Savion Glover Research Paper

Tap dance is an uniquely American dance form. The percussive use of one’s feet combined with the use of rhythms and amplification of sound, has a complex history that involves the intercultural fusions of English, Irish and African musical and dance traditions. The evolution of tap dance in America is further complicated by issues of race, class and gender. Unlike ballet with its formal technique, tap dance emerged from people listening to and watching each other dance, in a variety of settings, where steps were shared, stolen and reinvented. Through its metamorphosis the dance form has progressed from local entertainment, to Vaudeville shows, to Broadway shows, to the Silver Screen and to Concert Halls across the world. The legacy of the art form is characterized by the rise, fall and reemergence of popularity. Savion Glover, a 21st century American dancer, is credited with bringing tap into a new era of popularity as he has wowed the masses with his unique style focusing on African American rhythms. Tap dance, uniquely American in that it is a true melting pot of dance forms, is a dance form rich in rhythms, sounds and amplifications and has transcended social and cultural barriers.

Rick Bragg’s “French Quarter’s Black Tapping Feet” takes place in New Orleans in the year 1998. The story talks about young children and their tap dancing feet. Many of the children come from very little and they have learned how to make a living by tap dancing to support their families. People think that it is a way to exploit children and have them work at such a young age for so little, but others think that it is a way that the children enjoy themselves and it is another way to keep the French Quarter tradition alive. Rick Bragg wanted to shed light on the children and stories about having to do such a grown-up thing like supporting their families at a very young age. The author uses personal stories from the children, including how they feel about tap dancing and the backgrounds in which the children were brought up, to educate people on the subculture and tradition, and he brings in professors from two different schools to get professional views of the children tap dancing to support their families.

Alvin Ailey was an accomplished dancer and choreographer whose African-American heritage influenced his works in the 20th century. His successful dance career has gained international recognition and acclaim thus rendering a significant legacy. Ailey’s background as a dancer and choreographer had many strong influences from social, cultural, economic and political aspects during his early life. His African-American heritage has greatly influenced his works. Alvin was the founder of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (1958-), galvanized and stabilized an African American presence in theatrical dance. An outstanding performer, choreographer, company director, and mentor to scores of dance artists, Ailey oversaw the growth of his small, pick-up group of seven dancers into a large, carefully managed, internationally-renowned enterprise including several ensembles of dancers and a thriving school in New York City housed in the largest building devoted to dance in the United States. Along the way, Ailey changed the landscape of modern dance by developing new audiences for its performance through a consistent combination of exceptional artistry and wellcoordinated community outreach programs. In all, Ailey invigorated the art of dance with his distinctive creative imagination, his “blood memories” of cultural formations he witnessed as a child-- including the jook joint and the black church --and the strong survivalist ethic he learned as an African American man born in the

Carroll Shelby was born in Leesburg, Texas. He would grow up successful and famous in the racing world. Warren Shelby was Carroll’s father and Eloise Lawrence Shelby was his mother. Carroll’s father was a postal man. Shelby was first married in December of 1943. Carroll was originally a chicken farmer. There was a year and all the chickens died of a sickness. After that turn of events he took to racing. Carroll Shelby lived a successful life and became a known name in racing.

Alvin Ailey, a well known second generation American choreographer and activist was born in Rogers, Texas on January 5, 1931. Ailey grew up poor in the small Texas town of Navasota. Although he did not have much growing up, it did not stop his drive to succeed. He became inspired by attending black church services and by the music he heard at the local dance hall. Because of this, Ailey left Texas at the young age of 12 and moved to Los Angeles. While in Los Angeles, Ailey excelled in different subjects such as language and athletics. He became inspired to pursue dancing after seeing the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo perform. In 1949, at the age of 18, he began to study modern dance with Lester Horton and joined Horton’s dance company the following year. Horton became Ailey 's major influence, as he was his mentor that gave him a foundation and technique that allowed him to grow artistically. Even though he developed his own style, he still used Horton’s technique that emphasized a strong fluid torso and ease of movement. In his years to follow, Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York in 1958. Ailey’s dance company became very popular because of its multi-racial modern dance ensemble. Due to his modern, jazz and ethnic dance styles, and extensive world tours, Alvin Ailey became one of the leading figures in the 20th century modern dance, making modern dance popular all over the world. Ailey is a significant artist to me because he paved the way for

