Difference between revisions 137981997 and 137981998 on dewiki

'''Street dance''' is an umbrella term used to describe [[dance]] styles that evolved outside of [[dance studio]]s, and were originally danced mostlyt more everyday spaces such ats [[nightclubstreet]]s, [[school]] yards or outside in the [[streetand [[nightclub]]s. They're often [[improvisational]]al and [[social dance|social]] in nature, encouraging interaction and contact with the spectators and the other dancers.

Today, ''street dance'' is commonly used specifically for the many [[hip hop dance]]s and [[funk dance]] styles that began appearing in the [[United States]] in the [[1970]]s, and are still alive and evolving within the [[hip hop culture]] of today. Most of these styles are considered [[African American vernacular dance]]s as they first appeared within [[African American]] communities.

==History==
Many street dance styles were formed as an answer to needs among youths of various [[urban area]]s, such as the lack of affordable dance studios. They also offered a solution to [[gang violence]], by giving these people an alternative [[lifestyle]], opening up new ways to form social bonds and expressing their feelings through [[nonviolence|nonviolent]] and [[creativity|creative]] methods.

==Characteristics==
In opposite to many other dance forms, most street dances encourage individuality and originality, and that dancers interpret the existing moves freely and even invent new ones to create a personal style of their own. [[Improvisation]] is the heart of most street dances, though [[choreography]] is also seen, mostly mixed with improvisation or used for prepared shows.

Generally, a street dance is based on a unique style or feel that are expressed through the dance, usually tied to a certain genre of [[music]]. As new moves evolve based on this feel, the dance is under constant development, and if the feel starts to change it might give birth to a completely new dance form.

===Battles===
Mostany street dances involve ''battles'' of some sort (known as [[Jjamming (dance)|jamming]] in other dance cultures), where individuals or groups of people, so (called ''crews'', in hip hop contexts) dance against each other, with the observing crowd or a group of [[judge]]s deciding the winner. Battles normally takes place in a ''circle'' of free space on the dance floor, with the dancers taking turns to enter and executing their moves. Normally, if the street dance style is not a [[partner dance]], only one dancer performs at a time, except when people from the same crew performs a choreographed routine. There are some exceptions to this, such as [[uprock]]ing, which uses a line formation with the dancers facing each other on fixed positions on a straight line, dancing simultaneously.

(contracted; show full)yle that just recently became publicly known. It's also common to see some characteristics of street dance being mixed with other more traditional dance forms, creating styles such as [[street-jazz]], a hybrid of modern hip hop styles and [[jazz dance]]. Such styles are generally focused more on choreography and performance and less on improvisation and battles, and are not always considered pure street dances.

==See also==
* [[African American vernacular dance]]

{{Street dance}}

[[Category:Dance]]