Strictly Dance Fever returns to 91Èȱ¬ ONE for
a swinging second series
The dance coach and dances
The resident dance coach
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Vanessa Leagh Hicks
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Vanessa trained in all aspects of dance, acting and singing
and attended the Italia Conti Academy from the age of 10 to 18 qualifying
as a Teacher of Dance.
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She is trained in Ballroom and Latin American
dance and was the South East Latin American dance champion for three
years. Her West End stage credits include: La Cage Aux Folles, Crazy
For You, Cats, Sweet Charity and Chicago.
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Vanessa is currently West End
dance captain and understudying the role of Velma Kelly in Chicago,
where she has been choreographing and performing for the past seven
years.
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She has choreographed for Top of The Pops, CD:UK, Will Young,
Dannii Minogue and Rachel Stevens at the Royal Variety Performance.
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Vanessa also
successfully choreographed Emma Bunton's video Maybe, opened the
British Style Awards, and choreographed Children in Need, working with
the cast of Coronation Street performing a medley from Oliver Twist' and
with the 91Èȱ¬ newsreaders performing Wild Boys and Venus.
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Dance history & background
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Salsa
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Salsa means 'Sauce' and the dancers should depict
a very hot and spicy interaction with each other - it is a dance of
courtship.
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Salsa is still relatively new compared to other Latin-American
dances, such as the Cha Cha Cha or the Samba, and, as such, is still
evolving.
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Salsa was a response to a variety of new instruments, like
the bongos and the cow-bell, that were introduced to Cuba in the early
twentieth century.
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The overall look of the Salsa should be sensuous
and fluid, with the dancers moving around each other and the floor
in circular movements.
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Salsa should be danced on the ball of
the foot and the steps should be kept small at all times. Salsa should be danced on the ball of the foot and the steps should be kept small at all times - drops and lifts are permitted.
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Rock 'n' Roll
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Rockabilly is an interpretation of the music
and should have a real 'let go' or 'loose' feeling. It
is high energy, and should be rammed full of tricks, spins, lifts and
drops.
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The Rockabilly originally evolved from the Jitterbug, and
was first danced in America and Europe in the 1950's. But its roots can
be traced to the Cuban Latin rhythms known as 'Habanera'.
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Its popularity
grew and grew as the fledgling Rock 'n' Roll stars such as Elvis
and Jerry Lee Lewis replaced the old Swing music on the radio and
in nightclubs.
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Unlike the Jive, Rockabilly is normally danced on a flat
foot - almost on the heel. A strong leading by the man can lead
his lady to perform a new trick without prior practice.
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The Hustle
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Most Disco dances have strong roots
in Swing and Latin, and The Hustle is no different.
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Disco itself
is believed to have originated in New York in 1970, and it very
quickly went through many different incarnations – there were line dances
for groups of people, solo movements and partnership dances.
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It was these
partner dances that later became known as Hustle, and there were loads
of them including Latin, Spanish and Swing Hustle, and by far the most
famous New York Hustle.
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The addition of free spins for both dancers
gave rise to The Hustle dazzle, which still retains its mesmerizing
look in today's Hustle dance world.
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Twirls are a must, and there should
be a lot of moving in and out of each others' arms - it is a fast,
smooth dance, with the lady spinning almost constantly.
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Argentine Tango
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Referred to as 'The History
of Love in Three Minutes', the Argentine Tango is about the man's
control and the woman's seductiveness – it is the most passionate dance that a couple can perform.
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The Argentine Tango originated in Buenos Aires at the turn
of the last century. Traditional European dances were mixed with the
'Habanera', a popular dance from Cuba, to form a new style, the 'Milonga'.
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In turn, the Milonga mixed with a dance that was performed
in the streets by small time crooks or 'compadritos' and the Tango
was born.
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The Tango began to blossom in the brothels - the men would
have to dance several Tangos with a woman as a prelude to further activities.
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By 1913 the Tango had become a worldwide phenomenon, but
had undergone further adaptation in order to 'clean it up'. This was
the birth of the more acceptable ballroom tango.
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The man controls the woman
in several different ways, at times even using his feet to move
her feet into the correct position. It is much smoother and more intimate
than the Ballroom tango, with the couples upper bodies close together
and lower bodies apart.
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Quite often the lady will rest her head on the
man's chest, or their faces will be very nearly touching. Most of
the activity happens from the waist down – and
is characterised by kicks and flicks.
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There should be
salacious interlacing of legs and bodies. The dance should also feature
lots of leans and plenty of lunges.
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Lambada
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Lambada was originally known as the forbidden dance. The
word Lambada refers to both the rhythm of the music (a fusion of Carimbó and Merengue), and to the dance itself, which incorporates elements of other Latin dances such as the Forró, the Samba, and the Maxixe.
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As is often the case, the dance came about as a result of
the music. In the Seventies a new type of music originated in Northern
Brazil; it was mix of Salsa, Merengue and Reggae music. The new sound
soon formed a new way of moving and the Lambada was born.
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This new dance soon
spread South, and was noticed by some French music producers. They
were really taken by the sound and produced Kaoma's 1989 number 1 hit
'Lambada'.
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The dance is fluid, with most of the work going on waist
up. We should see lots of winding hip movements, turns and plenty of
spins.
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In fact, the word Lambada is an obscure Brazilian Portuguese
word, refering to the wave like motion induced in a whip. This flowing
wave motion is reproduced by the dancer's bodies, and is one of the
main elements that distinguish Lambada from other Latin dances.
