(This page deals with Adagio and dance Acrobatics)
While the French call it Adage , the term Adagio is Italian
in origin. Adagio is "any dance" (quote "any") dance or combination
of steps done to slow music as contrasted or followed up with allegro. In ballet,
adagio is a series of lessons designed to develop grace, balance and a sense of ones line.
Adagio is part of the classic "pas
de deux" as danced by the ballerina and her partner (the danseur).
Allegro
basically is the opposite of adagio, it is "any dance" or combination of steps
done to a moderate or fast tempo. Is part of a ballet lesson usually following adagio while
all forms of jumps, leaps, turns in the air are all part of allegro.
Adagio, as done by a couple or exhibition dancers and is usually a very
romantic type of dance routine which usually portrays a type of love affair but can be different
in its performance.
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The dance when done correctly can make you cry, as it does
have in impact on the audience. It is beautiful to watch as well as breath-taking when done
correctly.
Acrobatic dances are very similar
to Adagio dances and many times use the same training and can contain elements of Gymnastics.
Acrobatic basically means Lifts, Flips or Aerials done with
speed and surprise which are usually called "Tricks."
Gymnastics (Rock and Roll, Swing) can play a part as well. Acrobatic dances are
done more in the rhythm dances such as Hustle,
many forms of Swing such as Lindy, Jitterbug,
European Rock and Roll plus other dances such as Latin,
Ballroom And Tap Dances, as well as
smooth dances such as Waltz,
Tango and Apache.
Originally acrobatics was just considered tumbling. Many
of the best early acrobatic / tumblers were African American such as Henry
Bolden, Acott and Bailey, the Tomi Trio, The
Crackerjacks, Gaines Brothers, and Rastus and Banks
who worked on the ground doing Somersaults, Cartwheels, Flip-Flops, Knee-drops, Splits,
Butterflies, flips and spins. One of the First to use Acrobatics with dance was Sherman
Coates of the Watermelon Trust which consisted of two men (Grundy and Coates) and
their wives (Lulu and ???) around 1900. Acrobatics and Adagio found their way into
the couples dance world such as exhibition dancers in Theatres and Nightclubs. One such
group was the Whitey's Lindy Hoppers who called their
Acrobatic stunts "Air Steps." These acrobatics
lend themselves to dance because of the relatively ease in which they could be done but
required alot of practicing to prevent injury.
The lifts are dependent on the female knowing her part while the man
is only the assistant (a helper.) Adagio is not dependent on the males "strength,"
although the appearances will be as such. It is more important that both male and female
know their separate parts. An example is the picture to left of this page, it shows two
ladies doing "Acrobatic Dancing" and as you can
see the follower being much bigger than the leader. (Adagio was also called "acrobatic
Dancing.") There were many female acrobatic dance couples in the early part of
the century, a sort of novelty if you will.
Note: Lifts should not be done socially by untrained social dancers, followers can get extremely
hurt as well as others around them.
~A WORD of CAUTION if thinking of LIFTING
a PARTNER 'SOCIALLY' ... 'DON'T DO IT'!
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Ballrooms