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DanceDanceRevolution

ChristianT.Roberts

EnglishIIIHonors
Mrs.Kopp
February26,2015


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ChristianT.Roberts

Mrs.Kopp

EnglishIIIHonors

January18,2015

DanceDanceRevolution
Humansliveinaworldbrimmingwithtalent.Watchingthattalentcanbefoundbymost
asentertainment.Butwhatwouldmakeentertainmentmoreentertaining?Choreography.The
futureoftheprofessionofchoreographyoffersasuperbandprofoundcareerpathforanaspiring
dancer.Choreographytiescloselywiththeentertainmentindustrymakingsecuringand
obtainingajobinthiscareerpathdifficult.Despitethechallengesandrisksofpursuingthis
vocation,thedemandforchoreographersgrowsdaily.Choreographyestablishesabackbonefor
entertainmentinasocietyengulfedinperformancearts.
Choreography,theactoforganizingasequenceofstepsandmovements,particularly
pertainingtodance(Merrian),isessentialtocreatingmasterpiecesofproduction,usually
dancing.Althoughhelpful,choreographyisnotalwaysnecessaryfordancing.Improvised
dancingflourishedinthe1900s.AnewdevelopmentalstyleofmusiccalledHipHopushered
inanewepidemicalmovementaswellasanewbodymovement.Hiphopdancersengagein
battlesordanceoffswithinacipherusingimprovisedmovements.Hiphopdancingtookoff
andalloweddancerstobecomechoreographersinamatterofyears.Thechoreographyofhip
hopdancinglaunchedtheworldofperformancetoanewdegreeofentertainment.


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Throughouttheevolutionofdance,methodsofchoreographyalsoevolved.
Choreographing,acompletelysubjectiveact,developsdancerschoreographyintoaunique
style,makingthemintochoreographers.Eachchoreographerdesignseachdanceaccordingto
theiraesthetics.Insomecases,observingdancersimprovisionsinfluencesthechoreography.
Otherchoreographerscomereadytoteachwithasetofstepsorcombinationsalreadyinmind
and/ortryoutcombinationsonthedancerstoseeifthechoreographysuitsthedancers.Some
choreographersprefertotakeextensivenotes,makedrawings,anddancenotion(Funk&
Wagnalls).Labanotation,alsoknownasKinetographyLaban,anexampleofadancenotation
systemforrecordingandanalyzinghumanmovement.Oncethedancecompositionhasbeen
created,thechoreographerwillthenteachittothedancers,demonstratingandthenwatchingand
critiquingastheyimitate(Nichols).Withinthedancecommunity,amplegenres,styles,and
techniquesofdancecontinuetobepracticeddaily.Eachgenreofdancerequiresaspecific
rehearsalandperformancesettings.Forinstance,thepracticeofballet,tap,contemporary,and
jazzallgenerallytakeplaceinadancestudioandthenperformedonastage.Unlikemostother
genresofdance,hiphoporiginatedinthestreetsbeforeintegratingitselfintodancestudiosand
ontostages.Theintroductionofimprovisationalstreetdancinginthe1970sopenedupanentire
newperformancefrontfordancing.Hiphopdancingcontainsmultipleuniquestyleswithin
itselfsuchas,popping,locking,krumpingandbreaking.Whenhiphopdancing
officiallytookthestagein2008onthehittelevisionshowAmerica'sBestDanceCrewon
MTV.Thereleaseoftheshowdrewtheattentionofdancersandnondancersalike.Thesheer
amazementofthenewand,atthetime,unseendancestyleignitedanationalinterestinthenew
dancegenreknownasHipHopDancing.


