Ballroom Dancing
The elegant twists and twirls of a dancing couple fill the dance floor.
Every move be it quick and swift or slow and graceful is executed
flawlessly. There seems to be an unspoken charisma that is expressed
through their graceful maneuvers. Their brightly colored garments and
shiny apparel are magnificent. Spectators and judges alike are engulfed
with the ballroom dancing atmosphere. This captivating form of dance has a
rich history that includes both times of opposition, and also times of
admirable competition.
Dance is one of the primitive instincts of mankind. "It is a fact that
emotion stimulates the body into movement," (Silvester, 11). This quote
from Modern Ballroom Dancing reveals that dancing is more than an
extracurricular activity. Dancing is a form of self-expression that nearly
every human has the desire to perform. And because dancing is innate there
is a long history of it. Ballroom dancing has a past that can be traced as
far back as thousands of years ago. More specifically, the written
evidence of ballroom dancing was not apparent until the 16th Century A.D..
Historians gained their first knowledge of ballroom dancing from a book
written by Jehan Tabourot in 1588. Multiple ballroom dance enthusiasts are
still to this day studying Jehan Tabourot's book entitled Orchesographie
(Silvester, 12). It was not until the mid 17th century that the next
contribution to ballroom dancing was made. Louis XIV started a school of
dance called the 'Academie Royale de Musique et de Danse,' that established
specific rules and regulations for ballroom dancing. It was also during
this time period that a new dance called the Minuet began. The Minuet,
which started in 1650, dominated the ballroom dance floor until the end of
the 18th century.
In 1812 the first signs of modern ballroom dancing prevailed. The dance
that triggered the boom of modern ballroom dancing was the Waltz. The
origination of the Waltz is not too clear, but according to some the Waltz
was originated in Germany. According to Thomas Wilson, "Waltzing is a
species of dancing that owes its origin to the Germans?" this excerpt taken
from Wilson's, Waltzing, which was published in 1816. The Waltz made its
way to England around 1812. And with the new dance came much controversy.
Political groups formed to oppose the Waltz; one party in particular said
that the Waltz made the ballroom dance floor "a scene of feud and
contention," (Silvester, 14).
The next landmark for ballroom dancing came in the 1840's. New dances
such as the Polka, Mazurka, and the Schottische made their way to the dance
floor. Among the leaders in this dance reformation was Cellarius with his
book Fashionable Dancing (1848). Cellarius proposed that the more
complicated dance steps should not be dwelled upon and that "youthful
dancers" should return to the older more simple techniques (Silvester, 15).
The popularity of ballroom dancing was nearly forgotten for the ladder
part of the 19th century. But, by the turn of the twentieth century the
Waltz made a comeback and saved ballroom dance by becoming quite the rage
in the U.S. There were basically two different forms of the Waltz. The
first was the older more traditional Waltz that was at a much slower pace
and was used in a more formal setting. Then there was the fast paced form
of the Waltz called the Boston. The Boston was used by the younger
generations and was predominant in dance clubs (Silvester, 45).
The start of dance competitions and world championships evolved throughout
the 1920's. The Dancing Times had their first of several Informal
Conferences in the 1920's. These conferences established the rules and
regulations for ballroom dance competitions worldwide. These conferences
also set the standard for the proper technique and style in ballroom
dancing. In December 1922 the full Master Turn was accomplished at the
first Waltzing Championship ever held. This event was the cause of modern
Waltz as we know it today (Silvester, 38).
The Roaring Twenties paved the way for future pop-culture dances. In the
30's fast paced ballroom dancing was known as 'Crush' because hundreds of
people were squeezing into nightclubs to dance. Then, in the 1940's, fads
such as the Jitterbug led to dances such as the Jive in the 1950's and the
Twist in the 1960's and essentially disco in the 70's and 80's
(DanceT.V.com). The commonality between all of these dances is the impact
that the dance had on the public. All of these dances unnerved the older
generations of the time. There was tremendous controversy over the
seemingly "risqu�" dances.
As one can now see ballroom dancing has not always been the formal dance
that many perceive. Many of the ballroom dances that are performed today
were at one time under much scrutiny. Dances such as the Foxtrot, the
Waltz, and the Boston faced severe opposition when they were first
introduced. These dances caused an uproar within churches, the state, the
Informal Dance Committee, and not to mention the countless numbers of angry
mothers from across the nation. There was anti-dance literature written
throughout the history of ballroom dance but it became predominant in the
early 20th century. Books such as The Public Dance Halls of Chicago
(1917), From the Ball-Room to Hell (1892), and The Lure of the Dance (1916)
focused on the evils of ballroom dancing. These books also gave numerous
examples of how dance "ruined" young peoples' lives.
Many dance halls earned a bad reputation because they served alcohol. It
was not long before dance halls became known as a place for, "public
drunkenness and lewd behavior." (The Learning Page) Dance halls throughout
the 1920's were synonymous with speak-easies. "At one dance the
investigator saw four young boys sitting at a table with forty-eight
bottles of beer between them." (The Learning Page) In spite of the dangers
of being caught with alcohol these dance halls remained very popular among
the younger generations.
Much of the opposition against ballroom dancing was because of the
atmosphere that surrounded it, but the dance itself seemed to arise
confrontations as well. In 1920 there was an Informal Dance Committee
meeting that discussed the new steps that were being used in ballroom
dancing. Women like Leonora Hughes argued that the women's feet should
never leave the ground and that side steps along with freak steps should be
eliminated from the Foxtrot. Her pleading was successful and the Informal
Dance Committee eliminated the steps to the Foxtrot that were "obscene"
(Silvester, 34).
There is a lighter side to the history of ballroom dancing. As mentioned
earlier the twenties were the start of competitive ballroom dancing. This
social dance became one of the most popular sports of its time. And, with
the modifications made for several dances, ballroom dancing was a sport
that nearly all of the general public could enjoy. The atmosphere of
competitive ballroom dancing was the antithesis to that of the dance clubs
of its time. There was no alcohol or wild partying in this competitive
sport. Competitive ballroom dancing was a show. And the dancing was done
by professionals on an empty dance floor, in contrast to hundreds of people
on a crowded dance floor.
The intriguing history of ballroom dance has been the inspiration to a
sport that is still alive and well today. The World Ballroom Dancing
Championships are televised internationally on PBS every year (Silvester,
46). And even though the days of ballroom dancing within dance clubs is
over, many can still admire the sport as it is today.
