Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Fences and The Piano LessonWinner of the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best PlayIt is the spring of 1948. In the still cool evenings of Pittsburgh's Hill district, familiar sounds fill the air. A rooster crows. Screen doors slam. The laughter of friends gathered for a backyard card game rises just above the wail of a mother who has lost her son. And there's the sound of the blues, played and sung by young men and women with little more than a guitar in their hands and a dream in their hearts.August Wilson's Seven Guitars is the sixth chapter in his continuing theatrical saga that explores the hope, heartbreak, and heritage of the African-American experience in the twentieth century. The story follows a small group of friends who gather following the untimely death of Floyd "Schoolboy" Barton, a local blues guitarist on the edge of stardom. Together, they reminisce about his short life and discover the unspoken passions and undying spirit that live within each of them. Read more

Uncle Miguel was a man who had lost his spark. At 65, retirement had left him feeling adrift and purposeless. That is, until he stumbled upon a copy of 'LEARN HOW TO PLAY BONGO DRUMS: BEGINNER GUIDE' at his local bookstore.Little did he know that this unassuming book would change his life.Within weeks of picking up his first set of bongos, Uncle Miguel found himself transported by the rhythmic beats and soulful tones. The healing vibrations seemed to melt away years of stress and worry. As his fingers danced across the drumheads, he discovered a new language - one that spoke directly to his heart.But the magic didn't stop there. Soon, Uncle Miguel was the life of every family gathering, his bongos bringing smiles to faces young and old. He even started a weekly drum circle at the local community center, where he shared the joy of music with others seeking connection and purpose.Now, it's your turn to embark on this transformative journey. 'LEARN HOW TO PLAY BONGO DRUMS: BEGINNER GUIDE' is more than just a manual - it's a passport to a world of rhythm, self-expression, and unbridled joy. From the basics of hand positions and fundamental beats to advanced techniques and performance tips, this comprehensive guide has everything you need to unleash your inner percussionist.Inside, you'll discover:The fascinating history and cultural significance of bongo drumsHow to choose and care for your first bongo setStep-by-step instructions for mastering essential techniquesExciting patterns and songs to expand your repertoireTips for playing with others and handling performance nervesAdvanced methods for exploring various musical genresDon't let this opportunity pass you by. Whether you're 16 or 60, a seasoned musician or a complete novice, the bongos are calling your name. Pick up this guide today and start your journey towards rhythmic mastery, inner peace, and a lifetime of musical adventures.Unleash the healing power of the bongos - your hands, heart, and soul will thank you! Read more

The most prestigious ballroom dance competition in the United States.Two dancers need to win.Only one can.Nina Fortunova wasn't supposed to end up almost thirty, divorced, with her dreams of winning shattered. She teams up with Jorge Gonzalez, a hunky and hard-working Latin dancer, to reinvent the flashy Smooth style.When the Chairman of the Judges offers to throw the competition in their favor, Nina must decide how far she will go to win, even if it means losing Jorge.Carly Martindale is doing everything she's been taught not to do—placing her happiness first by dancing with Trey Devereux, the former champion who's returned to competition for mysterious reasons.Carly falls deeply in love with Trey, but beneath his good looks and Southern manners lay a tortured soul. She allows him to control her every move at great risk to her emotional health. How far will Carly go, so Trey and she can win?Co-workers, then friends, and now arch competitors, Nina and Carly face off to determine who will be the winner—in love and in dancing. Read more

Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington was one of jazz’s greatest innovators. Join Bill Gutman as he explores the fascinating life of this legend from his birth at the turn of the century to his death at the age of seventy‑five. Interviewing Duke’s friends, fans, and fellow musicians, Gutman documents the progress of a man who dedicated his life to crafting the ever‑changing sound of jazz. Gutman plunges into the history of jazz from its origin in the honky‑tonk sounds of the Ragtime Era to the forms that are widely enjoyed today. Jazz has evolved through the years to become one of the most popular forms of music, with Duke Ellington as chief composer, artist, and perfomer. Gutman’s account of Ellington’s life as it parallels the history of jazz provides a fascinating history for both jazz veterans and those new to the art form. Read more

