“Dan is the hidden language of the soul of the body,” Martha Graham once said. Dance is a part of a person’s culture and can reflect their age and beliefs. Dance may be a universal thing, but it can be very different for each person, depending on when they were growing up, such as for Paula, Lisa, and Elizabeth, who all grew up in different time frames.
Firstly, there is how dance impacted Paula’s life. Paula is currently 80 and was born in 1938. She is part of the Silent Generation, where people believed kids should be seen but not heard. Kids were wanting to rebel against the way they were treated and found different ways to rebel, such as through their music, such as Rock n’ Roll. She witnessed Neil Armstrong putting the flag on the moon and the African American Civil Rights movement. She also witnessed the death of ex-president John F. Kennedy. Jazz and swing were very popular when she was younger. Frank Sinatra was a famous jazz and swing musician. She witnessed music changing forever with the birth of Rock n’ Roll, which her parents and most adults looked down upon. Rock n’ Roll was believed to be Satan’s music and would lead kids to bad habits, such as drinking, smoking, drugs, and violence.
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Elvis Presley was the king of Rock n’ Roll, but there was also Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Little Richard, and the American Bandstand. The most popular songs of her generation were Jailhouse Rock by Elvis Presley, Houndog by Elvis Presley, At the Hop by Danny and the Juniors, Be My Baby by the Ronettes, and De De Dinah by Frankie Avalon. Some of the dances she remembers seeing at the local clubs during this time frame were the Jitterbug, the Lindy Hop, and the Swing. Her generation used their music and dancing to rebel against their parents’ strict ways.
Secondly, there is how dance impacted Lisa’s life. Lisa is currently 52 and was born in 1965. She was born into Generation X, which happened right after the Baby Boom period. People were wanting to relax and enjoy life instead of creating new life. She witnessed the fall of the Berlin wall, the energy crisis, the Jonestown mass suicide, the rise of personal computers, the Watergate scandal, and the beating of Rodney King. This was a time frame of people trying to relax and settle down while overcoming obstacles, which impacted the music. Folk music was popular towards the beginning with its soothing sounds. Rap and punk rock came about when the people of the generation started questioning the government. They used their music to question what the government is doing Some of the popular songs she recalls from her youth are You Light Up My Life by Debby Boone, Tonight’s the Night by Rod Stewart, Night Fever by Bee Gees, Shadow Dancing by Andy Gibb, and I Love Rock n’ Roll by Joan Jett. Some of the dances that were popular to these songs were the Hustle, the Robot, the Funky Chicken, the Disco Finger, and the Electric Slide. Her generation used their music and dancing to rebel against the government.
Lastly, there is how dance impacted Elizabeth’s life. Elizabeth is currently 23 and was born in 1995. She is from the Gen Z generation, which is often referred to as the most unique generation. She is from a very technical generation. Facebook and Twitter were created, along with cell phone family plans, and texting, which impacted the generation greatly. She witnessed the horror of 9/11, and she had to face the harsh reality of the possibility of school shootings that were caused by cyberbullying. There are many different genres of music to this generation, such as Rap, Hip-Hop, and Rock. Some of the uncommon genres that made it big with this generation are Steampunk and Japanese anime. She was never much into what was considered the most popular of her generation, because she was one of the people that fall into the sub groups of the generation. She was into Steampunk and Japanese anime songs, but she remembers some of the popular songs from the time frame, such as Time to Pretend by MGMT, Low by Flo Rida, Numb by Linkin Park, Love Story by Taylor Swift, and Amnesia by 5 Seconds of Summer.
She was more into Brass Goggles by Steam Powered Giraffe, Steampunk Revolution by Abney Park, and Tonight, Tonight, Tonight by beat Crusaders. Her generation was often referred to as the freaky dancing generation, because a lot of the later dancing was very sexual in orientation. Some of the more normal dancing styles are Gangnam Style, Country Line, and Moshing, but the most common dance style is Grinding, which is where the sexual aspects come into the generation. Her generation used the music and dancing as means to express who they are, who they are going to be, and who they want to be with.
In conclusion, while dance may be something that every generation experiences, it can be very different for each person, depending on when they were growing up, such as for Paula, Lisa, and Elizabeth, who all grew up in different time frames and had very different dancing styles that reflected their time frames. Paulo Coelho once summed up dance in the best possible way, “If theater is ritual, then dance it too… It’s as if the threads connecting us to the rest of the world were washed clean of preconceptions and fears. When you dance, you can enjoy the luxury of being you.”
- “Martha Graham Quotes.” BrainyQuote.com. Xplore Inc, 2018. 9 March 2018. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/martha_graham_379056
- Coelho, Paulo. “A Quote from The Witch of Portobello.” Goodreads — Share Book Recommendations with Your Friends, Join Book Clubs, Answer Trivia, Accessed 9 Mar. 2018.
www.goodreads.com/quotes/144411-if-theater-is-ritual-then-dance-is-too-it-s-as
