Ever since the beginning of time, people have always loved to dance. Historians have traced the earliest forms of dancing back to 3300 BC by using cave drawings as a guide. After this, evidence of dance has been found in every culture from every area of the world. Depending on the culture, dance was used in a variety of different ways. For many tribes in the East, dance was included in many religious ceremonies and sacrifices. In ancient Greece, dance was used to celebrate an event, such as the annual celebration of Dionysus, the god of wine (). As time progressed on in the West, dance became known as a social activity. During the World War period in the United States, a type of social dance called swing dancing became wildly popular. Swing has continued to influence the culture around it and has gone through several evolutions since its birth, but it still remains relevant as a form of social dancing today.
Swing dancing originally began in the 1930’s; during the height of The Great Depression. When the stock market crashed on October 24th, 1929, it triggered a wave of unemployment the likes of which the United States had never seen before. Many people lost their jobs and were not able to pay their bills. During this period of American history, money was tight and spirits were low. The need for livelihood was great. Because of this, ballroom dancing grew in popularity. To many people, “dancing served as a means to alleviate the economic uncertainties” (Giordano, 79). Many nightclubs even offered monetary prizes to the winners of dance marathons or competitions. Ballroom dancing even worked its way into the movies and television programs of the time. One of the most famous dance couples were Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Men and women alike saw Astaire and Rogers dance in movies such as The Gay Divorcee (1934) and Swing Time (1936) and longed to imitate their effortless dance moves.
In the 1940’s, American focus almost immediately shifted to the war against Germany. World War II affected millions of individuals worldwide. Americans were encouraged to work and support the troops. Everyday necessities such as coffee, butter, and sugar, were rationed due to the war effort. However, the entertainment industry did not suffer much due to the war. Because Americans could not use extra income on groceries, many opted to splurge on movies and other forms of entertainment (Giordano, 79). Ballroom dancing was as popular as ever, due to the now or never attitude of the Americans.
Before you dance, you must have music. Renowned big band leader, Benny Goodman wrote “styles in dancing follow the styles in music” (McCarthy, 123). During the Depression, a radio was the treasured possession in any household. It allowed access to news reports, radio programs, and music. Jazz was exceedingly popular and it is from that genre of music that we get Swing music. However, by 1935, the American spirit had completely changed; the drab jazz music of the early 1930’s simply would not do anymore. Swing typically features more brass instruments and emphasizes drums, which differentiates swing from earlier forms of jazz. It is speculated that the swing era began with Benny Goodman’s orchestra in the Los Angeles Palomar Ballroom on August 21st, 1935 (McCarthy, 122). Goodman had been previously touring with his band, but on that night at the Palomar, he arrived to see a huge crowd of teenagers, along with a live radio audience. By the 1940’s, you would be hard-pressed to find an American household that did not own a radio. Radios allowed access to many different types of entertainment such as dramas, news programs, and music. By using a radio, jazz and swing music became much more accessible to the public. Instead of going to nightclub or dance hall, you could enjoy jazz music and dancing from your own house.
The Lindy Hop was born in 1927, during the height of Charles Lindbergh’s flight across the Atlantic. The name “Lindy Hop” can be credited to Lindbergh himself, as he was called “Lucky Lindy” and he “hopped” across the Atlantic Ocean. The Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, New York, is known as the birthplace of Lindy Hop. The Savoy Ballroom became the perfect place to practice and perfect this dance. The Lindy Hop can be escribed as an 8 count dance, in which both partners rock backwards on the &8 count and forwards on the 1 count. Lindy differs from other ballroom dances because it two basic holds; the closed position and the open position. In closed position, the man holds the woman’s right hand in his left and places his right hand on her waist, maintaining two points of contact. In open position (also known as the “Breakaway” position), the man drops his hand from the lady’s waist, leaving only one point of contact. The Breakaway position allows for improvisation within the rhythm. Because of the subjective style of Lindy Hop, the dance stayed regional to the Savoy Ballroom until national popularity heightened in the 1930’s.