Floating Bones charts the author’s journey into tensegrity, which begins in ballet and culminates in a model for addressing one’s body as a teacher. Tensegrity flips traditional biomechanical models such that instead of support coming from the bones, the bones float, and it is the muscles and other soft connective tissue that provide support for the moving body. Using the model of tensegretic experience, Roses-Thema connects somatics, cognition, rhetoric, and reflective practices detailing the means that constructed approaching the body as a teacher. This study presents the argument for extending the models of thinking to include bodily thinking, by citing how the experiential perspective of tensegrity constructs physical evidence of the rhetorical concept, metis, where the body thinks as it moves. This book will be of great interest to students, scholars, and practitioners of dance, theater, and sociology. Read more

National Dance Education Organization Ruth Lovell Murray Book AwardUNCG | Susan W. Stinson Book Award for Dance EducationAn African American art form, jazz dance has an inaccurate historical narrative that often sets Euro-American aesthetics and values at the inception of the jazz dance genealogy. The roots were systemically erased and remain widely marginalized and untaught, and the devaluation of its Africanist origins and lineage has largely gone unchallenged. Decolonizing contemporary jazz dance practice, this book examines the state of jazz dance theory, pedagogy, and choreography in the twenty-first century, recovering and affirming the lifeblood of jazz in Africanist aesthetics and Black American culture.Rooted Jazz Dance brings together jazz dance scholars, practitioners, choreographers, and educators from across the United States and Canada with the goal of changing the course of practice in future generations. Contributors delve into the Africanist elements within jazz dance and discuss the role of Whiteness, including Eurocentric technique and ideology, in marginalizing African American vernacular dance, which has resulted in the prominence of Eurocentric jazz styles and the systemic erosion of the roots. These chapters offer strategies for teaching rooted jazz dance, examples for changing dance curricula, and artist perspectives on choreographing and performing jazz. Above all, they emphasize the importance of centering Africanist and African American principles, aesthetics, and values.Arguing that the history of jazz dance is closely tied to the history of racism in the United States, these essays challenge a century of misappropriation and lean into difficult conversations of reparations for jazz dance. This volume overcomes a major roadblock to racial justice in the dance field by amplifying the people and culture responsible for the jazz language.Contributors: LaTasha Barnes | Lindsay Guarino | Natasha Powell | Carlos R.A. Jones | Rubim de Toledo | Kim Fuller | Wendy Oliver | Joanne Baker | Karen Clemente | Vicki Adams Willis | Julie Kerr-Berry | Pat Taylor | Cory Bowles | Melanie George | Paula J Peters | Patricia Cohen | Brandi Coleman | Kimberley Cooper | Monique Marie Haley | Jamie Freeman Cormack | Adrienne Hawkins | Karen Hubbard | Lynnette Young Overby | Jessie Metcalf McCullough | E. Moncell DurdenPublication of this work made possible by a Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Read more

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Beginning Jazz Dance is the perfect resource for helping students gain a strong foundation of beginning jazz dance techniques. Written by jazz dance choreographer and professor James Robey, this text prepares students to have a successful experience in a beginning jazz dance technique course. It introduces students to the history, artists, significant works, styles, and aesthetics of the genre so they understand dance as a performing art.Beginning Jazz Dance features 80 photos accompanied by descriptions that visually present the beginning jazz dance technique and dance concepts that will reinforce and extend classroom learning. It also has related online resources that include 55 photos and 125 video clips of basic jazz dance technique. Students can access these photos and videos at any time for their study or practice and will benefit from the wealth of other resources including assignments, worksheets, glossary terms with and without definitions, interactive chapter quizzes, and web links to help students develop their basic knowledge and skills. Through the text, students learn these aspects of jazz dance: The core concepts of jazz dance, the value of studying jazz dance, and class expectations The structure of a jazz dance class, the roles of everyone in the studio, and how to be physically and mentally prepared for class Tips on injury prevention, nutrition guidelines, and basic anatomy and kinesiology as applied to movement in jazz dance Basic body alignment and positions in jazz dance Jazz walks, kicks, turns, leaps, and floor work  Beginning Jazz Dance provides students with the context, background information, and basic instruction they need in order to understand the genre and appreciate jazz dance as a performing art. This text and companion online resource is ideal for dance majors, dance minors, and general education students enrolled in beginning jazz dance technique courses. It is also suitable for students in performing arts and magnet schools and high school dance programs. Beginning Jazz Dance is a part of Human Kinetics’ Interactive Dance Series. The series includes resources for ballet, modern, tap, jazz, musical theater, and hip-hop dance that support introductory dance technique courses taught through dance, physical education, and fine arts departments. Each student-friendly text has related online learning tools including video clips of dance instruction, assignments, and activities. The Interactive Dance Series offers students a collection of guides to learning, performing, and viewing dance. Note: A code for accessing HKPropel is not included with this ebook but may be purchased separately.   Read more