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Ashiphopdanceflourished,manychoreographersintegratedhiphopwithothergenres
ofdance.Thisassimilationofgenressooncamebeknownascounterculture(Siegel1).
CounterCultureincludesthemixtureofhiphopdancingintonontraditionalsettingssuchastap,
lyrical,andBroadwayproductions.The2006movieStepUpenlightenedviewersofhowthe
differencesandsimilaritiesbetweengenresandcultures.Theplotofthemoviedidnotonly
highlighttheconceptofCounterCulture,butalsopresentedaprimeexampleoftheresultof
CounterCultureinanewlight.Theconsequencesofblendinghiphopintothedance
communityaugmentedthecommunityasawholeandenhancedchoreographyaltogether.
ChoreographyonBroadwayacceptsallstylesandgenresofdance(Gold).Incorporatinghiphop
onBroadwaychangedtheassumptionthatBroadwayonlyfocusesonjazzandcontemporary
dancestyles.Broadwayshedslightonthedichotomybetweendifferentculturesofdanceand
theproductofunifyingmultipledancestyles.
Gestures,facialsexpression,andbodyposturesreplacespokenwordswhenperforming.
Performingartsactasabackbonefortheentireentertainmentindustry.Duringperformance,the
dancersfocusontheirgestures,postures,andfacialexpressionstoportrayanemotionand
connectwiththeaudience(Letiche).Justasactorsandactressesonastageinatheatresetting
willchangetheirtone,posture,face,andvolumetoevoketheaudienceemotions.Withthe
audiencesharingtheemotionswiththeperformerstheaudiencewillengageintheperformance
andenjoyitmore.Inregardstothedancers,Commercialdancersworktopleasetheaudience.
Concertdancersworktopleasethemselveschoreography,reachingfornewlevelsofartistryand
tryingtoeducatetheaudience.(Klafft).HiphopdancinghasalsomixedintoBroadwayand
dancecompetitions.Manyyoungerpeoplewhowanttohiphopdance,butdonotwantto


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becomeinvolvedinadancetroupeatadancestudiojoinahiphopdancecrew.Thesecrewscan
performonastageinanorganizedcompetitionforatrophyoronthestreetsagainstothercrews
forrespect.
Dancinghasdevelopedintoaprominentfactorintodayssociety.Almosteveryaspect
ofanyentertainmentrequireschoreography.Dancingappearsvirtuallyeverywhereincluding
televisionshows,movies,thestreet,andBroadway.Musicanddancehaveadirectcorrelationto
eachothersincethedawnoftime,specificallyhiphopdancing.Despitedancingwithmusics
favorability,dancingacapella(withoutmusic)continuestobepracticed.Hiphopdancinggrew
parallelwiththeexpandinghiphopmusicgenre.Asmusicartistsreleasemusicvideosand
performonstage,choreographyoftheconcertinquiresdancingtomaketheperformanceofthe
showallthemorecaptivating.
Newspapersandfilmsrecontextualizedthecontemporarystyleofhiphopdancingfromthe
streetcultureintoanappealforamassmarket(Rajakumar).Whenhiphopdance
commercialized,itopenedupmanyopportunitiesforgrowth.Hiphopdancingfeaturedonhit
televisionshowslikeAmericasBestDanceCrew,DancingwiththeStars,andSoYouthink
youcanDance?,provingthatdancinghasevolvedonscreenasmuchasonstage.Althoughthe
manyprogressionsinthedancecommunitysdevelopment,dancingenduresmanyhardshipsand
misinterpretationsovertime,specificallyhiphopdancing.Apreviouscommonmisconception
thatmenweretheonlypeopletohiphopdance,causedmanyroadblocksforhiphopdancing.
ThisbeliefderivedfromearlierhiphopstylessuchasKrumping.Krumping,anaggressive
styleofdancecharacterizedbytheenergeticassertionofonesphysicalbodilyarticulations.
Krumpingcarriesaviolentfacadeasoneoftheprimordialstylesofhiphopdancing.Unlike


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mostotherdancestyles,Krumpingcarriestheprinciplesofcontrarietyanddissonancetoexpress
onesmotions(Todd).Thosewhodanceoftendancecanexpressemotionsthroughtheir
motionsinallgenresandstyles.IntheAtlanta,Georgiahiphopdancescene,somedancerswill
usechoreographytoconveymasculinities.Ratherthanusingwords,dancerswillusetheLaban
MovementAnalysis,anotspokenlanguagebutthatshowsthewordsandthoughtsthroughthe
movementofthedancers(Nichols8686).
Thehiphopgenreofdancemainlyderivedfromtheinfluencesofhiphopmusic.
Thehiphopmusicthatinfluenceddancingraisedquestionsaboutthelegitimacyofthenew
foundgenre.Thehiphopmusicpresentatthetimeappearedveryracyandconjuredan
associationofThugsorGangstersbeingtheonlyoneswhodancedinthegenreofhiphop.
Hiphopmusicsflagrantdisregardforthecivilauthorities,moralcodes,andlawssupportedthe
developedinappropriatesuspicionofthecultureofhiphop.Hiphopmusiccastamurkyshadow
ofcontroversialityonthegenreofdance.Thisproveddifficultfordancerstomakehiphop
dancingappeartobemorethanjustgangsterdancing.Hiphopmusicslippedintomainstream
music.Bythe1990s,about70percentofwhiteAmericansjoinedthehiphopmusicfanbase.
Ashiphopmusicgrew,hiphopdancegrew.Withaboominfollowing,hiphopartistsfaceda
choiceofwhethertostaytruetotheirrootandkeepitrealortohoponthepophiphoptrain.
ThenewcontemporaryhiphopmusicfilledathirdofBillboardstop40charts,pushinghiphop
intothelimelight(Rajakumar6768,70).Hiphopfinallymovedfromdarknessintolightdueto
theincreaseinpopularity,manynegativeinterpretationsofhiphopdanceandmusicculture
begantoshift,clearingmanydistortedinterpretationsofthehiphopdanceandmusiccultureasa
whole.


