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The Movies And Ballroom Dancing

Think dancing and you think Hollywood. Whatever kind of dancing you can think of – whether it is the gliding slow dances or the fast tap dances or the modern break dancing, the silver screen has it all. Not only that, it has immortalized both the dance and the dancers in certain movies.

 

Sometimes, the dance is just a part of the movie. Sometimes, it is the whole movie. Look at all the old Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly movies. It was the dance and the song that was the movie. The story line was present just to string the dance and song sequences together. What you remember are the flawless movements and the steps that never put a wrong foot anywhere. Ginger Rogers of course should probably have been even more feted considering she did all the steps in the highest of heels and backwards at that!

In the great epic movies like Gone With The Wind, even with such a powerful story you remember the great ballroom dance scene when Rhett makes a bid to dance with Scarlett. Then of course, we have movies like the Richard Gere-Jennifer Lopez starrer Shall We Dance where a simple guy learns to dance and prepares for the dancing competition.

There is also that wonderful movie Dance With Me, the story of Rafael, a young Cuban boy who comes to America and becomes a great dancer. The reason the ballroom dancers here look so authentic is because they used actual ballroom competition dancers in the movie. Another hit which received a standing ovation at the Cannes Festival was Strictly Wonderful where a professional dancer and an amateur pair up to enter a competition and all the comedy that follows.

So many movies over the years have had dancing sequences. Look at the old movies like West Side Story and the Little Colonel with Bojangles and Shirley Temple. And who can forget Dorothy dancing her way through The Wizard of Oz? Or the dances in The Sound of Music or Mary Poppins or My Fair Lady? Later, the dances grew more erotic like Flashdance and Dirty Dancing. Why today, you even have all the animated characters doing a great jig! From The Jungle Book to the Shrek series, dance has become part and parcel of most animated movies.

It's always been great to watch ballroom dancing. The great thing about the movies is that they have preserved the different dances or the different ways of doing certain dancing on celluloid so people can watch and enjoy them for years to come.

 

Ballroom Dancing Championships News

Local ballroom dancers compete at Palm Beach Classic - TCPalm


Local ballroom dancers compete at Palm Beach Classic
TCPalm
VERO BEACH — Six local women representing Royal Ballroom Dance Studio in Vero Beach competed at the Palm Beach Classic ballroom dance competition on Jan. 22 in Palm Beach Gardens. Each woman worked for months with their professional instructor, ...

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Ballroom dancing competition - Ct Post


Ballroom dancing competition
Ct Post
Maureen Pavia introduces competitors in the Dancing Classrooms competition at Sacred Heart University on Sunday, January 29, 2012. Photo: BK Angeletti / Connecticut Post | Buy This Photo Marty Levine, center, judges fifth grade dancers in the Dancing ...

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Dance set for daughters and dads in Springfield - Springfield News-Leader


Palm Beach Post

Dance set for daughters and dads in Springfield
Springfield News-Leader
Dads and their daughters are invited to join Springfield Ballet and Operation Us for an evening of ballroom instruction, sweet treats and Valentine's fun at the second annual Daddy Daughter Dance at 6:30 pm Friday in the Creamery Arts Center.
Last Chance To Purchase Father Daughter Dance To Be Held FridayThe Chattanoogan

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Arts calendar: Ballroom dancing in Spartanburg - Spartanburg Herald Journal


Arts calendar: Ballroom dancing in Spartanburg
Spartanburg Herald Journal
Ballroom dance class: 7:30-8:30 pm Mondays. Marian Norman, instructor. Ballet Spartanburg's Dance Center, Chapman Cultural Center, 200 E. St. John St. 583-0339. Tuesday Night Artists' Group: 5:30-7:30 pm Meets the first and third Tuesday of the month.

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Pasadena's Fraser family moves to a Latin beat - Pasadena Star-News


Pasadena's Fraser family moves to a Latin beat
Pasadena Star-News
They've enlisted the help of some high-powered coaches Boris Rudenko and Ekaterina Fedosova training at Ballroom Blitz in Eagle Rock Wednesday, February 1, 2012. The family will compete at the California Open Dance Sport Championships February 16-19 in ...

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