Mark Barnett knows and loves jazz, and he has a special talent for explaining the music—and his passion for it—in words that everyone can understand. It’s a talent that shines from every line in this book. The contents of the book originally appeared in columns Barnett wrote for the comprehensive “All About Jazz” website (www.allaboutjazz.com), guiding listeners track by track through some of his favorite jazz albums. His first contribution was to the site’s “Building a Jazz Library” section, recommending ten of the most memorable albums from one of his favorite artists, Stan Getz. That was followed by “How to Listen,” a Q&A article with tips on getting the most out of the jazz experience. Barnett then wrote “Getting into Jazz,” a column for those who “want to listen to jazz but aren’t sure where to start,” using his CD reviews as teaching tools. His reviews analyze the best tracks on each disc, pointing out what to listen for (and exactly when). All of these elements are now compiled into this book, a definitive guide to the jazz Barnett loves so well. If you’re new to this music, let it inspire you to start your own jazz journey. Read more

Embracing dramatic similarities, glaring disjunctions, and striking innovations, this book explores the history and context of dance on the land we know today as the United States of America. Designed for weekly use in dance history courses, it traces dance in the USA as it broke traditional forms, crossed genres, provoked social and political change, and drove cultural exchange and collision. The authors put a particular focus on those whose voices have been silenced, unacknowledged, and/or uncredited – exploring racial prejudice and injustice, intersectional feminism, protest movements, and economic conditions, as well as demonstrating how socio-political issues and movements affect and are affected by dance. In looking at concert dance, vernacular dance, ritual dance, and the convergence of these forms, the chapters acknowledge the richness of dance in today’s USA and the strong foundations on which it stands. Milestones are a range of accessible textbooks, breaking down the need-to-know moments in the social, cultural, political, and artistic development of foundational subject areas. This book is ideal for undergraduate courses that embrace culturally responsive pedagogy and seek to shift the direction of the lens from western theatrical dance towards the wealth of dance forms in the United States. Read more

For the price of just one group class, this book is a practical guide for learning the leader’s part of the fast and smooth swing dance called Balboa. Includes description of common steps, tips on learning, practicing and social dancing. It will greatly add to your understanding of swing dancing and help you along your learning curve. Read it before you go to your first Balboa class. Read more

