In partner dancing, connection is a physical communication method used by a pair of dancers to facilitate synchronized dance movement, in which one dancer directs the movements of the other dancer by means of non-verbal directions conveyed through a physical connection between the dancers. It is an essential technique in many types of partner dancing and is used extensively in partner dances that feature significant physical contact between the dancers, including the Argentine Tango, Lindy Hop, Balboa, East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, Salsa, and Modern Jive.
East Coast Swing (ECS) is a form of social partner dance. It belongs to the group of swing dances. It is danced under fast swing music, including rock and roll and boogie-woogie.
The Charleston is a dance named for the harbor city of Charleston, South Carolina. The rhythm was popularized in mainstream dance music in the United States by a 1923 tune called "The Charleston" by composer/pianist James P. Johnson which originated in the Broadway show Runnin' Wild and became one of the most popular hits of the decade. Runnin' Wild ran from 29 October 1923, through 28 June 1924. The peak year for the Charleston as a dance by the public was mid-1926 to 1927.
Swing dance is a group of dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s–1940s, with the origins of each dance predating the popular "swing era". During the swing era, there were hundreds of styles of swing dancing, but those that have survived beyond that era include: Lindy Hop, Balboa, Collegiate Shag, and Charleston. Today, the most well-known of these dances is the Lindy Hop, which originated in Harlem in the early 1930s. While the majority of swing dances began in African American communities as vernacular African American dances, some swing era dances, like Balboa, developed outside of these communities.
Swing Rueda is a swing dance in the round (wheel) that features someone calling Lindy Hop moves and the dancers moving in unison. It was adapted from Salsa Rueda by Elaine Hewlett and Jeff Miller at The Rhythm Room Dance Studio, Dallas, Texas in 2000.
The Balboa is a swing dance that originated in Southern California during the 1920s and enjoyed huge popularity during the 1930s and 1940s. The term Balboa originally referred to a dance characterized by its close embrace and full body connection. It emphasizes rhythmic weight shifts and lead-follow partnership. Different dancers in the same region at the same time also danced "swing," a dance characterized by twists, turns, and open-position movement. Over time, these two dances merged and became collectively known as Balboa. The original Balboa dance is now referred to as Pure Balboa, and the original "Swing" dance is now referred to as Bal-Swing or L.A. Swing to differentiate it from other types of swing. Because of its emphasis on subtlety and partnering rather than flashy tricks, Balboa is considered more of a "dancer's dance" than a "spectator's dance."
The Big Apple is both a partner dance and a circle dance that originated in the Afro-American community of the United States in the beginning of the 20th century.
The hustle is a catchall name for some disco dances which were extremely popular in the 1970s. Today it mostly refers to the unique partner dance done in ballrooms and nightclubs to disco music. It has some features in common with mambo, salsa and swing dance. Its basic steps are somewhat similar to the discofox, which emerged at about the same time and is more familiar in various European countries. In the 1970s there was also a line dance called the hustle. Modern partner hustle is sometimes referred to as New York hustle, however, its original name is the Latin hustle. People still do this dance around the world today.
From 1919 to 1927, Breakaway was a popular swing dance developed from the Texas Tommy and Charleston in Harlem's African American communities. The Breakaway was danced to jazz, and while it often began in closed position, the leader would occasionally swing the follower out into an open position, hence "Breaking away". When in open position the dancers would improvise with fancy moves. Some variations included both dancers completely breaking away from each other to dance 'alone'.
Acrobatic Rock'n'Roll is a very athletic, competitive form of partner dance that originated from lindy hop. Unlike lindy hop, however, it is a choreographed dance designed for performance. It is danced by both couples and groups, either all-female or four to eight couples together. This is normally a very fast and physically demanding dance.
The country/western two-step, often called the "Texas two-step" or simply the "two-step," is a country/western dance usually danced to country music in common time. "Tradtitional [Texas] two-step developed, my theory goes, because it is suited to fiddle and guitar music played two-four time with a firm beat [found in country music]. One-two, one-two, slide-shuffle."
The Texas two-step is the same step known to ballroom dancers as the international fox-trot. Except for the one-step, which is just that, most Texas dances are variations of a two-step, also called a half-step, which is simply a step-close-step. The Texas two-step is generally done with two long steps and a step-close-step to two-four time. Speeded up, it's a shuffle or double shuffle, but still a two-step.
The history of Lindy Hop begins in the African American communities of Harlem, New York during the late 1920s in conjunction with swing jazz. Lindy Hop is closely related to earlier African American vernacular dances but quickly gained its own fame through dancers in films, performances, competitions, and professional dance troupes. It became especially popular in the 1930s with the upsurge of aerials. The popularity of Lindy Hop declined after World War II, and it converted to other forms of dancing, but it never disappeared during the decades between the 1940s and the 1980s until European and American dancers revived it starting from the beginning of the 1980s.
Rock step may refer to one of similar dance moves. The name refers to the rocking action during the move: the weight is transferred from one foot to another and then back. It is used in a number of dances, such as East Coast Swing, Zydeco, Lindy Hop, Tango.
The Lindy Hop is only one of many swing dances popular today, and there are thriving local communities throughout the world. Structurally, lindy hop's most popular step—the swing-out—combines both closed position and open position and is clearly related to the Charleston. It is the most popular swing dance in most swing dancing communities, and its revival in the 1980s has since seen local communities develop in many cities.
The Collegiate Shag is a partner dance done primarily to uptempo swing and pre-swing jazz music. It belongs to the swing family of American vernacular dances that arose in the 1920s and 30s. It is believed that the dance originated within the African American community of the Carolinas in the 1920s, later spreading across the United States during the 1930s. Because the basic step takes up such a small space, the Shag can also be danced to fast music. The shag is still danced today by swing dance enthusiasts worldwide.