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Top Lambada
dancers can get their head virtually to the floor. The lady should
perform on balls of her feet with a twisting motion so that their
steps become more of a 'grind' (as
if stubbing out a cigarette). There should be lots of drops,
but partners must remain close.
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Jitterbug
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A good Jitterbug
should transport you back to the Forties. It was derived from the
Lindy Hop but was cleaned up by a white dancer called Arthur Murray into
a version that was more acceptable for the white college teenagers.
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Even
so, these white youngsters adopted the dance to rebel against their
parents. These young rebels became known as the Jitterbugs, and were the
punk rockers of their generation.
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But the Jitterbug's transition to acceptable
dance wasn't over. Its popularity was huge, and very soon dancehalls
couldn't accommodate all the wild kicks and arm movements.
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The
answer was to make the Jitterbug a slotted dance which means it appears
more controlled and gentler. The man is always at the centre of the
woman's 'slot' or her line of dance.
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The woman is directed by, and dances
around the man. There should be a more obvious lead and follow
in the Jitterbug than in the Lindy Hop. It can look a little awkward,
with lots of flicks of the arms, head and hair and twitches of the shoulder.
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It is also danced in a more 'upright' stance. The hold in
the Jitterbug is about counter-balancing your partner, not leaning into
each other like the Lindyhop.
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Lindy Hop
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The
Lindy is an extremely energetic, fast, happy dance. It is a partner
dance that originated in 1920's Harlem – although it has roots in The Charleston.
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It is a mix of all the Charleston based early swing dances
that now have Lindy moves named after them - The Texas Tommy, Tandem
Charleston and Breakaway are three of the most famous.
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In 1927 Charles
Lindbergh was attempting the first ever solo flight from New York
to Paris and people were absorbed with his 'Hop' across the Atlantic.
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A dancer by the name of George "Shorty" Snowden was at the
end of a long dance marathon when a reporter watching asked what this crazy
new dance was called, 'The Lindy Hop' George answered, and the name stuck.
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It is
the granddaddy of all swing dances – Jitterbug,
Balboa, Shag, West Coast Swing, even Rock 'n' Roll, Boogie Woogie
and Disco owe their existence to the Lindyhop.
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A good Lindy should
look fluid, energetic and sophisticated. It has to swing and look
effortless but often wild and frantic with loads of kicks, jumps, lifts,
hops and spins.
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It can be danced as fast as the couple are able to go,
but equally can be danced in a slow and sexy way. It is an incredibly
versatile style.
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Couples bend over in quite an attacking stance - they really
lean into one another. This enables them to build up
the speed that then becomes essential for the numerous lifts or 'aerial's'.
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The Lindy Hop is also defined by good break away choreography
and side by side variations that see the couples dance the same synchronised
steps next to each other.
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Charleston
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Opinions differ to the origins of the Charleston, some historians
have traced it to the 1520's and a dance called 'the Branie' which
was very similar to the Charleston, whilst others claim it originates from
ancient African tribes – it is clearly a dance with history.
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In its modern
form, the Charleston was performed as early as 1903, featuring
in several Harlem stage shows by 1913 and was firmly established in the
1920's during the Ragtime-Jazz era.
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The women who danced the Charleston
were known as 'flappers', a reference to the way they flapped their
arms and walked like birds whilst dancing.
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The Charleston, and
the 'flappers' in
particular were seen as the cause of the decline in moral
standards; flapper girls would roll down their stockings, wear shorter
skirts and have their hair bobbed, as well as drinking, smoking
and engaging in heavy petting!
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The signature move of the Charleston
is twisty feet – the
dancers feet should literally twist as steps are taken backwards
or forwards – there
should also be lots of flicks, to the front and side,
from the knees and feet.
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Of all the dances the Charleston
has a huge potential for comedy and allows couples
to put their own character into a routine. For example, dancers
can include slapping each others bottoms or faces in
their routine, or a fireman's lift for an exit!
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Milonga
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The Milonga is an early form of Tango and both use many of
the same basic steps. The main difference is how the dance travels
- unlike the gliding Tango, the Milonga
hops with the couple almost bouncing around the dancefloor.
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The Argentine Tango originated
in Buenos Aires at the turn of the 20th Century. During the colonial
era, African slaves brought to Argentina to work as servants for the
Spanish would sing acapella or accompanied by a simple tambourine, when
this style of song reached the suburbs it became known as 'Milonga'.
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Traditional
European dances were mixed with the 'Habanera', a popular dance
from Cuba, and combined with these acapella songs to form a new style,
the Milonga.
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Mixed couples would dance cheek to cheek; whereas in high
society couples danced apart, their bodies never touching. In
the villages, depending on the relationship with their partner, couples
dance very closely...
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Unlike
the Argentine
Tango, the
Milonga, a
happy joyous
and playful
dance, should
be performed
with a
smile to
the typically
Spanish 'Habanera'
rhythm, similar
to the
Samba beat.
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Dancers of
the Milonga
should step
on every
beat with
a bouncy
style, swinging
in the
shoulders and
hips, and
most importantly
keep moving
- there
should be
no stops
or pauses.
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American Smooth
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American
Smooth is
a form
of ballroom
dancing with
more elaborate
moves, think
Fred and
Ginger!
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All
the basic
principles and
technique of
ballroom dancing
still apply,
however there
are less
restrictions, partners
only need
to be
in a
hold for
40% of
the dance.
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This allows
the dancers
to incorporate
lifts, spins,
shuffles and
turns and
much more
into their
routines, wowing
the judges
and audience
with creative
and original
choreography.
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