Live to Dance, Dance to Live...
A while after I started dancing, I heard about this guy named Frankie Manning. I got the impression he was older, but didn't know anything about him. So I looked him up on YouTube.
I find a video, and start watching it. I could do that move. That's some solid dancing. I could probably learn that move. OK, he's got style, and it will take me a while, but I might get there. What's the big deal? And then I read the info and it was at his 88th birthday party. I can't find the exact video, but here's one of him looking EVEN better at age 84: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru6Vto6t54U (And to my non-dance friends, no, I can't even come close to touching all the stuff he does in there today, after 3 or 4 years of fairly intensive classes and practice.)
And then I found the video for hellzapoppin'. He's the one in the mechanics outfit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTg5V2oA_hY
A little more research, and it turns out that, among other things, he invented the swing dance aerial move. He led a troupe of dancers in a number of moves and performed with all of the jazz greats. He saw active duty in WWII. And then when he couldn't make a living dancing, he worked for 32 years at the post office.
After retiring, he picked up a full time schedule teaching swing in the 1980's, 90's and to the present day. He won a Tony for the co-choregraphy of "Black and Blue." He's been teaching the majority of the weekends, even into his 90's.
So when the chance came for me to go to Seattle for Masters of Lindy Hop and Tap in 2007, I leapt at the chance. On the flight out, I read his recently published autobiography.
At the event, we got to listen to stories from the good, and bad, old days. We watched the masters perform, and spent some time taking classes from them. I had 2 from Frankie, a Big Apple, and a short lindy routine.
It was "A" Big Apple,. because the Big Apple was originally not a choreography or routine, but a called dance. The caller would name a move, and everyone would do it. When it was popular, there were over 200 different moves and variations that were called. So he taught us some moves, and called a big apple.
The lindy routine had some cool moves. One of them he called the "cha-cha", had the man behind the woman, and he lead her to the right, stopped her, looked down into her eyes, and then back to the left. (I stole that move to put in the Scottish Dance choreography my wife and I performed as our first dance..)
And Frankie was an amazing teacher. I've never seen anyone get dancers organized so quickly and efficiently, and his instructions were clear and I had a really good time in the class.
Sometime during the weekend, I stretched out on a bench he'd apparently been using to nap. He politely asked for his spot back. We chatted a bit and he was REALLY nice. I think some of the Masters had a bit of an attitude, but Frankie was just good people. Later, I had him autograph my copy of his autobiography, and got a quick snapshot of the two of us..
So when they announced his 95th birthday party over Memorial Day weekend, I signed up almost as soon as registration opened. They sold out over 1000 spots, to people from all over the world, in just a few weeks. People have been begging for tickets to any part of the weekend. Everyone loved him and everything he's done both originally, and for the swing scene for the last 20+ years.
Frankie Manning passed away this morning, at the age of 94.
I find a video, and start watching it. I could do that move. That's some solid dancing. I could probably learn that move. OK, he's got style, and it will take me a while, but I might get there. What's the big deal? And then I read the info and it was at his 88th birthday party. I can't find the exact video, but here's one of him looking EVEN better at age 84: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru6Vto6t54U (And to my non-dance friends, no, I can't even come close to touching all the stuff he does in there today, after 3 or 4 years of fairly intensive classes and practice.)
And then I found the video for hellzapoppin'. He's the one in the mechanics outfit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTg5V2oA_hY
A little more research, and it turns out that, among other things, he invented the swing dance aerial move. He led a troupe of dancers in a number of moves and performed with all of the jazz greats. He saw active duty in WWII. And then when he couldn't make a living dancing, he worked for 32 years at the post office.
After retiring, he picked up a full time schedule teaching swing in the 1980's, 90's and to the present day. He won a Tony for the co-choregraphy of "Black and Blue." He's been teaching the majority of the weekends, even into his 90's.
So when the chance came for me to go to Seattle for Masters of Lindy Hop and Tap in 2007, I leapt at the chance. On the flight out, I read his recently published autobiography.
At the event, we got to listen to stories from the good, and bad, old days. We watched the masters perform, and spent some time taking classes from them. I had 2 from Frankie, a Big Apple, and a short lindy routine.
It was "A" Big Apple,. because the Big Apple was originally not a choreography or routine, but a called dance. The caller would name a move, and everyone would do it. When it was popular, there were over 200 different moves and variations that were called. So he taught us some moves, and called a big apple.
The lindy routine had some cool moves. One of them he called the "cha-cha", had the man behind the woman, and he lead her to the right, stopped her, looked down into her eyes, and then back to the left. (I stole that move to put in the Scottish Dance choreography my wife and I performed as our first dance..)
And Frankie was an amazing teacher. I've never seen anyone get dancers organized so quickly and efficiently, and his instructions were clear and I had a really good time in the class.
Sometime during the weekend, I stretched out on a bench he'd apparently been using to nap. He politely asked for his spot back. We chatted a bit and he was REALLY nice. I think some of the Masters had a bit of an attitude, but Frankie was just good people. Later, I had him autograph my copy of his autobiography, and got a quick snapshot of the two of us..
So when they announced his 95th birthday party over Memorial Day weekend, I signed up almost as soon as registration opened. They sold out over 1000 spots, to people from all over the world, in just a few weeks. People have been begging for tickets to any part of the weekend. Everyone loved him and everything he's done both originally, and for the swing scene for the last 20+ years.
Frankie Manning passed away this morning, at the age of 94.