About this project

About Project Dance House

          We have all at one point in our lives sat in a history class and wondered why in the world we had to remember all random dates and locations of things that happened decades ago.  But have you ever stopped to consider what would happen if those events had been lost; if no one remembered what happened?  What if history were up to the interpretation of whoever was telling the story?  We would have no sense of where we came from, or why things were important.

          We know, dancing is not the Presidential election, or a NASA mission, but for those of us who are a part of it, it has a value all its own.  We want to make sure that the things we love are not lost to time and misinterpretation; and this is where Project Dance House comes in.

          Project Dance House will document in film form, the lives, communities and styles of blues dancers across the nation.  The film will focus on six national instructors, traveling to multiple dance events around the US.  These instructors have been chosen based on the length of time they have been involved in the dance community, as well as their own contributions and skills.  This documentary will capture their interactions with each other, the dance communities they encounter, and the cultures of each dance scene that they visit; and of course, we will also be filming their dancing. 

          It is our goal that by capturing the culture and the style of blues on film, we can preserve the feel and the history of the style we have all come to love, while simultaneously providing information and entertainment.  Eventually we hope to show you multiple styles, but we are starting this project with a style known as Blues Dancing.

All donations are tax deductible, thanks to the Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa. 

What is Blues Dancing?

          Blues dancing is a social dance form, based on a lead and follow connection.  To adequately describe its history is complicated, as it has two timelines.  The historical, or vintages styles came out of the dance styles of the early 20th century.  The more recent modern emergence came out of the swing dance styles of the late 90's. The idea was to take the existing dance styles, and adjust them so that they could be used in small spaces, and crowded dance floors.   However, what emerged was an all together new style that we have come to know as Blues dancing.  Both the vintage and modern styles have evolved in their own ways over the years, but no matter what style is being danced, the concept is the same.

          Blues is so much more than just a pattern of movement or a style of music; at the end of the day, what brings it all together are the people.   Our dance is based on connection; connections between the lead and the follow, the music, and the passion of the dance.  That connection carries into the dancers relationships with each other off of the dance floor.  Blues is a community, a family even.  Ask a blues dancers who their closest friends are, and they will almost always list people from multiple states and locations. 

          Blues, for many dancers is a place of escape, where it is safe to be yourself.  It is a means of self-expression and self-discovery.  For the three to four minutes that a dance lasts, the dancers can lose themselves in the emotion of a dance.  We are youthful, we are impulsive, we are wild, and we are free-spirited.  We are Blues Dancers.