Gregory hines is known for being a famous tap dancer. Hines was born on february

Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, who claimed he could run backward faster than most men could go forward, was the most famous of all African American tap dancers in the twentieth century. Dancing upright and swinging, his light and exacting footwork brought tap "up on its toes" from an earlier flat-footed shuffling style, and developed the art of tap dancing to a delicate perfection.

Richard Bassett was considered one of the many other founding father of the United States, but sadly he did not get to live long, he only lived for about 30 years, Richard was born In Cecil County, Maryland on April 2,1745 and died in kent county, Delaware on August 15,1815.Basset’s father abandoned him and his mother when he was young. When richard father abandoned his mother, richard was raised by a relative whose name is Peter Lawson, richard attended a school in Philadelphia, where he read & practiced for Law, and in 1770 Richard was able to receive a license so that he could start practicing in Dover. Richard began succeeding in two things which were as a lawyer and planter, After a while Richard started receiving stuff for example properties in Delaware, And then after another while Richard not only owned Bohemia Manor School but he also

After hundreds of years of evolution and development, tap dancing has become a truly authentic American artform. However, no two people can agree on exactly how or where the discipline began. Emmy-award winning tapper Jason Samuel Smith still holds an enormous amount of respect for the history of his artform. “Tap culture is all about celebrating the past and accumulating its vocabulary over time,” he says. “If we don’t maintain our history, we lose what is valuable about tap.” Despite the questionable and often debated origin of tap, the discipline stems directly from African roots due to articulate rhythmic and stylistic patterns of African dance, techniques consisting of gliding, shuffling and dragging steps, and the introduction of

Finally, Erick Hawkins was taught by Martha, along with being an American modern dancer. All the people that I have chosen are modern dancers showing that that style was probably famous then. Ruth St. Denis, born in 1879, was from a small farm in New Jersey. As a child, Ruth learned exercises based from Francois Delsarte, which was the beginning of her dance career. She enjoyed practicing the moves of Francois allowing her to progress her career touring with a producer and director.

“The pen is an instrument of discovery rather than just a recording implement. If you write a letter of resignation or something with an agenda, you're simply using a pen to record what you have thought out ("Billy Collins Quotes").” This was written by poet Billy Collins. He was a class clown in the schoolhouse of American poetry. Most of his work was not noticed until 1990 when he wrote questions about angels which was selected for the national poetry series (Cunningham "Billy Collins" 2017).

Hines was really good at improvising his tap dances. Hines wanted to be known for tap dancing in America. He made a successful petition that made National Tap Dance Day. It is now celebrated in 40 cities in the U.S, and in other nations across the globe. He also was in the Board of Directors in Manhattan

The individual I chose to describe and evaluate their specific contributions to the American culture is an African American male who name is Steveland Hardaway Judkins but goes by the stage name of Stevie Wonder. Stevie Wonder was born on May 13th, 1950, in Saginaw, Michigan. He was born blind as a result of receiving too much oxygen in the incubator as a premature baby (Editors). But even with this challenge, Stevie would one day become a man of many talents. Stevie Wonder showed he had an early gift from music at the age of four when he used to perform at his parents church in the choir in Detroit, Michigan.

Fred Astaire, a well-known stage and film dancer, is considered to be one of the best American dancers of all time. His classiness and his ability to be light on his feet developed the musical film industry into what it is today. Astaire’s dancing style seemed effortless with exceptionally fast footwork. However, his grace required endless hours of practice, but it wasn’t all for nothing. There wasn’t a movie back in the 1920’s that didn’t require some form of dancing and his ability to look classy eventually landed him a signature role.

How he learned that is because Denzel Washington went to an audition in the same building that he would go to 30 years later. He auditioned after an extraordinary singer. He felt