HISTORY OF BALLROOM DANCES

Ballroom dancing is a kind of social dancing in which two people dance

as partners.
 It originated in England in the 18th and 19th century.
 It was started in the United States at the World War I.
 The term ballroom dancing is derived from the “ball”, from the Latin
word ‘bolare’ meaning ‘to dance’.
In 1995, the Olympic Committee granted provisional recognition to
Ballroom Dancing or “Dance Sport”.
Dance sport refers to the International Standard and International Latin
style dances and regulated by the World Dance Council (WDC).
Dancers are judged by diverse criteria in ballroom competition such
as;
 Poise
 Posture
 Hold or Frame
 Timing
 Musicality
 Expression
 Body Alignment and Shape
 Foot and Leg Action
 Floor Craft
 Strong Connection to your Partner and to the Audience and
Presentation or Showmanship
As a beginner you will feel that dancing is awkward. Be positive, try to
feel the music, trust your partner, and have patience.

TIPS, DANCE WEARS AND COSTUMES

Ballroom dancing was once exclusive to higher class society but now
it's enjoyed by people of all backgrounds.
Ladies
Patience, trust, and enjoyment define the essence of ballroom dancing for
ladies.
Gentlemen
When dancing with a partner, warm up with basic steps, assess their
readiness for advanced moves, and focus on making them look good.
Touch is necessary for proper guidance. Handle your partner with care and
ensure their safety.
Practice makes perfect
Practice solo, with partners, or in groups. Enjoy the process, embrace
mistakes, and never give up.
Warm up
Start with basic body stretching, then focus on specific muscles. Condition
them before intense activities. Warm-up protects against injuries.
Footwork
Footwork is one of the most important elements needed to master in
ballroom dancing. It is a way to develop a good sense of balance.

DANCE WEARS AND COSTUMES

Ballroom dance costumes from Dance America help a dancer to feel
amazing.
 Men’s dance shoes are typically black lace-up Oxfords with a flat heel
for standard dances and a 1 to 2 inch heel for Latin dances.
 For women, basic designs include open- or closed-toe pumps and
sandals. Heels in women’s shoes are slim or flared and generally
range in height from 1 to 3 inches.
For professional performances and competitions the dress code has
some strict rules that depend on a program.
The women dress for ballroom dancing can be grouped by the number
of elements:
 A 2-piece set, e.g. a skirt and a shirt. Usually this set is
applicable only for newbies or practice sessions.
 One-piece set is more professional, fashionable and comfortable
for dancing. Besides, such dress has more room for embellishment,
custom designer’s patterns and styles.
  Simpler dress for practice, when more fancy dress is the best
choice for competitions.
 Men dancers should wear a tail suit, however sometimes beginners
prefer a white colored long sleeved "classic style" shirt with collar
and cuffs.
Consider your dance style and its historical elements when buying
competition attire. Highlight the main movements of your dance with your
dress or attire.
DANCE POSITIONS USED IN BALLROOM
Mastering proper couple dance positions enables freedom of
movement, improvisation, and graceful leading and following. Emphasize
good body carriage with a natural, erect, and graceful posture.
1) WRAP POSITION - also called Sweetheart or Sweetheart's Wrap,
The gent wraps his right arm around the woman's waist;
she wraps her left arm around her front to hold his right hand.
2) SHOULDER-WAIST POSITION - partners stand face to
face, shoulders and hips parallel.
3) CHALLENGE POSITION - the male and female partners face one
another but stand apart and without making contact.
4) FACING POSITION - is the most basic and common position, man
and lady face each other and move in opposite directions.
5) CONVERSATION - sometimes called the 'semi-closed' or
'promenade' position.
6) INSIDE HAND JOINED POSITION - the man extends his right arm
and offers his right hand to his partner, and the woman places her
left palm in the man's right hand.
7) ESCORT POSITION - is an open position in which the woman's arm
is held in the crook of the man's.
8) REVERSE VARSIVIENNE - in this position both partners stand side
by side, facing forward in the line of direction.
9) OPEN POSITION - refers to positions in which partners are
connected primarily at the hands as opposed to closer body contact,
as in closed position.
MODERN DANCE AND OTHER FORMS

HISTORY
THE BEGINNING OF MODERN DANCE
 Modern Dance is one of the most beautiful creative talents known to
the world.
 Modern Dance is the most pure and simple form of movement to
music you’re likely to experience. It can be fast, slow, high impact,
gentle, loud, silent, frantic and still.
 Modern Dance is a mix of all the dances its type of movement,
tempo and feeling you can imagine.
Developed in the 20th century, primarily in the United States and
Germany, modern dance resembles modern art and music.
Modern dance emerged in the early 20th century with pioneers such as
Duncan, Fuller, St. Dennis, Laban, and Wigman. They rebelled against
ballet's formalism and sought to inspire new awareness. Alvin Ailey
founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1958. Trisha
Brown's work in 1962 transformed modern dance, while the 1970’s
brought further evolution and global recognition.
In the 1980s, ballet gained prominence with Mark Morris, Twyla Tharp,
Eliot Feld, and Karole Armitage. Michael Jackson's iconic movements,
like the moonwalk, left a lasting impact. Gradually innovations crept in,
paving the way for contemporary dance forms.
GERMAN CONTRIBUTION
Rudolf von Laban, influential in Germany, founded a school and
influenced Mary Wigman. Laban later established the Art of Movement
Studio in England, focusing on notation until his death.