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Hiphopdancingoffersanalternativetostandardmethodsofreleasingenergy.Parents
overtheagesstrugglewithoverenergeticchildren.Someparentsendorsehiphopdancingasan
excellentendeavorfortheirchildrentoexertundesirableenergy.Duetotheoriginationinurban
communities,theeasyaccessibilityofhiphopdancingguidedmanyinnercitychildrenfrom
joininggangs.Despitethenegativeconnotationassociatedwithhiphopmusic,hiphopdancing,
replaceyouthgangbattleswithdancebattles(Mayer).
Studiesproveconnectionsbetweenthepositionandmovementofonesbodytothe
body'scentralnervoussystemaswellasobservationalstudiesoftheimpactsofphysical
psychotherapyononesmood.Bodymovement,acrucialaspectofonesmoodandbehavior,
directlycorrespondswiththeemotionsonehas.Highenergymovement,suchashiphop
dancing,benefitsthemoodofthedanceradditionallyitallowsthedancertoexhibittheir
emotionsthroughtheirmotions.Dancersdemonstratetheirinternalemotions,moods,and
feelingsthroughchoreographyanddemonstratetheirexquisiteabilitiesandtalenttheypossess
whilesimultaneouslyentertainingtheaudience.Dancingbenefitsthecardiovascularsystem,
resultinginthecommonphraseinthedanceworld,Dancefromyourheart.Exercising
throughdancinggivesanadvantagetopatientswithheartfailure.Longtermexercisewith
dancingimprovesthefunctionalcapacityanddurationoflifeinchronicheartfailurepatients
(Kaltsatou4).Notonlydoesdancingprovidegreatexercise,italsoofferstherapeuticbenefits.
Dancingpertainstotheclinicallyappliedfieldsincludingbodypsychotherapy,ordance
movementtherapy,andrelaxation.Scientistscontinueinvestigatingstudiesonbodyfeedback,
cognition,andhealthrelatedoutcomes.Insomecases,cognitioncanonlybeattainedby
experienceofdancepsychotherapy.


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Womenestablishedtheirdominanceinthedanceworldsincethebeginningoftime.
Womengenerallydancedwithinthemainstreamstylesofcontemporary,jazz,tap,andlyrical
dancehowever,fromthe1980stotoday,theupbeatstyleofhiphopbegantodevelopa
following.Althoughsomewomenwereapprehensivetodanceinthestyleofhiphopduetothe
contrarietyfromtheusualdancestylesassociatedwithfemales,manyfemaledancersshowed
curiosityandtrieditforthemselves,drawingmoreandmorewomentothenewstyle.Bythe
timehiphopdancingofficiallyestablisheditselfinthenetworkofdance,thesightofawomanin
thestylewasnotuncommon.Accordingtofeministjournalists,womenholdtheirownina
worlddominatedbymales(Jones),provingthatwomeninvolvedinhiphopdancingbear
qualitiesthatsomemenlack.Justaswomentrydifferentstylesofdance,mentryothersdance
stylesaswell.Exclusionstoaspecificgenderdonotoccurindancing.
Difficultiesobtaininganoccupationinchoreographycreatesetbacksforsomeaspiring
dancerslookingtobecomechoreographers.Tochoreograph,onemusthavetheabilitytodance
themselves.ManydancersandchoreographersbelongtoadancecompanysuchasAlvin
Ailey,aballetbaseddancecompany.Dancecompaniesofferconsiderablesteppingstonesinto
ahigherchoreographyordancingposition.Whereaslowerchoreographypositionstakeplacein
smalldancestudiosoronsmalltheatreproductions,higherchoreographypositionstakeplaceon
largerproductionssuchastelevisionshows,movies,andBroadway.Aundercreditedposition,
knownastheassistantchoreographer,providesmajorhelptotheleadchoreographerbyactingas
theirrighthandmandevelopingdancemoves/steps/combinations,rememberingthem,and
assistingtheleadchoreographerwithteaching.


