COVID Policy

Hello Breakaway dancers and community! 

The world and dance communities have reopened, and the reality now is that COVID-19 seems with us for the long-haul. Thankfully we have seen less severe illness with newer strains, especially to those vaccinated. We want to create a space where all members of our community will feel comfortable dancing.  We want to keep anyone who contracts COVID-19 as a result of this event to avoid spreading their illness to family, friends, and the wider public. And we want to make sure that Breakaway dance attendees are cognizant of the risks inherent in attending our events. 

Some context: The building we are in is a City of Oakland facility which houses the Oakland Senior Center during the day. Per city policy, masks have been required in all city facilities since The Breakaway returned post-pandemic. In March of 2023 we dropped our vaccination requirement, in alignment with city and county recommendations.

The City of Oakland mask policy was sunsetted as of July 1st 2023. As of this date it is up to us to implement our own health and safety policies.

Not wanting to spring any changes on our community of dancers, in early June we released a poll to the community to gauge the level of comfort with masked vs unmasked indoor dancing. Based on the results of the poll, which you can view here, we have decided to change our internal policy.

Our policy at this time is:

  • Masks are required during classes

  • Masks recommended for social dancing

Disclaimer:  There is an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 or other illnesses, in any public space where people are present. By attending The Breakaway, you agree that entry is at your own risk and you voluntarily and expressly assume all risks associated with entry. We have put in place policies and preventative measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19, but cannot guarantee that exposure to or infection with COVID-19 will not occur while at The Breakaway. You must assess your own risk tolerance and if you decide to register/attend, you will agree to not hold The Breakaway or any of its staff liable for contracting any illness.  A full refund (minus PayPal fees if paid via credit card) or full credit will be available for anyone who chooses to stay home as a result of illness.

Additional Guidelines Before Attending The Breakaway: 

  • If you are feeling at all sick, sniffly, scratchy throat, feverish, chills, muscle ache, or abnormally tired, PLEASE don't attend the dance event! Reach out to us at info@breakawayswing.com for a refund if you feel ill.

  • If you have taken any big risks in the preceding days such as air travel and big crowd events such as concerts, please consider taking a home antigen test or PCR test even if you DON’T have symptoms. This will help protect the community. 

  • Hand washing with soap and water before the event as well as the use of hand sanitizer is also highly encouraged between dance partners.

  • If you have come into close contact with someone diagnosed with Covid-19 in the last 5 days, please do not attend our event. 

  • If you test positive for COVID-19 prior to attending The Breakaway, you must have a minimum of 10 days pass, along with no symptoms.

  • If you do attend the dance event and later test positive for COVID, kindly inform the organizers and people you may have shared a dance with or had close contact with. This will encourage other community members to get tested themselves and prevent further spread of the virus. You can email us at:  info@breakawayswing.com

  • Last, but certainly not least, get your booster shot (first or second) if you're eligible for one and haven't already done so!  

ATTRIBUTION: Our framework is based on the work of Lindy by the Lake, Woodchopper’s Ball, William Winters (william@bonobonetwork.com) & Misha Bonaventura (misha@bonobonetwork.com) of Bonobo Network, you can find their Covid Guidelines here: https://bit.ly/bonobocovidguidelines