Never feel bored, lonely, or out of shape again... Just say “YES” to social dance!ARE YOUSimply curious and longing for a fun-filled and challenging activity to improve your health and social life?A social dance student who just started taking couple dance classes and needs a little boost?An experienced dancer who grabs every opportunity to learn more about your passion?A competitive dancer eager to shift your mindset and enjoy the social aspect of partner dancing?A dance teacher or industry professional who loves bringing joy to others through music and dance?If you identified with any one of these questions, then this book has been written Just For You!THIS INSPIRING BOOK WILL HELP YOU• Understand the essence & values of social partner dancing.• Discover some of the benefits which this therapeutic art form has on your body, mind, and spirit.• Explore the world of salsa, bachata, kizomba, zouk, forro, tango, swing & ballroom.• Learn about the origin and historical evolution of social dance.• Compare 35+ of the most popular partner dance styles and related music genres in the 21st century.• Find the best partner dances for you depending on your physical needs and preferences.• Challenge and debunk common mainstream beliefs and myths about social partner dance.• Get rid of any doubts, fears, concerns, misconceptions, or taboos, and just dance!THE BOOK INCLUDES✓ A Mini Encyclopedia — covering over 35 popular partner dance styles in the 21st century, as well as a timeline showing the history of social dance from the 16th to the 20th century with references to more than 40 social dances✓ A Structured Framework — including eight comparison indicators (such as flexibility, proximity, sensuality) for selecting the most suitable partner dance styles for you.✓ Inspiring Stories — addressing issues such as, "I need a dance partner," "I don’t know how to dance," "I’m not beautiful enough to be a dancer," "Nobody will want to dance with me," "I’m too old now," "Dancing is not a manly thing," "My colleagues will laugh at me," "It’s only for people looking to flirt and grind," "My boyfriend will be jealous!"✓ Great Tips — for overcoming 15 self-limiting beliefs that will give you the motivation and encouragement you need to social dance and make the most of your experience.✓ A 30-Day Challenge — to help you start or improve your experience as you take the next step on your social dance journey.The book also come with a FREE set of video compilations to help you visualize the dance and musical styles described in the book!"Yes To Social Dance" summarizes first-hand experience and research that can save you a lot of time and energy.Although the pandemic is definitely not a good time to go out social dancing, you can use this time to learn more about this activity and be ready to jump right in, once the world becomes safe again! Read more

This is not just another poetry book, but more so an experience of healing, heartbreak, hedonism, sensuality, spirituality, romance, and love all wrapped together in raw and expressive poems and proses. Each page is laced with its own form of chaos and order. This is the jazz of poetry. Read more

Bob Fosse (1927-1987) is recognized as one of the most significant figures in post-World War II American musical theater. With his first Broadway musical, The Pajama Game in 1954, the "Fosse style" was already fully developed, with its trademark hunched shoulders, turned-in stance, and stuttering, staccato jazz movements. Fosse moved decisively into the role of director with Redhead in 1959 and was a key figure in the rise of the director-choreographer in the Broadway musical. He also became the only star director of musicals of his era--a group that included Jerome Robbins, Gower Champion, Michael Kidd, and Harold Prince--to equal his Broadway success in films. Following his unprecedented triple crown of show business awards in 1973 (an Oscar for Cabaret, Emmy for Liza with a Z, and Tony for Pippin), Fosse assumed complete control of virtually every element of his projects. But when at last he had achieved complete autonomy, his final efforts, the film Star 80 and the musical Big Deal, written and directed by Fosse, were rejected by audiences and critics. A fascinating look at the evolution of Fosse as choreographer and director, Big Deal: Bob Fosse and Dance in the American Musical considers Fosse's career in the context of changes in the Broadway musical theater over four decades. It traces his early dance years and the importance of mentors George Abbott and Jerome Robbins on his work. It examines how each of the important women in his adult life--all dancers--impacted his career and influenced his dance aesthetic. Finally, the book investigates how his evolution as both artist and individual mirrored the social and political climate of his era and allowed him to comfortably ride a wave of cultural changes. Read more

The book honors and celebrates Patsy Swayze. There are twenty-nine fascinating interviews which include her students, colleagues, and friends. Their stories showcase what a trailblazer she was and the extent of her influence on them and on the world. Many of her students continue to carry forward her legacy by following in her giant dance footsteps. There are sixty-four photos, most in color and rarely seen, which help tell this story.Patsy Swayze was an icon in the dance and performing arts world for decades as a dancer, teacher, mentor, and choreographer. Her work includes founding the Houston Jazz Ballet, teaching at the University of Houston, running her own dance studios, and choreographing for Theatre, Incorporated, Playhouse Theatre, and Hollywood movies. She inspired thousands of dance students, many of whom went on to become professionals in the performing arts, and instilled in all students a strong work ethic and set of values. With that said, she was most proud of her family and thought her greatest achievement was being the mother of five children.Of course, Patsy had one very famous student, her beloved son Patrick, known as "Buddy" to family and friends. The book touches on the relationship between Patsy and Buddy, and Buddy's life. Another renowned student is Jaclyn Smith, who kindly granted a full-length interview about her experiences with Patsy.Patsy was a pioneer in opening her dance classes and her heart to all students, regardless of race, economic, or cultural background, and this was no small feat in the fifties and sixties in Houston. In addition, Patsy was known to be extremely philanthropic.Patsy Swayze continues to touch the lives of multitudes of people, including the author's life. In today's world it is especially wonderful to have such a hero, someone who gave so much to others and has left such a profound legacy.- Read more

