Multicultural Dances Physical Education

African Dance African dance has traditionally played an essential role in the culture of the tribes. Much more than entertainment, dances communicate emotions, celebrate rites of passage, and help strengthen the bonds between members of the tribe as a whole.

African Dance In African dance, the drum is one way to set the mood and brings everyone together as a community. However, many other instruments are used as well, such as gourds strung with beads. Clapping, stamping feet, and most of all singing also create rhythmic music for African dance. As dancers move in an expression of their inner feelings, their movements are generally in rhythm to the music. It is the sound of the music and the rhythms that are played that provide the heartbeat of the dance. The music and dance are considered inseparable, two parts of the same activity. Groups such as the Alokli West African Dance Ensemble, who perform historical, social, and ritualistic dance forms from all along the Ivory Coast, illustrate the wide variety of dance forms .

African Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmwFoN1U-sA

Indian Traditional Dance Classical dance in India has developed a type of dance-drama that is a form of a total theater. The dancer acts out a story almost exclusively through gestures. Most of the classical dances enact stories from Hindu mythology. Each form represents the culture and ethos of a particular region or a group of people. The criteria for being considered as classical is the style's adherence to the guidelines laid down in Natyashastra, which explains the Indian art of acting. The Sangeet Natak Akademi currently confers classical status on eight Indian classical dance styles: Bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu), Kathak (North India), Kathakali (Kerala), Kuchipudi (Andhra Pradesh), Manipuri (Manipur), Mohiniyattam (Kerala), Odissi (Orissa), and Sattriya (Assam). The tradition of dance has been codified in the Natyashastra and a performance is considered accomplished if it manages to evoke a rasa by invoking a particular bhava (emotion). Classical dance is distinguished from folk dance because it has been regulated by the rules of the Natyashastra and all classical dances are performed only in accordance with them.

Indian Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgiLOzFQh14&feature=related

Chinese Dance The Ribbon Dance The Chinese ribbon dance started during China's Han Dynasty, which stretched from 206 B.C.E. to 420 C.E. It is most commonly associated with the later Tang Dynasty, which lasted from 589 until 907. Traditionally, the ribbon dance was performed for royalty, and it was accompanied by music. Large and flowing movements of the ribbon were accompanied by slow music while sharp movements, in which the ribbon was flicked and snapped, were accompanied by faster music. One or two ribbons might be used in this dance, and the length of the ribbon can vary from 5 to 12 feet.

The Ribbon Dance

Chinese Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51sIqjHhDNs&feature=related

Pata Pata –Line Dance "Pata Pata" is a rhythmic, South African dance that can be performed either sitting or standing, though it is usually done while seated. Sung and written in the Xhosa language, "Pata Pata" is loosely translated to mean "touch, touch."

Song Miriam Makeba, a singer/songwriter from South Africa, wrote the song "Pata Pata" in 1957, when she was still living in Johannesburg. She recorded and released the song in the United States in 1967. History The dance steps for "Pata Pata" originated in Johannesburg. The lyrics of Makeba's song along with the dance movements flow together as a celebration of life. The catchy song beat and lyrics and the simple movements gathered a following through the 1970s and 1980s, with the "Pata Pata" becoming a popular dance in many nightclubs across the world. Makeba laughingly called "Pata Pata" the "only dance song I ever wrote."

Exercise The Pata Pata dance is a relatively low-impact aerobic exercise that can be used to improve general fitness. As a result of the dance's low-impact nature and the fact that it can be performed seated, the Pata Pata dance is a popular exercise among elderly people and people who are less mobile than normal. Types: There are MANY different forms of this dance. We will learn one form but remember there are still many other formations and steps to this dance 

Steps Formation: Individual, lines Part I TOUCH, STEP, TOUCH, TOGETHER TOES, HEELS, HEELS, TOES UP, TOUCH, UP, STEP KICK, TURN, TURN, TURN Steps to Pata Pata   1. Stand with both feet together.   2. At first drum beat, tap right foot out to the side, bring it back tap it out again, bring it back ( right foot out, in, out, in ).   3. Repeat with the leftt foot ( left foot out, in, out, in ).   4. Keeping heals in place, spread toes apart so you are duck- footed, then spread heels apart so you are pigeon toed. Bring the heels back together, then toes ( four counts: toes out, heels out, heels in, toes in).   5. In a bouncy movement lift the right knee up, lower and tap foot. Pick it right back up again, lower and shift weight ( four counts: knee lift up-down, knee lift up-down).   6. Kick twice with the left leg ( four counts)   7. Jump up turning one quarter turn in the air. Pause after landing, spreading hands apart. clap loudly one time.   8. Begin sequence again, facing a new direction.   9. Continue till end of music.