SankaiJuku, a group of Japanese dancers trained in modern and classical

dance. Their work is based on ‘butoh’, a form of dance theatre that avoids
structured choreography and strives to express primitive emotions.
OTHER FORMS OF MODERN DANCE
Ballet
 Developed during the Italian Renaissance.
 Is choreographed with classical music.
 Highly technical form of dance with many subgenres including
classic, romantic, neoclassical and contemporary.
Ballroom
 Is a type of partner dance.
 Ballroom has today evolved into two main subgenres –
standard/smooth and Latin/rhythm.
 Is a popular form of competitive dance, or dance sport.
 Include the waltz, tango and foxtrot, and pasodoble, bolero and
samba.
Contemporary
 Is now one of the most popular and technical forms of dance.
 It is often known for unpredictable and disordered changes in speed
and rhythm throughout a performance.
Hip-hop
 Refers to a range of street dances that developed in relation to hip
hop music and culture.
 Hip-hop is performed in outdoor spaces, in dance studios and
competitively.
 Main styles of hip-hop dancing include Breaking, Locking and
Popping.
Tap Dancing
 Is a type of percussive dance characterized by the “tap” of shoes
hitting the floor.
 Tap dancers often wear metal “taps”.
MODERN DANCE MOVES AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF MODERN
DANCE
Modern dance emerged through pioneers like Martha Graham, Paul
Taylor, and Isadora Duncan.

The Following are some of the Modern Dance Moves;

1. Laterals
 The arm over the supporting leg comes straight up next to the
ear as the torso tilts, unbroken to the side, over the supporting
leg.
2. Spiral
 Is a torso twist that begins in the pelvis.
3. Stag Leap
 Is a very high jump in split but, although both legs are parallel to
the floor, the front leg is bent from the knee inward.
4. Stag Turn
 The supporting knee is slightly bent; the other leg is up in the
air and bent behind the body.
5. Primitive Squat
 Is a hop that lands in a deep second-position.
6. Flat Back
 Is actually a series of moves but the basic movement makes a
“tabletop” of the body.
7. Hinge
 The dancer balances on the balls of the feet, keeps a straight
back and head and head and sends the knees forward.
8. The Contraction
 The maid-section is pulled back against a movement. The
action begins in the pelvis, and articulates up the spine as the
breath is exhaled.
9. The Release
 Occurs on the inhalation and also begins in the pelvis.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF MODERN DANCE

Creative Thinking
Artistic training, including modern dance, benefits students by
enhancing employable skills and fostering creative thinking.
Employers value a well-rounded skill set alongside job-specific
qualifications.
Stress Reduction
Modern dance classes enhance mental well-being through emotional
expression, exercise, and introspection. They reduce stress, improve
mood, and decrease anxiety and depression. Endorphins generated
promote peace, well-being, and optimism.
Self-Expression
Modern dance empowers students to express themselves physically,
fostering a unique voice beyond words. It benefits shy or learning-
disabled students, building confidence and providing visibility.
Through Coordination
Dancing gives our brains an ample dose of cognitive nourishment
and exercise.

