DANCING BOOM IN ENGLAND

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 124, 19 February 1919, Page 4

DANCING BOOM IN ENGLAND

. _____ ■. ■ ■..• i (By Philip J.- S-. Richardson, Editor o! "The Dancing Times," London)'. , The art of dancing, bo it in the ballroom or on the stage,-is affscted by (ho trend of modern 'thought every' bit as much as'the sister ..arts of painting and the drama. The -trend '' of modern, thought, as shown in the great world war which has'justrclosedr is a- revolt ngainst despotic autocrasy. On ihe. atage tlie-Russian, ballet is a ret-olt against the conventional and autocratic technique of tho dancing schools of Milan and Paris. Jri the ballroom. tho , up-to-date dances are tho antithesis of tlie mechanical,'rulebound movements insisted upon by the dancing nmstere of the late Victorian period/ •. ■ ■ ... ■ ■■.■■ .-■ .- ..To-day three.dances, Foxtrot, the' Rag, and the Hesitation valse —and I have written-•them in the order of their popularity... The .Fox-trot first made its appearance 1 in -this country in ll)li, just 'before the outbreak of war. Its rapid increase in popularity during the. "dark.years" -is'eas-y V understand, for its tunes were..-catchy and its steps sufficiently simple for a man to pick'up during- his fourteen -days'..leave". When it first, arrived its stepo '-were-'numerous and almost freakish; 'Dips," hops,-'and a peculiar 'movement known as'-a ''twinkle" were introduced. TlwTe were no hard-and-fast rules.'An' ingenious dancer with .a certain "artistic sense of humour" .(I quote , Mi=S" .Phyilis Bedells) could , evolve■• an, 'amusing ' but tiring dance: ; : '' ' ■ ' : •"■ ' ' ■' ' To-day all is Changed. The' Fbi-trot, well done; Ms a graceful daiiee-entirely free "of'■ all (rick steps "anil made lip'ot gliding movements in which the old' valso plays no unimportant'.'p/u't.'The Hag-is a development of- the one-step .(which came into vogue during' 1910) after that da nee had passed" through its' somewhat objectionable'phases when it was knowh as the Terkey-trof ahd'Buiiiiy , Hiig. Today Turkey-trot arid Bu'iiny Hug are unknown; Like! the the. Rag is. ah unostentatious dance-in"'which again tho old valse is'not forgotten ;by good; dancers. The Hesitation valso'also came in with tho 'war. ' H.'has completely killed the'Bostoh'. I believe—but.in this I'am open to correction—that it first started in Paris as a. Taiigp valse. It is the nearest We have been. °to.tho old. round valso for mnny years.;,. ; , , A number of people.'who have no.t.dauced for years feel they would like to commence .again, 'but they, aro deterred;"because, they .cannot, do the', "complicated modern, dfl'nc'c-s/'. ass.ur.c them the -modern dances 'are noncomplicated, and if tjieyeari ,do. the old valse \velj .they need never dread adventuring :in. the modorir ballroom. Tho eecwt . of li'odera dancing .is HontaiHej}' in .tho ono'word 'Vlide." end, unlike-' the sHicressfyl bu'si/ieos' man,. ,tho' really good duncer never advertises; in other words,'.u.U his movements are'unobtrusive. Any. stop that focuses nttf.al.inii 'ivuon..hi:n is to-day in tlio worst of taste.