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Theinvolvementinthedanceindustryoffersmanychallengesforasubstantialcareerin
choreography.Choreographyrequiresmusicality,creativity,anddevotion.Inaninterviewwith
CherylKlafft,ahighschooldanceteacher,Klaffttalksabouttheamountoftimedevotedto
techniquerequiredfordancingandthejoyteachingbringsher.Teachingdancetoherstudents
consumesoveranaverageoffortyhoursaweek.Alongwithseveralstudentscomeseveral
challenges.KlafftstruggleswithmotivatingstudentsandfeelslikeaCheerleadertryingto
grasptheinterestoflethargicstudents.Fromthemanyyearsofdancing,choreographing,and
teaching,Klafftconcludedthattheamountofworkadancerputsintotrainingandpracticing
decidesthequalityofperformancedemonstrated.Asateacher,Klafftmakesanaverage
teacherssalaryofaroundthirtythousandayear,whereasapaidchoreographerearnsasalaryof
aroundfortyfourthousand.Studentstendencytonottakedanceasseriouslyasarealclass,
hindersthedanceindustryfromexceedingitsfullpotentialandprovidesoneofthebiggest
frustrationsforKlafftasadanceteacher.Despitewhatotherteachersthink,danceand
choreographicarteducationdemandspublicvalidation.Amplecollegesacrossthecountrysuch
astheUniversityofFlorida,NewYorkUniversity,andtheUniversityofAlabamaallofferan
extensiveeducationindance.Successinthefieldofchoreographydependsontheamplitudeof
hardworkputin,motivation,andgreatselfesteemoftheaspiringdancer.
Theprofessionofhiphopchoreographicartrequiresanacutesetofskills.Hiphop
dancingevolvesalongsideofthosewhochoreographit.Combiningcounterculturebyusingold
andnewstylesinmultiplegenresofdancetocreateamasterpieceofperformancebringsprideto
thosewhochoreographit,andbringshonortothedancecommunityasawhole.Todisplay
wellcraftedchoreographywhileentertaininganaudiencedemonstratesthemagnitudeoftalent


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thechoreographer.Manypeoplestillpursuechoreographydespitethechallengesdancersface.
Dancingbringsjoytothosewhoviewandperformit.Asthebackboneofsocieties
entertainment,choreographylaysafoundationforanempireofentertainment.


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Mayer,Gretchen."GroupPromotesPositiveSideOfHipHopLifestyle:Minneapolis
BreakDancersSharingCreativityToAreaYouth."AmericanNews(Aberdeen,
SD)(2007):NewspaperSourcePlus.Web.22Feb.2015.

Funk&WagnallsNewWorldEncyclopedia"Choreography."(2014):1p.1.Funk&
WagnallsNewWorldEncyclopedia.Web.4Jan.2015.

Gold,Sylviane."ONBROADWAY."DanceMagazineMar.2007:98+.Web.2Jan.
2015.

Jones,Jen."SuperFreaks."DanceSpirit14.1(2010):44.MasterFILEComplete.Web.
5Jan.2015.

Jones,Jen."ConstantCompanion."DanceSpirit8.7(2004):111.MasterFILEComplete.
Web.23Feb.2015.

Kaltsatou,AntoniaCH,etal."FunctionalAndPsychosocialEffectsOfEitherA
TraditionalDancingOrAFormalExercisingTrainingProgramInPatientsWith
ChronicHeartFailure:AComparativeRandomizedControlledStudy."Clinical
Rehabilitation28.2(2014):128138.Web.23Feb.2015.

Klafft,Cheryl.Interview,2015.Transcript.23Feb.2015.

Koch,SabineC."RhythmIsIt:EffectsOfDynamicBodyFeedbackOnAffectAnd
Attitudes."FrontiersInPsychology5.(2014):140.Web.2Jan.2015.

Nichols,Jason."CrankThatThang:ContextualizingBlackMasculinitiesAnd
HipHopDanceInTheSouthFrom20002010."WesternJournalOfBlack
Studies38.2(2014):8497.AcademicSearchComplete.Web.2Jan.2015.

Siegel,MarciaB."ConvergingChannels."HudsonReview67.2(2014):287293.Web.
2Jan.2015.

Rajakumar,Mohanalakshmi.HipHopDance.SantaBarbara,Calif:Greenwood,2012.
eBookHighSchoolCollection(EBSCOhost).Web.8Dec.2014.


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Todd,MeganAnne."AestheticFoundations&ActivistStrategiesOfInterventionIn
RickerbyHinds'BuckworldOne."JournalOfPanAfricanStudies4.6(2011):
148170.Web.8Dec.2014.

ChoreographyDef.1.MerriamWebster,MerriamWebster,n.d.4Jan.2015