Tap Dancing
Tap Dance in America
According to Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, “ tap dance [is a] style of American theatrical dance, distinguished by percussive footwork, [which] marks out precise rhythmic patterns on the floor.” Also, “Tap is an exciting form of dance in which dancers wear special shoes equipped with metal taps. Tap dancers use their feet like drums to create rhythmic patterns and timely beats,” Treva Bedinghaus, graduated from Holli Barron 's School of Performing Arts and The Ballet Academy, writes in Tap for beginner, “The term "tap dancing" is derived from the tapping sound produced when the small metal plates on the dancer 's shoes touch a hard floor or surface.” In 125 Years of Tap, Jane Goldberg, a dancer-writer who is considered as one of the most prolific voices in the filed of tap dancing, writes: “What distinguishes tap [dancing] from most other dance forms is that it is two arts in one: music and dance. The dancers are ‘playing their feet’ and moving at the same time.” In another article - The Art of Tap Dancing, Amy Brinkman-Sustache, artistic director of Dance-works on Tap (DOT), describes, “A step is a word. You put steps together to make a sentence. Questions are raised and answered through rhythm. It’s like listening to a conversation.” Literally, tap is America’s unique contribution to dance. “Tap history is mostly an oral tradition,” Kikelly, performer/scholars from Virginia Tech, says, “and a single definitive history has not yet been written.” Still, Kikelly and many other people like her are working hard to reveal the truth about how this art form developed. Tap is believed the double of diversity. “The history of tap has been a story of survival, revival, renaissance and innovation,” Jane Goldberg indicates in her 125 Years of Tap article, “the controversial roots of which arc still being debated, though the primary sources are usually considered to be Irish and African-American.” According to Constance Valis Hill, Ph.D.
According to Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, “ tap dance [is a] style of American theatrical dance, distinguished by percussive footwork, [which] marks out precise rhythmic patterns on the floor.” Also, “Tap is an exciting form of dance in which dancers wear special shoes equipped with metal taps. Tap dancers use their feet like drums to create rhythmic patterns and timely beats,” Treva Bedinghaus, graduated from Holli Barron 's School of Performing Arts and The Ballet Academy, writes in Tap for beginner, “The term "tap dancing" is derived from the tapping sound produced when the small metal plates on the dancer 's shoes touch a hard floor or surface.” In 125 Years of Tap, Jane Goldberg, a dancer-writer who is considered as one of the most prolific voices in the filed of tap dancing, writes: “What distinguishes tap [dancing] from most other dance forms is that it is two arts in one: music and dance. The dancers are ‘playing their feet’ and moving at the same time.” In another article - The Art of Tap Dancing, Amy Brinkman-Sustache, artistic director of Dance-works on Tap (DOT), describes, “A step is a word. You put steps together to make a sentence. Questions are raised and answered through rhythm. It’s like listening to a conversation.” Literally, tap is America’s unique contribution to dance. “Tap history is mostly an oral tradition,” Kikelly, performer/scholars from Virginia Tech, says, “and a single definitive history has not yet been written.” Still, Kikelly and many other people like her are working hard to reveal the truth about how this art form developed. Tap is believed the double of diversity. “The history of tap has been a story of survival, revival, renaissance and innovation,” Jane Goldberg indicates in her 125 Years of Tap article, “the controversial roots of which arc still being debated, though the primary sources are usually considered to be Irish and African-American.” According to Constance Valis Hill, Ph.D.
Cited: "TAP DANCE." (n.d.): Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. EBSCO. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. Hill, Constance. “Tap Dance in America: A Very Short History.” (2002): n. pag. Web 26 Oct 2011. <http://www.nypl.org/locations/tid/55/node/70581> Holmes, Vance Goldberg, Jane. “125 Years of tap.” Dance Spirit 7.5 (2003): 34. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. North-Kelly, Elena. "Tap Shoes Meet These Dancing Feet." Dance Magazine 79.3 (2005): 68. MAS Ultra - School Edition. EBSCO. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. Peters, Donna-Marie. “Passing On: The Old Head/Younger Dancer Mentoring Relationship in the Cultural Shpere of Rhythm Tap.” Western Journal of Black Studies 34.4 (2010): 438-436. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 26.Oct.2011.