{{Short description|Freestyle street and social dance}} '''House dance''' is a [[Dance improvisation|freestyle]] [[street dance]] and [[social dance]] that has roots in the underground [[house music]] scene of [[Chicago]] and [[New York City|New York]].<ref name=HistoryofHouse>[http://music.hyperreal.org/library/history_of_house.html Phil Cheeseman: "The History Of House"], DJ Magazine, 2003.</ref><ref>[http://www.dance.net/topic/7292552/1/House/What-is-house.html&replies=3 "What is house?"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319030104/http://www.dance.net/topic/7292552/1/House/What-is-house.html%26replies%3D3 |date=2012-03-19 }}, discussion board on www.dance.net, 2008.</ref> It is typically danced to loud and [[Bass (sound)|bass]]-heavy [[electronic dance music]] provided by [[disc jockey|DJs]] in [[nightclubs]] or at [[rave]]s.
==Elements and characteristics==
The main elements of House dance include "[[Jacking (dance)|jacking]]", "[[footwork (genre)|footwork]]", and "lofting".<ref>[https://5mag.net/features/house-dance-and-dancing/ Czarina Mirani: Spin Slide and Jack: A History of House Dancing] on [[5 Magazine]], 2005.</ref> The element of "jacking", or the "jack", – an ecstatic, sex-driven rippling movement of the torso – is the most famous dance move associated with early house music.<ref>[https://www.spin.com/2014/04/burning-down-the-house-chicago-club-80s/ Barry Walters: Burning Down the House], in SPIN magazine, November 1986.</ref><ref>Simon Reynolds: ''Generation Ecstasy: Into the World of Techno and Rave Culture''. Routledge, 1999. pp. 28-29.</ref> It has found its way onto numerous record titles like the ''Jack Trax'' EP by [[Chip E.]] (1985), "Jack'n the House" (1985) by [[Farley "Jackmaster" Funk]] (1985), "[[Jack Your Body]]" by [[Steve "Silk" Hurley]] (1986), or "Jack to the Sound of the Underground" by [[Fast Eddie (producer)|Fast Eddie]] (1988).
Jacking style involves the whole body in energetic, often ecstatic movements, going beyond traditional dance movements. Reynolds<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reynolds |first1=Simon |title=Energy Flash |date=2012 |publisher=Berkeley, Calif. : Soft Skull Press |page=21}}</ref> links 'jacking' to both the 'jerk' movement and a collective, intense dance style, resembling a robot in a charged dance. In house music's more sexually charged tracks, 'jacking' often happens during climactic energy peaks, where the beat becomes a continuous, sexually charged motif, driving the audience to heightened excitement.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hawkins |first1=Stan |title=Feel the beat come down: house music as rhetoric. In Analyzing Popular Music |date=2003 |publisher=United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press |page=98}}</ref> This results in a collective, almost impersonal experience, where dancers become part of a unified group, often showcasing extravagant identity transformations. House dance movements carry spiritual and political meanings, creating a sense of unity and connection through the genre's energy.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Sommer|first1=Sally R|date=22 July 2014|orig-date=Print Winter 2001|title=C'mon to my house: Underground-House Dancing|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/Services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/A243FA2CF22949B6B44F1AB6BDDA49CB/S0149767700006446a.pdf/cmon_to_my_house_undergroundhouse_dancing.pdf|journal=Dance Research Journal|language=en-UK|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|volume=33|issue=2|pages=72–86|doi=10.2307/1477805|doi-access=free|issn=0149-7677|jstor=1477805|lccn=76012179|oclc=66613879|s2cid=191461352|access-date=5 October 2024|quote= }}</ref> House dance is often improvised and emphasizes fast and complex foot-oriented steps combined with fluid movements in the torso, as well as [[floor work]]. There is an emphasis on the subtle rhythms and [[riff]]s of the music, and the footwork follows them closely.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}
==Notable dancers==
In the early progressions of the dance, there were hundreds of phenomenal dancers that were key in its progression in this social dance scene. However, out of the many there were few instrumental in the introduction of house dance culture across the globe. Some of these dancers are Ejoe Wilson, Brian "Footwork" Green, Tony McGregor, Marjory Smarth, Caleaf Sellers, "Brooklyn" Terry Wright, Kim D. Holmes, Shannon Mabra, Tony "Sekou" Williams, Shannon Selby (aka Shan S), Voodoo Ray, and others.
In Los Angeles, as seen in the local television series, "Pump It Up" hosted by Dee Barnes, the "underground" house dance episode, co-hosted by Stefan of L.A. Posse, recognizes some of the following to be instrumental to the house dance culture in LA: The Scheme Team, Club House, L.A. Posse, Just As Hard, The Groovers, and the Soul Brothers.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=4DwXvam84O4YKtHh&v=lNKamVB3VJA&feature=youtu.be |title=The Soul Brothers |date=2010-01-09 |last=mysterious murasame |access-date=2024-10-06 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
==Competitions and festivals==
*[http://www.HouseDanceNYC.com House Dance International]: International competition and festival focusing on House Dance (USA) *[http://juste-debout.com/ Juste Debout]: Urban dance competition and festival, including House Dance as one major part of the event (France) *[http://www.sdkeurope.com/ SDK Europe]: Competition focusing on Hip Hop New Style, House Dance, Popping and Locking (Czech Republic) *[http://www.lifestyledance.com/ House Dance Europe] (Italy) *[http://wdc.feelin-co.jp/wdc2011/wdc2011.html/ WDC (World Dance Colosseum)]{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} (Japan) *[http://www.housedanceforever.com/ HOUSEDANCEFOREVER]: International House Dance battle (Netherlands) *[http://www.theybarelyunderstandhello.com/house-dance-conference House Dance Conference] (USA)
==External links== * {{cite journal |last1=Sommer |first1=Sally R. |title='C'mon to My House': Underground-House Dancing |journal=Dance Research Journal |date=2001 |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=72–86 |doi=10.2307/1477805|jstor=1477805 |s2cid=191461352 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/Services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/A243FA2CF22949B6B44F1AB6BDDA49CB/S0149767700006446a.pdf/cmon_to_my_house_undergroundhouse_dancing.pdf}} *[https://5mag.net/features/house-dance-and-dancing/ Czarina Mirani: Spin Slide and Jack: A History of House Dancing] on [[5 Magazine]], 2005. * [http://www.villagevoice.com/2007-06-26/music/powder-burns/ Makkada B. Selah: Powder Burns – Essay on house dance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524114146/http://www.villagevoice.com/2007-06-26/music/powder-burns/ |date=2011-05-24 }} in [[Village Voice]], 2007. * [https://www.spin.com/2014/04/burning-down-the-house-chicago-club-80s/ Barry Walters: Burning Down the House], in SPIN magazine, November 1986. * [http://music.hyperreal.org/library/history_of_house.html Phil Cheeseman: "The History Of House"], on DJ Magazine, December 2003.
==References== <!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags-->
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{{Street dance}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:House Dance}} [[Category:African-American dance]] [[Category:Syllabus-free dance]] [[Category:Culture of Chicago]] [[Category:Culture of New York City]]