legendary Hollywood Swing dancer Jean Veloz, who at 90 years of age took part in a dance at the Arizona Lindy Hop Society at the Fat Cat Ballroom in Phoenix, Arizona. Despite her age, she wastes no time in showing how she became such a household name in the swing dancing circuit, whilst also inspiring others to take up something new no matter how old you are. Watch the lovely video below:
This isn’t the duo’s first foray together into the world of dance. The pair also appeared on The Bachelorette in 2016, and on Steve Harvey’s Little Big Shots: Forever Young in 2017. Her final performance was at the age of 95, where she danced at the Rock That Swing festival in Munich, Germany, and at the Spanish Ballroom in Glen Echo Park in Bethesda, Maryland. Despite her age, she put on a great show and reminded everyone that age truly is just a number and that nothing should hold us back from
In the video, Jean Veloz is accompanied by a dance instructor named Steve Conrad, and together they set the dance floor on fire in a routine that contained some of the moves that Jean Veloz choreographed for film in the 1940s. Some of these films included Swing Fever in 1943, and The Horn Blows At Midnight in 1945. She also appeared in a short film depicting the history of swing dance titled Groovie Movie (1944).
Sadly, Jean passed away in January 2023 at the age of 98, but she left behind a legacy of dance that people will appreciate for many, many years to come.