jazz dance

[teth]

Posted: 1/7/05 at 3:11am

Being the clueless person that I am, could someone just briefly clarify what jazz dance is?? Is this the predominant type of dance that they do on Broadway?? Examples would be great.

[Nina]

Posted: 1/7/05 at 7:50am

Yes Teth, the predominant dance that you see in shows is considered jazz or a variation of jazz. It has become difficult to define exactly what it is. It started in the late nineteenth century when jazz music was becomeing popular and included the flapper dances such as the Charleston. Thatw as the first popular form of jazz dance. Over the decades it has been refined and redefined by choreographers such as Bob Fosse who incorporated a complex system of muscle group control or Agnes DeMille and Jerome Robbins who added aspects of ballet into their jazz choreography. These days, jazz dance encompesses such a wide range of movement, steps and styles that you cannot pin into any neat catagory or definition.