Tap dance
Tap dance developed in the United States in the nineteenth century from a fusion of West African step dances and Irish, English and Scottish clog dances and jigs. The dancer makes rhythm with the sound of shoes striking the floor, with an emphasis on syncopation and improvisation, and it can be danced with or without accompaniment. William Henry Lane, known as Master Juba, is regarded as an early pioneer from the 1840s.
Tap grew up alongside jazz, through vaudeville, Hollywood film and Broadway musicals. Two main versions exist: rhythm tap, focused on musicality, and Broadway tap, focused on theatrical dance. After a decline, a revival began in the 1960s. In the United States, 25 May, Bill Robinson's birthday, has been National Tap Dance Day since 1989, and tap is practised internationally.
Sources
- Tap dance - Wikipedia
- Tap - Discover Dance, Sadler's Wells
- What is National Tap Dance Day? - International Tap Association
- American Tap Dance Foundation
- رقص نقري - Arabic Wikipedia
- 踢踏舞 - Chinese Wikipedia
Organisations connected with this dance
- American Tap Dance Foundation (ATDF)
- Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) - Tap Dance faculty
- International Tap Association (ITAP)
Listed as references; being listed is not an endorsement by or of the organisation.