During this time in the 1930’s, dance contests were exceedingly popular. The Savoy Ballroom would often host these contests and couples would attend to participate and watch. One dance contest in particular changed the image of Lindy Hop forever. Renowned Lindy Hopper, Frank Manning, and his partner, Frieda Washington, coined an aerial dance move in which the partners stand back to back with their elbows linked, then the man flips the lady backwards over his shoulders to land directly in front of him. The crowd loved it, and after that night, aerials became a normal component of Lindy Hop. Young people loved the flips and quickly took to them, but many dance halls banned aerials. Their reason for justification was that “somebody could get hurt, especially another dance couple that might move into the space where the airborne dancer was about to land” (Giordano, ). Lindy Hop completely changed the face of ballroom dance as people knew it. By adding many new steps and allowing personal improvisation, it completely changed the face of American ballroom dance. During a time in the lives of Americans when everything seemed to be out of their control, dancing was a way to leave all that behind and go a carefree place with no worries.
The next variation of swing dancing to arise was called “The Jitterbug.” The term itself was used in reference to both the variation of the dance and to the people who danced it. The title “jitterbug” was originally used in a negative manner because it was referring to the shakes that were associated with alcoholics (Edmonson). However, young people quickly took the term and reappropriated it, often calling each other “jitterbugs.” The Jitterbug dance was a style that allowed for dancing to faster music. As opposed to the Lindy Hop 8 count basic step, the Jitterbug contained a 6 count basic. Due to the war, this variation on Lindy Hop quickly spread. During this time period, dance teachers rarely taught Lindy and written instructions for it essentially did not exist. They considered the dance not appropriate for ballroom and they refused to teach it. Because of this, variations of Lindy Hop and Jitterbug were found, depending on which region you were from. Finally, in 1943, instructors began to teach Lindy and the Jitterbug (Giordano, 95). In later years, the Jitterbug would resurge and evolve into East Coast Swing (also called Triple Swing).
After the 1940’s, swing dancing was essentially dead for the next fifty years. With the rise of Rock n’ Roll in the 1950’s, swing dancing was quickly losing steam. After the 1960’s and the release of the Twist, Americans had forgotten all about swing (Edmondson). By the 1980’s, Lindy Hop was extinct. However, when country dancing became popular in the 1990’s, America began to remember the style of social dancing they had forgotten long ago. This time, a style called East Coast Swing was rampant. East Coast Swing is essentially the Jitterbug, but with triple steps replacing the single steps. East Coast Swing eventually evolved into another variant named West Coast Swing. West Coast Swing is only danceable to songs with a slower tempo and is recognizable by its more sensual basic style, involving push and breakaway steps. In the late 1980s, the state of California accepted West Coast Swing as the official state dance of California (Giordano, 297).
The revival of swing dancing also brought revival to swing music. The new interest in swing dancing gave rise to the big band sound. Some new big band style bands formed during the late 1990s, such as Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and other ensembles. The big band sound really had not made an appearance since the early 1950s, so for a lot of people from the younger generation, this type of music was completely new and different. These bands were somewhat controversial. Jazz critics claimed that the bands were not staying true to the roots of swing and because of that, their style of swing was incorrect. The bands countered this by arguing that they were simply adapting swing to the culture of the day and were making swing relevant to younger listeners. The first retro-swing club was opened in 1989 in San Francisco, California (Giordano, 303). At first, it seemed that no one was interested in dancing, they simply came to listen to the music. But soon enough, teens started arriving and began to dance every style of swing. It took a while, but for the second time in the century, swing dancing quickly began to spread across the United States.
Swing clubs and lessons today
Overall, swing dancing has come a long way from when it first originated in the Savoy Ballroom in 1927. Although it has gone through many evolutions, the root of the dance remains the same. Throughout the past century, swing dancing has brought much joy to individuals in America and even around the world. Mary Keil, who wrote the script for the 1998 movie “Swing Kids,” once compared swing dancing to life itself. In the metaphor, she says “Swing dancing…requires practice and discipline, but is tons of fun. And so the choice we have is to either jump into the fray or stand on the sidelines” (Giordano 308).