Do's and Dont's of Dancing - 1950's Style

During a foray through the trove of YouTube I came across a lovely little advice video for dancing - in the 1950s. Some of the advice is really good and some is, well, just kind of strange!

Chuy Reyes - Oink, Oink!

As barbecue season gets nearer I always think of this Chuy Reyes classic.

La Opinion said that Chuy Reyes was “prolific and passionate, he has a command of arranging Afro-Cuban music in the modern jazz style”. Hailing from the Huastec region of Mexico, Reyes was brought to Mexico City in 1925 where he was enrolled at the Conservatorio de Mexico and subsequently received a five year musical study scholarship that took him to Germany. In 1933 Reyes made his American debut, appearing at the Chicago World’s Fair. In 1940 he began work in the Hollywood Theatre, later appearing at the Mocambo Club and El Copacabana in Chicago.

Here’s Reyes with the Rumba Boogie, look at those moves!

 

 

Dancing in the Streets

Dancing on concrete floors isn’t much fun because it’s so hard. But if the space is meant for dancing, at least it’s slick. A street isn’t designed for dancing…it’s definitely not slick, and you can add uneven, sticky, and covered with stuff you’d rather not step in, like say, gum. You have to dance differently. You can’t spin, so you have to substitute little steps. It works, although that takes up a lot more energy.

Despite the less than perfect surface, Gary and I decided to attend Lebanon’s Back to the Fifties street dance anyway. We had a blast! The weather was cool and not a cloud in the sky. Good food, good music, friendly people. There were some really fine dancers there. We saw a fabulous example of The Stroll and the Hokey Pokey. People were enjoying themselves and there were bunches of kids hopping up and down. I love to watch kids dance. They are completely uninhibited.

There’s something very authentic about a street dance…block off the main square, grill up some burgers, all while the band warms up. As the moon appears over old buildings, music wafts out over the crowd and dancers take to the street. The town really isn’t that much different than the 1950s, and for awhile it felt like we’d gone back in time.

I’d never want to live in the 50’s for a number of reasons, but a fifties dance seems to crystallize and preserve the best parts of that era. And a street dance is the very essence of dancing in the wild, my favorite kind of venue.

Well they've got a new dance and it goes like this
Bop shoo-op, a bop bop shoo-op
Yeah the name of the dance is Peppermint Twist
Bop shoo-op, a bop bop shoo-op
Well you like it like this, the Peppermint Twist