JAZZ DANCE AND DANCE STEPS

Jazz Dance is an African-American vernacular dance form, choreographed
to the beats of musical art form. Developed around the beginning of the 20 th
century.
Moves used in Jazz Dance: Jazz Hands, Kicks Leaps Sideway,
Shuffling Rolled, Shoulders Turned Knees.
The movements are termed as Jazz, basically an umbrella term, and
set to “blues” notes, poly-rhythms, improvisations, the ‘swung’ note and
syncopation.
Jazz dance itself is a combination of classical ballet moves mixed with
steps from American popular culture.
History
Jazz dance originated from the vernacular dances of Africans
brought to the Americas on slave ships. It evolved alongside jazz music in
New Orleans in the early 1900s, featuring dances like the fox-trot, shimmy,
rag, Charleston, and black bottom.
Key People
Joe Frisco - The first official American “jazz dancer” who performed in
vaudeville around 1910.
Michael Jackson - Known as “The King of Pop”
Katherine Dunham - An anthropologist, choreographer, and pioneer in
Black theatrical dance. She introduced isolations jazz dance. Grandmaster
of Jazz Dancing.
Jack Cole - Considered as the father of jazz dance technique. He is
credited for popularizing the theatrical form of jazz dance.
Eugene Louis Facciuto - (Aka “Luigi”), created a new style of jazz dance
based on the warm-up exercises he invented to circumvent his physical
handicaps.
Bob Fosse - A noted jazz choreographer who created a new form of Jazz
dance.
Gus Giordano - An influential jazz dancer and choreographer, known for
his clean, precise movement qualities.
Jerome Robbins - Choreographer for a number of hit musicals, including
Peter Pan, The King and I, and etc.
Gwen Verdon - Known for her roles in Damn Yankees, Chicago, and
Sweet Charity.
David Winters - Known for his role as A-Rab in West Side Story and as an
award-winning choreographer for movies and TV programs.
ELEMENTS OF JAZZ
Syncopated Rhythm
 Is a common characteristics of Jazz music that was adapted to
jazz dance
Isolation
 Quality of movements that introduced to jazz dance by
Katherine Dunham.
Improvisation
 Important element in early forms of jazz dance, as it is an
important element of jazz music.
Low center of Gravity & High Level of Energy
 Other important identifying characteristics of jazz dance.

Learning basic jazz dance steps is the first part of exploring jazz dance.
CHEER DANCING
- A cheer dance is meant to showcase the unity, spirit and technical
abilities of a group of cheerleaders.
- A cheer dance can be performed for a school team, during a pep
rally or at a cheerleading competition.
- A cheer dance can also incorporate vocals.
HISTORY
It is believed that organized cheer leading started as an all-male
activity.
The term "Cheer Leader" dates back to 1897 when Princeton named
three students as Cheer Leaders (Thomas, Easton and Guerin). They
cheered for the football team during practices and designated sections
during games for both home and visiting teams.
Women joined cheerleading prior to 1907 and began to dominate
the sports during World War II.
Gymnastics, tumbling, and megaphones were incorporated into popular
cheers.
In 1965, Fred Gastoff invented the vinyl (pom-pon) pom-pom, which was
introduced into competitions.

BASIC STEPS
Yelling/ Cheering
 This is an activity wherein the cheerers utter loud in articulate
blub and howl as of excitement and doing noisy with or as if
with loud shouts.
Pyramid Building
 Pyramid was established in 1959 by Vautin Andrews and Bob
Farrow, in fitness and physical education, the concept of
pyramid building is in the choreography of cheer dancing. The
two-man high, three-man high or even four-to-six man high are
used in doing the activity.
BASIC CHEERLEADING MOTIONS

Ready Position - This is a basic starting position for almost every routine.
Hand Clasp - Is clasping hands together. This creates a sharp look to the
routine and is more dramatic.
T Motion - Arms are straight out to the sides at shoulder height and hands
should be turned so that the thumbs face forward and the pinky fingers face
to the back.
Broken T - Raise both arms so that your fists rest on your chest at
shoulder height.
Touchdown - Straighten your arms and bring them up on either side of
your ears.
V Motion - The V motion can be done as a high V or low V. the arms are
straight up but out from the head by about 45 degrees.
Right and Left Punch - The alternating motion of one hand on the hip and
the other hand punching up.
L-Motion - Imagine that your arms are creating a straight letter "L" and you
should be able to complete this cheer motion.

STREET DANCING
Street dancing is a grandiose activity with coordination of
movements with a high level of dexterity and synchronization of
choreographic and appealing techniques. It showcases culturally-oriented
performances.
The important factor in street dancing is not maintaining the strict
dance steps, but to enjoy as much as you can by utilizing your energy.
HISTORY
Street dance emerged from popular culture in 1970s America and
has spread globally. It originated in informal spaces and emphasized
improvisation and creativity. Popping, Locking, and Breaking are
foundational funk styles within street dance.
Types Of Street Dance

Hip-Hop Dance
 Is a fusion dance genre that incorporates elements
of popping, locking, breaking, jazz, ballet, tap dancing and
other styles and is typically performed to hip-
hop, R&B, funk, electronic or pop music.
Funk Dance
 It’s a diva dance style. It takes elements from Hip Hop, Jazz,
and Waacking.
House Dance
 Is a social dance primarily danced to house music that has
roots in the clubs. The main elements of House dance include
"Footwork", "Jacking", and "Lofting".
Rave Dance
 Is a large dance party featuring performances by DJs and
occasionally live performers playing electronic music,
particularly electronic dance music (EDM).
Clog Dance
 Kind of dance in which the dancer accentuates the rhythm of
his feet by wearing wooden-soled shoes, or clogs.
Club Dance
 A nightclub (also known as a discothèque, disco, dance club or
club) is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into
the night.