Paul Pellicoro (born 1956) is a professional ballroom dancer, instructor, and choreographer. He has owned and operated New York City's largest ballroom dance studio, Paul Pellicoro's DanceSport, since 1985, which is currently located in its new (as of November 2006) home next to the Empire State Building in Manhattan, in New York City. (The studio was previously located in the Upper West Side of Manhattan.) Renowned for his work in films, Pellicoro has extensive film experience both as a performer and as a choreographer.
Pellicoro first came to national attention as the dance choreographer for the film "Scent of a Woman" (1992), for which he trained Academy Award winner Al Pacino for the notable (and arguably, most memorable) scene of the film, wherein Pacino dances the Argentine Tango with actress Gabrielle Anwar. [1]
Pellicoro both manages DanceSport and instructs full-time. Starting as an original Latin-Hustle street dancer during the late 1970's. Paul went on to train with the top English coaches to be a ten-dance International style competitor. He not only teaches International Latin American and Ballroom, but also the full American Style genre of dances. He is one of the few living experts in both "Authentic Style" dancing (such as Argentine Tango, Hustle and Salsa/Mambo) as well as the highly disciplined competitive styles you see in TV's "Dancing With The Stars". Among his notable students were Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro, John Leguizamo, Mira Sorvino, Richard Gere, Wynona Ryder, Sigourney Weaver, Anthony LaPaglia, Jennifer Aniston, Paul Rudd, Brian Cox and Marilyn Cole. [2]
In 1995, he co-founded the Partner Dance Educational Fund, a not-for-profit organization with a stated mission to bring partner dancing to a wider public. Currently, the Fund sponsors free dance workshops in New York City public schools and private spaces.
In 2002 Barricade Books published his book ″Paul Pellicoro on Tango: The Definitive Guide to Argentine Tango″.
Date | Film | Role |
---|---|---|
1992 | Scent of a Woman | (choreographer) |
1998 | The Object of My Affection | (choreographer) |
1999 | Summer of Sam | (choreographer) |
1999 | Flawless | (choreographer) |
2000 | Autumn in New York | (choreographer) |
Ballroom dance is a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to dance:
Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Rioplatense Candombe celebrations, Spanish-Cuban Habanera, and Argentine Milonga. It was frequently practiced in the brothels and bars of ports, where business owners employed bands to entertain their patrons. It then spread to the rest of the world. Many variations of this dance currently exist around the world.
Modern social round dance, or round dancing, is a choreographed and cued ballroom dance that progresses in a circular counter-clockwise pattern around the dance floor. The two major categories of ballroom dances found in round dancing are the smooth and international ballroom styles and the Latin dances. It is not to be confused with circle dancing, which is a type of folk dance in which dancers are connected in a circular chain.
This is a list of dance terms that are not names of dances or types of dances. See List of dances and List of dance style categories for those.
This is a list of movies featuring recognizable dance forms, demonstrating them, shedding light on their origin, or being the base of a plot.
Argentine tango is a musical genre and accompanying social dance originating at the end of the 19th century in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. It typically has a 2
4 or 4
4 rhythmic time signature, and two or three parts repeating in patterns such as ABAB or ABCAC. Its lyrics are marked by nostalgia, sadness, and laments for lost love. The typical orchestra has several melodic instruments and is given a distinctive air by the bandoneon. It has continued to grow in popularity and spread internationally, adding modern elements without replacing the older ones. Among its leading figures are the singer and songwriter Carlos Gardel and composers/performers Francisco Canaro, Juan D'Arienzo, Carlos Di Sarli, Osvaldo Pugliese, and Ástor Piazzolla.
Julio Adrián Lojo Bocca is an Argentine ballet dancer. Bocca spent twenty years as a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. From 2010 to 2018 he served as artistic director of the National Ballet of Uruguay, administered by SODRE, the country's broadcasting and cultural authority.
Dmitry Chaplin is a Russian dancer, choreographer, and actor, best known for being a Top 10 finalist on the second season of the dance competition series So You Think You Can Dance. While competing on the series, he became known for performing shirtless, with one solo routine having him rip off his shirt. In 2009, Chaplin was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for his choreography.
Maksim "Maks" Aleksandrovich Chmerkovskiy is a Ukrainian-American Latin–ballroom dance champion, choreographer, and instructor. He is widely known as one of the professional dancers on the American television series Dancing with the Stars, on which he first appeared in season two. In his 17 seasons as a competing pro on the show, Chmerkovskiy made it to the final round five times, with two runner-up and two third-place finishes. On May 20, 2014, Chmerkovskiy, paired with Olympic ice dancer Meryl Davis, won his first Dancing with the Stars title. Chmerkovskiy has also starred in the Broadway productions of dance shows Burn the Floor and Forever Tango.
Paul Harris is an English choreographer, dance teacher and movement director in film, television and theatre.
Tony Meredith is an American professional ballroom dancer, choreographer and United States Professional Latin Champion.
Jean-Marc Généreux is a French Canadian ballroom dance champion, choreographer and television personality from Longueuil, Quebec, Canada. He is most prominently known for his roles as judge and choreographer on the American and Canadian versions of So You Think You Can Dance, the French version of the hit television series Dancing with the Stars, and TVA’s hit dance competition series Révolution.
Ballroom tango is a ballroom dance that branched away from its original Argentine roots by allowing European, American, Hollywood, and competitive influences into the style and execution of the dance.
Snejana "Snow" Urbin is a dancer and choreographer.
Frank Veloz (1906–1981) and Yolanda Casazza (1908–1995) were a self-taught American ballroom dance team, husband and wife, who became stars in the 1930s and 1940s, and were among the highest paid dance acts during that era. They performed on stage in productions such as Hot-Cha!, which ran for 119 shows on Broadway in 1932. They also appeared in popular films such as Under the Pampas Moon (1935), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), Honeymoon Lodge (1943), Brazil (1944) and The Thrill of Brazil (1946), the latter of which is credited as being of major importance to the growth in popularity of Samba in America.
Jose Gutierez Xtravaganza is a dancer, choreographer, recording artist, New York City nightlife personality and the current father of the House of Xtravaganza. He is one of the most widely recognized personalities to emerge from the NYC ballroom scene of the 1980s. He is best known for his work with Madonna.
Rajeswari Vaidyanathan is a Tedx Speaker, trainer, performer and a choreographer of International Latin Ballroom Dance forms. She is the founder of a dance school called VR DanceSport, which is the largest Latin Ballroom dance school in India providing International level social and competitive training.