Jazz dance and its inherent music is recognized as one of the original and most potent art forms of the last two centuries. From its African roots to our present-day global dance community, the jazz idiom has afforded a cross-fertilization with all other artistic, cultural and social representations within the arts industry, providing an accessible dance platform for dancers, teachers and creatives to enjoy both recreationally and professionally. The Essential Guide to Jazz Dance offers a practical and uncomplicated overview to the multi-layered history, practices and development of jazz dance as a creative and artistic dance form. It covers the incredible history and lineage of jazz dance; the innovators, choreographers and dance creatives of the genre; specifics of jazz aesthetic, steps and styles; a detailed breakdown of a practical jazz dance warm-up and technical exercises; creative frameworks to support development of jazz dance expression and aesthetic; performance and improvisation; jazz music and musical interpretation, and finally, choreographing and creating jazz works. With over 230 colour photos and a wealth of tips and advice, this new book will be an ideal reading companion for dancers of all abilities, dance teachers, choreographers as well as all jazz dance enthusiasts. Read more

You, YES YOU, no matter what anyone says, no matter how many doubts you may have, YOU CAN DANCE!!!Within this book I will teach you what you need to know about this journey and how to get there. I will provide you with tips and tricks I’ve learned throughout my journey and as you go through yours, you will find even more of your own! When you combine both your findings along with my experienced knowledge, OH MY G’S, you will be an amazing dancer!!It is true that anyone can dance, but you picked this book up, just by doing so you show me and yourself that you want this, and you have the drive and motivation that many others don’t. Once you start your journey, whether professionally or just to loosen up and dance for yourself, you are going to feel everything. Before beginning your journey, I need you to keep as a reminder that you must always know your worth, don’t let anyone or anything devalue your worth!As you progress within your journey, just remember to look back to where you started and be proud of your growth. You will grow. Read more

写真集『フランシス・ダンス・コンサート』vol.2（副題：ジャズの王道ルイジ・ジャズ・ダンス）は、ジャズの巨匠、ルイジの振付作品を日本で上演した公演の舞台写真である。 日本全国にいるルイジ先生の直接間接の門下生たちが、フランシスから「ルイジ・ジャズ・ダンス・カンパニー」のレパートリー作品を学び、上演したユーロ・ジャズ・ダンスのダンス・レパートリーである。 Vol.2では、以下の３作品を取り上げた。 『マジックバード・オブ・ファイアー』（火の鳥） ストラビンスキーの『火の鳥』をジャズ・アレンジ版で踊る、スリリングなジャズ・バレエ・ナンバー。 ルイジは亡命ロシア人教師からバレエを学んだ。 学んだことを、ジャズで返した。 「ルイジ・ジャズ・ダンス・カンパニー」の公演の最後に踊られるナンバーでタイトルロールの火の鳥の役をルイジのベスト・ダンサーが踊りつないだ。 フランシスが着ている火の鳥の赤い衣装は、「ルイジ・ジャズ・ダンス・カンパニー」のものである。 “Summer of 42” ルイジの十八番。 ヴァツラフ・ニジンスキーの『ペトリューシカ』、 イサドラ・ダンカンの『母』、 アンナ・パブロヴァの『瀕死の白鳥』、 アルビン・エイリーの『レボリューション』、 ルイジの『サマー・オブ・４２”。 世界の舞踊の不朽の名作。 “Chariot of Fire”, 『炎のランナー』 　ルイジはこの踊りを、東京で作った。 伊藤道郎のリトミック・アームズ（A＆Bパターン）を使って、まず、会場の観客に、アームズのパターンを教えた。 その後、ヴァンゲリスの『炎のランナー』の曲がかかり、踊り始めた。 　ルイジが東京で冒頭部分のみ作ったこの踊りを、フランシスは、最後まで完成させて、東京、土浦、横浜の地元のルイジ・ダンサーたちの群舞とともに踊った。 『フランシス・ダンス・コンサート』のラストを飾るナンバーとして上演された。 　伊藤道郎のリトミックにルイジは、自身の頭文字のLをつけて、「ル・リトミック」という造語を使っていた。伊藤道郎は、ファルコン・スタジオで、当時最先端を行っていたドイツの舞踊芸術を持って米国西海岸で、モダン・ダンスを広めた。それが、伊藤道郎が「アメリカ・モダン・ダンスの父」と呼ばれる所以である。ルイジはファルコン・スタジオのジュディス・ジェーンから、ミチオ・スタイルを学び、生涯、伊藤道郎を尊敬した。 事実、ルイジの前半の作品は、ユーロ・ジャズ・ダンスで、後半は、ミチオ・スタイルのル・リトミックを多用している。 写真撮影：池上直哉 『フランシス・ダンス・コンサート』 上演年：１９８３年 後援：在日米国大使館、在米ジャパンソサエティ 上演場所：東京（プロデューサー：マリカ） 　　　　　土浦（プロデューサー：山口恵子） 　　　　　横浜（プロデューサー：池谷フジエ） 『フランシス・ダンス・コンサート』vol.1収録ダンス： 『ジャズ・ミッション』 『ワイド・ビリー』 『ミッション・インパッシブル』 『TAP ピピン』 『シング・シング・シング』 『愛の代償』 出演者： 大塚洋子（元宝塚歌劇団員） 小池啓司（元モーリス・ベジャール舞踊団員）他大勢 日本各地のルイジの直接間接の弟子、レギュラー：30名 炎のランナーのエキストラダンサー：40名（土浦＆横浜） オリジナル振付：ルイジ ダンス指導：フランシス・ローチ 総合プロデュース：マリカ 『フランシス・ダンス・コンサート』vol.3 & 4　近日出版予定 Read more

