Tag: dance history

Chloe and Maud Arnold Talk the History of Tap

Any time Chloe and Maud Arnold—aka our favorite tapping sister duo—gift us with another Syncopated Ladies video, we get excited. Really excited. But today, they’ve given us something even better: stellar tapping, plus a discussion of the history of tap and why the art form still resonates. Their new video is part of TheRoot.com’s Dances […]

Happy July 4th, Dance World!

Ah, Independence Day. (Or as we like to call it around here, Indepen-DANCE day—it never gets old!) A whole 24 hours of hot dogs, corn on the cob, Popsicles, fireworks and red white and blue everything. Let’s get this partay started! To get us all in the spirit, here’s part two of Dance Spirit‘s roundup […]

Dr. Maya Angelou, Dancer, Dies at 86

Maya Angelou Photo via pbs.org By now, you might have heard that the legendary Dr. Maya Angelou passed away last night at 86. And while you’re probably most familiar with her work as a civil rights activist and an American author (with masterworks like I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings), you might not have […]

Think Twerking Is Scandalous? So Was the Waltz, Once

Here’s a fun little Friday video for you: Time magazine, inspired by the hullaballoo over Miley Cyrus’ twerktastrophe at the VMAs, has put together a history of “forbidden” dances. Forget grinding: In the late nineteenth century, even the waltz was considered risqué, because its “closed hold” meant partners were—gasp!—actually touching each other. Like, for extended […]

A Wild Ride Through Dance and Fashion History

In a little more than a minute and a half, this video takes you through a hundred years in British style—and dance. It zooms from Charleston-ing ’20s flappers to preppy ’50s swing babies to punked-out children of the ’80s. Created last year to announce the opening of Westfield Stratford City shopping center in London, it’s […]