Art is an expression of the self. If you love the movement and control that martial arts gives you, then I'm sure you appreciate the beautiful movements in dance, whatever the genre. If it moves you, if you appreciate the movement and control, of the incredible expression of the self, then this is the thread for you. Many moons ago I was a break dancer and the crew I was in were resident dancers at a local nightclub, so I've always been a fan of ken swift or the Rock Steady Crew. The most basic of movements, but he just makes it look good. But uprock started way before ken Swift. This moving performance has always been a favourite, for the control, movement and immersion in the character. I've always been impressed by tap and in particular Sabian Glover. Then there's THIS. Mitch posts this on FB occasionally and dares me to try it. Think you can move and stretch, then try this? Then there is Marquese Scott. Again if you love kata and movement, then this is for you. Marquese Scott aka NonStop - Set Fire - Dubstep
The focus of my work has shifted from martial arts to working with professional ballet dancers and I have fallen in love with the art form. It's timeless. I am also a huge fan of contemporary dance, although I know it isn't to everybody's taste. Some of my favourite pieces:
I really love ballroom. Here's me and my fiancee dancing at a friend's wedding. We've been taking a lot of ballroom dance instructions, enough that folks have mistaken us for pros in the past. It's a skill that I've really loved investing time and practice in. As for dance I love to watch, I've had the opportunity to see a great deal of ballet and love it very much. My favorites would have to be seeing Ratmansky's Whipped Cream seen here: and my very favorite, Twyla Tharp's The Upper Room:
Great thread. I found a lot of joy - both dancing and as a spectacle- in dance long before I started learning martial arts. Love it all. But dance metaphors have been really important to my ma training, particularly as I’ve been working on my expression in the forms I am learning. I find it helpful in improving the performance element of doing my forms. It’s also a useful way of thinking about dao yin - the patterns to 12 dao yin have a lot of poetry to them.
I do not dance. Ever. However, I am online friends with this guy, who does, and extremely well at that: Instagram post by Jacob "Kujo" Lyons • Jan 4, 2018 at 9:12pm UTC
Cooool thread. Simon's posted the Nicholas Brothers and Marquese Scott but here's some other dance I love... Les Twins. The bit that starts at 3:10 in this vid is just sublime. BBoy Pocket. King of the powermove. Stumbled on this guy the other day. The coolest man alive? I went to see Riverdance one time and, although it seems cliche and kitsch and all that, in the theatre it makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up on end.
Years ago, there was a group called Ichigeki and a Korean breakdance group called Gamblerz. Makes me want to watch the documentary Planet B-Boy again.
I do particularly like robot-type dancing/crunk. Most other dancing I find entertaining as well. I recall seeing a dance group in Las Vegas that was really good. The Jabbawockeez:
I started playing DDR in my down time/rest days to help me lose weight instead of sitting on my bum watching tv.
I'm just incredibly impressed that all these um,"types" involved in these thuggish martial "arts" are watching things like Stormy Weather and Fred! Maybe there's hope for humanity.
Oh, I've long thought Fred Astaire would have been a brilliant BJJ player, what with his astounding body control and fluidity. I think wrestling him would be like wrestling silk cloth covered in slippery oil.
I always love the quote re Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire; "[she] did everything he did, ...backwards and in high heels."
