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MODERN DANCE

Modern dance is a broad genre of theatrical or concert dance that includes various styles such as ballet, folk, social, religious, and ethnic dancing. It was first developed in the US and Europe during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was regarded as a way to express social concerns and reject the traditional ballet.

 

BRIEF HISTORY

Although modern dance is often regarded as a rejection of classical ballet, historians believe that various factors such as the rise of the middle class and the decline of social strictures influenced the development of this art form. In the United States, for instance, the rise of the middle class and the increasing number of people with disposable income led to a new interest in physical fitness and health. During that same period, the role of physical education in the development of modern dance was also greatly influenced by the movement’s popularity.

POPULARIZATION 

In 1927, newspapers began assigning dance critics, such as Walter Terry, and Edwin Denby, who approached performances from the viewpoint of a movement specialist rather than as a reviewer of drama and music. Subsequently educators accepted modern dance into college and university curriculum, first as a part of physical education, then as performing art.

✨Major Modern Dancers/Founders✨

Martha Graham

Graham is to Modern dance what Stravinsky is to Modern music or Picasso to Modern art. It’s hard to overestimate her influence. She codified a vocabulary of Modern dance that still prevails and is the closest thing to a “mainstream” Modern dance. The force of her personality was legendary, and although her primary work was done before World War II, she lived until age 96 in 1991.

Alvin Ailey

He formed the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater in 1958, with an eclectic style built from his “blood memories” of his native Texas, the blues, spirituals and gospel, asking for a combination of leg and footwork – what he called a “ballet bottom” – combined with a “Modern top,” the torso, arms and head, that “only Modern dance offers.”

Isadora Duncan 

Free spirit incarnate, Duncan danced barefoot in Grecian robes, invoking ancient dance, and created the first school of Modern dance. 

Merce Cunningham

In the forefront of the dance avant-garde for more than 50 years, Cunningham revolutionized his field, divorcing movement from the music that accompanied it, and from the constraints of narrative. His influence has been enormous.

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What Is Pom Dancing?

POM DANCE

POM is a form of dance combining cheer motion and dance technique. Pom classes are great for both dancers and gymnasts. All while using pom poms. 

What is POM? 

In pom your dancer will work on the fundamental basics of cheer. Students work on cheer motions and jumps, as well as dance technique including: turns, jumps, leaps and level-appropriate Pom choreography. Pom uses sharp and precise movements, which in turn will help to improve the student’s overall arm and body placement.

Routines contain hip-hop, jazz and gymnastics elements.

What is the difference from cheer? 

Pom is more focused on the dance elements while cheer has group stunting as well as a vocal element. 

Cheerleading squads include dance, stunts, and tumbling into their routines, performing throughout a sporting event, and often on the sidelines. A POM squad or Drill squad uses pom poms in dance routines and often performs during halftime shows, along with some cheer elements.

What skills are developed in POM?

Students are trained in dance technique, POM movement terminology, balance skills,  precision, synchronization, strength, and flexibility. Above all they will grow in the form of team work, and the bond of working towards a common goal. 

Key Movements

Some of the key movements you’ll see in pom that are derived cheerleading include clasp, T-motion, high-V, touchdowns, L’s, Half T’s, and more.

Different movements can occur in POM dance, depending on the dance type.

  • Hip Hop: running man, whipping, dabbing, Nae Nae
  • Tap(Less common POM Style): time step, shuffle, heel drops, ball change
  • Jazz: spirit fingers, step ball change, parallel turns, stag leap, split leap/jete, and fan kicks
  • Contemporary: death drop, parallel, contraction, levels, inversion

 

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Mini History of Jazz Dancing

 

WHAT IS JAZZ?

When you hear the word Jazz what do you think of? 

Better yet, when you hear about jazz as a style of dance what comes to mind? 

Do you think of the Charleston? Or does your mind go straight to broadway? 

The evolution of jazz dance spans over history, and takes on many forms. 

Jazz began as a social style of dance at the turn of the century when African American dancers began blending traditional style African steps with European movement.

With that combination it allowed dancers to create a conversation with the musicians and their instruments. Like jazz music, jazz dance was centered around improving and a call and response between the dancers and musicians. 

No matter where and when jazz always has had a performative feel.

Here are some steps every beginner should know:

Ball Change: A quick transfer of weight from one foot to the other.

Jazz Square: A four step movement in which the dancer steps across, back, and to the front. Creating a square pattern with feet on the floor.

Chassé: Step out in any direction in píle, then jump and chase the first leg. Like a gallop.

A list of some famous jazz dancers throughout history:

Bob Fosse: June 23, 1927- September 23, 1987

An actor, choreographer, dancer, director, and screenwriter. 

He was known for his distinct style with his use of the pelvis, arm, and hard isolations, and rounding of the shoulders. He gave jazz a new dimension. Winning 8 Tony Awards for choreography. Some of his major works include ‘Chicago’, ‘Kiss Me Kate’, ‘Pippin’, and ‘Cabaret’. 

Jack Cole: April 27, 1911- February 17, 1974

A dancer, choreographer, and theater director.

He is considered as the “father of jazz” technique. He combined jazz with modern steps. 

Jack choreographed Marilyn Monroe’s ‘Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friends’. ‘There’s No Business Like Show Business’, and ‘Les Girl’.

This opened the floodgates to new talent and modifications to the dance form. 

Jerome Robbins: October 11, 1918- July 29, 1998 

Theater producer, director, and dance choreographer. 

He was a world renowned choreographer, know for his contribution to ballet, theater, movies, and television musicals.

His works include: ‘Fiddler on the Roof’, ‘Funny Girl’, ‘West Side Story’, and many more.

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Contemporary Dance

What Is Contemporary Dance?

Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in the U.S. and Europe.

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The genre of Contemporary blends elements of multiple dance styles. This form of dance lets dancers express emotions through movement and breath.   

Contemporary dance is a style of interpretive dance that embraces blending improv, innovation, and technique from various styles of dance such as; jazz, modern, lyrical, and classical ballet. 

Within this genre you focus more on floor work, body shapes, and expression. Instead of relying on the strict rules that govern traditional dance styles it RELIES on your ability to move through improvisation and versatility. It allows you to have creative freedom with your movement. The fluidity of movement allows dancers to explore their mind-body connection. 

It is often referred to as a form of story-telling. Contemporary routines tend to communicate abstract ideas, moments in time, personal or historical moments. The costumes and music will typically reflect and help set the tone of the piece. Some choreographers will have their performers dance to spoken word poems, or have the dance/dancer make “music” with their bodies. 

Major power houses who helped influence contemporary included:  

✨Isadora Duncan, who was an American ballet dancer that rejected the rigid technique of classical ballet to embrace the human bodies natural lines. 

✨Martha Graham was a choreographer known for being the mother of modern dance. Her innovation laid much of the ground for contemporary movement. 

✨Lester Horton was an American choreographer who helped developed modern dance techniques inspired by Native American dances. He was also one of the first American choreographers to insist on racial integration in his performances. His legacy lives on in the work of notable contemporary choreographers including Alvin Ailey.

There are many factors, styles, and innovators who have made contemporary what it is today! This style is forever growing, and has the ability to reflect the times in a way of art movement.