This book offers a sustained and deeply experiential pragmatic study of performance environments, here defined at unstable, emerging, and multisensational atmospheres, open to interactions and travels in augmented virtualities. Birringer’s writings challenge common assumptions about embodiment and the digital, exploring and refining artistic research into physical movement behavior, gesture, sensing perception, cognition, and trans-sensory hallucination. If landscapes are autobiographical, and atmospheres prompt us to enter blurred lines of a "forest knowledge," where light, shade, and darkness entangle us in foraging mediations of contaminated diversity, then such sensitization to elemental environments requires a focus on processual interaction. Provocative chapters probe various types of performance scenarios and immersive architectures of the real and the virtual. They break new ground in analyzing an extended choreographic – the building of hypersensorial scenographies that include a range of materialities as well as bodily and metabodily presences. Foregrounding his notion of kinetic atmospheres, the author intimates a technosomatic theory of dance, performance, and ritual processes, while engaging in a vivid cross-cultural dialogue with some of the leading digital and theatrical artists worldwide. This poetic meditation will be of great interest to students and scholars in theatre, performing arts as well as media arts practitioners, composers, programmers, and designers. Read more

Cholly Atkins's career has spanned an extraordinary era of American dance. He began performing during Prohibition and continued his apprenticeship in vaudeville, in nightclubs, and in the army during World War II. With his partner, Honi Coles, Cholly toured the country, performing with such jazz masters as Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, and Count Basie. As tap reached a nadir in the fifties, Cholly created the new specialization of "vocal choreography," teaching rhythm-and-blues singers how to perform their music by adding rhythmical dance steps drawn from twentieth-century American dance, from the Charleston to rhythm tap. For the burgeoning Motown record label, Cholly taught such artists as the Supremes, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, the Temptations, Gladys Knight and the Pips, and Marvin Gaye to command the stage in ways that would enhance their performances and "sell" their songs.Class Act tells of Cholly's boyhood and coming of age, his entry into the dance world of New York City, his performing triumphs and personal tragedies, and the career transformations that won him gold records and a Tony for choreographing Black and Blue on Broadway. Chronicling the rise, near demise, and rediscovery of tap dancing, the book is both an engaging biography and a rich cultural history. Read more