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Ballet
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Ballet
def. Classical Ballet is the foundation of all dance styles. In order to become truly proficient in contemporary, modern, jazz, Broadway or partnering the dancer needs ballet training. There are three parts to the Ballet. Classical ballet is the most formal of the dance styles, it adheres to traditional ballet technique. Classical ballet is best known for its unique features and techniques, such as pointe work, turn-out of the legs, and high extensions; its graceful, flowing, precise movements; and its ethereal qualities. Free movement introduces the neo classical side of ballet and dance. It encourages dancing with dynamics and emotion. It can also be used to teach a more difficult combination or ballet movement by first learning it without strict positions. The dancers get "the feel" of the movement first and then perfect the technique.
Once the foundation of basic technique has been laid, women begin to wear pointe shoes while men continue to wear soft shoes and learn more advanced jumps and turns. The age at which dancers start pointe work varies from student to student. Strength is paramount in being able to wear pointe shoes for extended periods of time. Premature wearing of pointe shoes or insufficient training can result in serious injuries and/or disabilities in later life.
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Dança Afro
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African Dance
def. Traditional dance in Africa occurs collectively, expressing the life of the community more than that of individuals or couples. Dances are often segregated by gender, reinforcing gender roles in children. Community structures such as kinship, age, and status are also often reinforced.[5]
The character of dancing observed by travelers to West Africa in the 1800s depended on context, the people, and the gender of the dancers. In general men used large body movements, including jumping and leaping. Women danced smaller movements with much use of "shuffle steps", the body in a bent position with "crooked knees". The circle dance predominated everywhere, sometimes solo dancers or musicians in the middle, sometimes couples. The ecstatic seizure was an essential element of ceremonial dancing, both religious and secular.
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Flamenco
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Flamenco
def. Form of song, dance, and instrumental (mostly guitar) music commonly associated with the Andalusian Roma (Gypsies) of southern Spain,(there, the Roma people are known as Gitanos).The roots of flamenco,though somewhat mysterious,seem to lie in the Roma migration from Rajasthan(in northwest India) to Spain between the 9th and 14th centuries. Its essence is cante, or song, often accompanied by guitar music and improvised dance.The cante jondo ("profound song" or "deep song"),thought to be the oldest form,is characterized by profound emotion and deals with themes of death,anguish, despair,or religious doubt.After the mid-19th century,flamenco song was usually accompanied by guitar music and a palo seco (Spanish: "dry stick," a stick that was beat on the floor to keep time) and a dancer performing a series of choreographed dance steps and improvised styles.
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Hip Hop
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Hip-Hop
def. Hip-hop dance originated in New York among young Hispanic and African-American men during the late 1960s as part of the hip-hop culture of rap, scratch music, and graffiti art. The dance is always changing but essentially embraces the two styles of break dance and body popping. The former is an athletic solo form in which the performer enters the dance arena in a sideways motion then dives or breaks to the floor, spins around on his head, shoulders, or buttocks and ends with a freeze position. Body popping involves a series of fast, sharp actions that travel through the body in a robotic-looking alternation of move and freeze.
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Jive
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Jive
def. The origins of the word "jive" are unknown. It may refers to "jive talk" or badmouthing. This word reflects the character of the dance. It is sassy and loud. The first hints of Jive came from African-American slaves.
Jive's correct name is Jitterbug Jive.
It is named after a 30's Mickey Mouse cartoon where Mickey and Minnie danced a country style Jitterbug. The name came from Jitterbugs being the dancers and Jive meaning "fake" or "not right".
In the 30's jive dancing was very smooth and with sliding footwork whereas later the footwork was not as smooth due to the dancers lifting their feet so as not to trip on rough floor boards or the local rough country entertainment establishments.
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Kizomba
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Kizomba
def. Kizomba is an African rhythm, developed in Angola mostly since the late 70s. Being born in a continent with a effervescent musical history, kizomba is a result of an evolution: young generations, listening to traditional music like semba, felt something was missing - a modern and sensual touch.
Dancing kizomba is a unique experience – standing really close together, partners move in sensual wavy movement, where leading and being led finds a new dimension.
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Merengue
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Merengue
def. The merengue is a lively dance, but when you dance it you look like you're limping, which is an explanation the Dominicans give of its origin. In the nineteenth century, they say, a hero returned home from battle wounded in the leg, and the townspeople celebrated his victory by limping with him. Or, some say, it's the limping movement slaves made when chained together and working in the fields to the beat of a drum. Haitians simply say the Dominicans got it from them.
