Sacred Space – Dancing Alone

What about dancing on our own, in private, without an audience or even with a particular goal is so refreshing?  So invigorating?  When we’re not practicing and just letting it go.

Terrence featured an interesting thought about this and I’ll see if I can keep the discussion going (perhaps tangentially).

When we are practicing, training, performing or even just dancing with or in front of our peers we are less likely to envision our space – our art – as sacred.  When we dance on our own after our classes are finished, our training over, our performances finished and our peers retired from judging, what do we evoke?

Making Changes

This is probably one of the most personal posts I have ever put up here.  Take it as you will.

Recently I have had some interesting twists added into my life.  My regular work week fell from five days a week, working more than 45 hours, to three days a week, averaging 24-30 hours.  At first it hit pretty hard.  I was taking about a 40% paycut on really short notice.  I cut back on expenditures that I could and stressed over it.  So much so that I was in physical pain for almost three days.

Then as the time has rolled by, I have realized it is a sort of blessing in disguise.  It has given me the space in my life to reevaluate what is important, how I want to live, and what I really take as valuable.  I am not made for the office life or the desk job.  I am an artist and that takes commitment; to no longer being afraid of freeing oneself from normal expectations.

I have added a tap class to my weekly schedule on Mondays at Steps alongside practicing tap with Maggie twice a week.  I am commiting more time and energy into my collaborative news project with Alain Wong, Lindybloggers.  I spent eleven days in a row either going out dancing or working on dancing, my body was tired but it felt great.

I have projects planned to choreograph with other dancers.  I am checking in on gigs for the new year and building prospects for the future which enable my artistic side to be sustainable.

I am building the life I want to live.

Steps on Broadway

Last night I had the opportunity to attend tap class with Derick Grant of Steps on Broadway here in NYC.  I haven’t put my taps on in almost three months so it was really good to get back into the rhythm of things.

Check out Derick in this clip from the Third Coast Rhythm Project back in 2005.

I’ve had a lot of opportunities lately to interact with various tap dancers, even having the opportunity to see Terrence tap with one of my favorite bands at Banjo Jims; you can check out his trip to New York in these two posts.

Stompology 2008

Stompology is one event that I’ve mentioned time and again as a great workshop.  Put on by Groove Juice Swing in Rochester, NY, it is in it’s third year.  Unlike many events focusing on the partnered aspect of jazz dance, whether that is Balboa, Lindy Hop, Charleston or so on, Stompology focuses exclusively on the solo dances of the jazz family.  Tap and soft shoe, charleston, black bottom and much more.

The line up this year included Andy Reid, Naomi Uyama, Jojo Jackson and Mike Faltesek with each of the teachers brings a unique array of style, skills and knowledge.

Friday I arrived off of the train in time for the late night.  Held at The Keg, a sports bar, it was a relatively nice change of pace for a late night.  There was a front room with the bar area and a second room which held the dance floor and impromptu stage for the musicians.  The floor was a faux wood with decent give and slip.  The feel of the venue was cozy yet not cramped.

Gordon Websters band started off with some easy swinging tunes until the “secret special guest” arrived, Wycliffe Gordon.  I have heard many exceptional musicians and bands but when Wycliffe started to blow on his trombone the energy in the room vaulted.  He laid out licks that made the hair on my neck stand up and gave me goose bumps.  It was truly a great start to the weekend.

History in the Pages, pt. 1

Looking for reliable sources on the history of vernacular jazz dance can sometimes be a tough process. Thankfully the ability to easily order books online has made it quite a bit easier to find these less-than-common books.

The first book I recommend for anyone looking to learn more about the history of the dance is Frankie Mannings autobiography, Ambassador of Lindy Hop, released earlier this year. While it may not be a comprehensive look at the development of jazz dance as a whole, it is the most inviting to the casual reader. Frankie Manning is an innovator and pioneer in the lindy hop community and has helped return the dance from a lost art to the strong and growing community it is now. It has a colloquial ease; full of anecdotes and memories of ballrooms and bands from the jazz era that make it hard to put down. It was co-authored by Cynthia Millman and there are small sidebars throughout the book with historical snippets on locations and various dances.

For a more historical perspective on the development of vernacular jazz dance Marshall Stearns Jazz Dance: The Story of American Vernacular Dance is a good choice. It lays out the history of the dance in a slightly haphazard manner from buck dancing and minstrel shows to the dance crazes of the twenties including charleston, black bottom, turkey trot and moves into the development of lindy hop and tap. It is more academic in nature than Frankie Manning’s book including Laban movement notation on how to perform various steps. There is also a companion book on the history of Jazz music by Marshall Stearns which follows a similar method in examining the development of jazz as a musical tradition.