Day 75 of 84 Days of 84 Ribbons: Dance in the US

Dance had become a worldwide interest. TV and movie presentations as well as live programs draw in  hundreds of millions of viewers a year. So, what’s happened to dance in the USA?

A new breed of choreographer is changing the world of dance one step at a time. Here’s the list of the top US choreographers over the past century. How many names sound familiar?

1.  George Balanchine (ballet)

2.  Paul Taylor  (modern)

3.  Bob Fosse (jazz)

4.  Alvin Ailey (modern)

5.  Katherine Dunham (established black dance)

6.  Agnes de Mille (ballet/ broadway)

7.  Shane Sparks (hip-hop)

8. Martha Graham (modern)

George Balanchine, Twyla Tharp, Alvin Ailey introduced innovations. encouraging others to celebrate their imaginations and originality taking dance to new places. If you enjoy dance, I strongly suggest you watch SYTYCD: So You Think You Can Dance Wednesday nights ay 8 PM on Fox television. Currently they are selecting their top 20. Once the competition begins you will have a chance to see a wide variety of dance forms created by a wide variety of choreographers: from classical dance to crumping and waltzes to tap. You will also get a glimpse into the rehearsing and the personalities of the dancers. (Just know that such limited hours of rehearsal are unusual; most dancers take weeks not days to perfect their routines.)

For me SYTYCD is a marvelous 1-2 hours a week learning about new choreographers and young, hopeful dancers taking dance to new, unexpected levels. Let me know what you think. Just don’t contact me during the broadcast; I’ll be glued to my TV.