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Paso Doble
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Paso doble
def. Paso Doble or Pasodoble is a lively style of dance to the duple meter march-like pasodoble music.
It actually originated in southern France, but is modeled after the sound, drama, and movement of the Spanish bullfight. Paso doble means "two step" in Spanish.
The name 'Paso Doble' in Spanish means 'Two Step', and may be distinguished from 'Paso a Dos' which means 'Dance for two'. "Two Step" refers to the marching nature of the steps, which may be counted '1, 2' for 'Left, Right'
Pasodoble is based on music played at bullfights during the bullfighters' entrance (paseo) or during the passes (faena) just before the kill. The leader of this dance plays the part of the matador. The follower generally plays the part of the matador's cape, but can also represent the bull or a Flamenco dancer in some figures.
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Quickstep
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Quickstep
def. The name could have been derived from the Spanish 'Chacha' meaning 'nursemaid', or 'chachar' meaning 'to chew coca leaves', or from 'char' meaning "tea', or most likely from the fast and cheerful Cuban dance: the Guaracha. This dance has been popular in Europe from before the turn of the century. For example it is listed on the program of the Finishing Assembly in 1898 of Dancie Neill at Coupar Angus in Scotland.
The cha-cha inherited much of its styling from its parent dances, the rumba and the mambo. Like most latin dances, it is done with the feet remaining close to the floor. The dancers' hips are relaxed to allow free movement in the pelvic section. The upper body shifts over the supporting foot, as steps are taken.
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Rumba
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Rumba
def. There are two sources of the dances: one Spanish and the other African. Although the main growth was in Cuba, there were similar dance developments which took place in other Caribbean islands and in Latin America generally.
The "rumba influence" came in the 16th century with the black slaves imported from Africa. The native Rumba folk dance is essentially a sex pantomime danced extremely fast with exaggerated hip movements and with a sensually aggressive attitude on the part of the man and a defensive attitude on the part of the woman.
The music is played with a staccato beat in keeping with the vigorous expressive movements of the dancers. Accompanying instruments include the maracas, the claves, the marimbola, and the drums.
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Samba
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Ballroom dance
def. Ballroom dance of Brazilian origin, popularized in the U.S. and Europe in the 1940s. Danced to music in 4/4 time with a syncopated rhythm, the dance is characterized by simple forward and backward steps and tilting, rocking body movements. In Brazil an older African type of samba is also danced in circles or double lines as a group dance. For decades the samba has dominated Brazilian popular music.
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Sapateado
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Tap dance
def. Style of American theatrical dance using precise rhythmical patterns of foot movement and audible foot tapping. It is derived from the traditional clog dance of northern England.
Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by a tapping sound that is created from metal plates that are attached to both the ball and heel of the dancer's shoe. These metal plates, when tapped against a hard surface, create a percussive sound and as such the dancers.
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Sevilhanas
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Sevillanas
def. It is characterised by its gracefulness, liveliness, nimble dynamism and its flexibility, although the sevillanas have been getting slower over the last few years. It is a dance for pairs formed by either a man and a woman or two women. At a popular level they are executed in series of four coplas (poetic compositions, in verse, used as lyrics), each of which has a different choreography, with a brief interval between them. In earlier times, they were comprised of seven coplas, as they had a further three bolero sevillanas which are currently only performed by professionals, as they are considerably more difficult to dance to.
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Tango
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Spirited dance
def. Spirited dance, also a South American ballroom dance.It evolved in the dance halls and, perhaps, the brothels of poorer districts of Buenos Aires, Argentine, possibly influenced by the Cuban habanera.It was made popular in the U.S. by Vernon and Irene Castle, and by 1915 it was being danced throughout Europe.Early versions, danced to music in the prevailing duple metre( 2/4),were fast and exuberant,these were later modified to the smoother ballroom step, characterized by long pauses and stylized body positions and danced to music usually in 4/4 time.
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Valsa Inglesa
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English Waltz
def. The "Waltz" is derived from the old German word "walzen" meaning "to roll, turn", or "to glide".
During the 18th century, the allemande form of the waltz became very popular in France. Originally danced as one of the figures in the contredanse, with arms inter-twining at the shoulder level, it soon evolved into an independent dance and the close-hold position was introduced. This was the first time that the close hold or ballroom hold was used in a dance, and it was utterly scandalous that such a thing as the gent placing his hand around the ladies waist should be allowed.
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