Trevor Copp and Jeff Fox: Ballroom dance that breaks gender roles
Trevor Copp, Jeff Fox: Der Gesellschaftstanz bricht mit den Geschlechterrollen
Trevor Copp is known for innovative social justice theater that blends physicality, image and narrative. Full bioJeff Fox - Dancer
Jeff Fox is a professional dancer, competitor, choreographer who has won professional titles in American Smooth, Rhythm, Theatre Arts and Showdance. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
first hit the airwaves,
erstmals ins Fernsehen kam,
ballroom dance instructors
Tanzlehrer für Gesellschaftstanz,
Revival übertragen wurde
erzählten sie uns
eines guten Federschritts.
geeking out that we had always done
so wie wir, wenn es darum geht,
than the competitive rumba
als die wetteifernde Rumba
anders bewegt als beim Walzer.
the public consciousness,
sich die Leute jetzt Gedanken,
zu dieser Aufgeregtheit --
somehow, we were cool --
auf einmal plötzlich cool waren --
would get together for training seminars
uns zu Schulungsseminaren treffen
umher, wechseln uns ab,
to lead all the time.
for switching lead and follow
zum Wechsel von Führen und Folgen,
as part of a performance
als Teil einer Darbietung
on the shoulder.
and director of a playwright center,
und Leiterin eines Theaterzentrums
zur Seite und sagte:
how political that was?"
wie politisch das gerade war?"
collaboration to create a play
um ein Stück zu schaffen.
our system for switching
Wechselsystem weiter
of being locked into a single role,
in einer einzigen Rolle festzustecken,
lateinamerikanischer Tanz
isn't just a system of dancing;
einfach nur eine Art zu tanzen,
consistent, though:
it's all the same --
beim Wettkampf, immer dasselbe --
und der Frau eingeübt.
you don't throw it out,
that this is the past.
es ist Vergangenheit.
respect it, revive it -- great!
Wiederbelebung -- großartig!
heutige Denkweise wider.
der Kern des Partnertanzens?
of partner dancing
des Partnertanzens ist,
the other one follows.
und die andere folgt.
regardless of who's playing which role.
egal, wer welche Rolle übernimmt.
give a crap about your gender.
sich nicht um Ihr Geschlecht.
Form aktualisieren,
more representative
gucken Sie nicht nur, was da ist,
don't just watch what's there.
only a man or a woman.
nur einem Mann oder nur einer Frau.
couples just disappear.
Paare verschwinden einfach.
ballroom competitions,
Turniertanzwettbewerben
recognized on the floor,
auf dem Parkett selten anerkannt,
"professional Latin dancer,"
"Latein-Turniertänzer" ein
nach einem richtigen Latino.
of white, straight Russian couples
heterosexuelle russische Paare finden,
there are no Asians,
just disappeared.
gibt es im Grunde nicht.
couple-only paradigm --
"Weiß-Hetero-Paar-Nur"-Paradigmas
would never stand for this.
straight or anything --
heterosexuell oder irgendwas --
or functional looks like that,
als gesund oder funktional erachten,
bringen wir sie zur besten Sendezeit,
you slap some makeup on it,
as movement, not as text,
in Bewegung, nicht als Text,
eigenen Abwesenheit.
from partner dancing.
beim Partnertanzen verschwunden.
two men dancing together.
zusammen tanzen.
ballroom circuit can attest
Gesellschaftstanz verfolgt,
can be dynamic and strong and exciting,
zwar dynamisch und aufregend sein kann,
closed ballroom hold ...
geschlossene Standardhaltung ein,
must be larger and masculine
größer und maskulin sein muss
from a totally different angle.
ganz anderen Perspektive betrachten.
the idea of lead and follow
von Führen und Folgen beibehalten,
was connected to gender?
Geschlechterrollen dabei über Bord werfen?
could lead and follow each other
führen und folgen lassen,
so wie im realen Leben?
just like we do in life?
Dancing" [Flüssige Führung].
einem lateinamerikanischen Tanz,
called the cross-body lead.
"Cross-Body Lead" genannt.
to break up the improvisation.
die Improvisation beendet.
if you're not used to looking for it,
wenn man nicht daran gewöhnt ist.
to this transitional step,
bei diesem traditionellen Schritt an,
getauscht werden kann.
to take over the lead,
könnte das Führen übernehmen,
to surrender it,
a counter-cross-body lead.
"Counter-Cross-Body Lead".
when we danced it in the opening dance.
am Anfang des Vortrags.
the dance moves from being a dictation
wird der Tanz von einem Diktat
you can change your mind.
man kann seine Meinung ändern.
of how this applies,
anything can happen.
kann alles geschehen.
could apply to a classic waltz.
beim klassischen Walzer.
um den Wechsel der Führung,
the dance itself more efficient.
viel effizienter machen kann.
traveling backwards,
where they're going.
das kommt auf Sie zu.
of accidents out there
viele Unfälle auf der Tanzfläche,
of this blind spot.
were to just allow for
nur einen Moment lang
verhindert werden.
but allowed this switch to happen,
den ganzen Tanz lang führt,
offering new aesthetics into the waltz.
beim Walzer geboten wird.
about your gender.
um dein Geschlecht schert.
in clubs, convention centers
in Clubs, Kongresszentren
the play we created with Lisa,
das Stück, das mit Lisa entstand,
of seeing two men dancing together,
alltäglichen Anblick zweier Männer,
und findet starken Anklang.
Lisa see our initial demonstration
was Lisa in unserer ersten Vorführung
im Führen und Folgen ab,
switching lead and follow;
in our presence, our personality
unserer Persönlichkeit
of which role we were playing.
egal, welche Rolle wir einnahmen.
die Rollen zu tauschen,
by whichever role you're playing,
über welche Rolle man definiert wird;
true to yourself.
to look like, or a follow.
aussehen soll, oder das Folgen --
off the dance floor as well,
the perfect opportunity
die ideale Gelegenheit,
reinvigorate an old relic,
ein altes Relikt wiederzubeleben,
of our era and our current way of being.
und an unsere Lebensweise anzupassen.
all the time with women and men
immer mit Frauen und Männern,
that this is a historic form
dass dies eine Historie hat,
and produce invisibility
über ein weites Spektrum von Identitäten
that we enjoy today.
all the ideas that don't belong to us
zu brechen, die nicht zu uns gehören,
to what it really always was:
dahin zurück, was es einmal war:
aufeinander zu achten.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Trevor Copp - Artistic directorTrevor Copp is known for innovative social justice theater that blends physicality, image and narrative.
Why you should listen
Trevor Copp was a full-time ballroom dance instructor and regional Fred Astaire's Canada American Style Latin/Ballroom Champion. He retired from teaching to pursue his love of theater and now runs Tottering Biped Theatre, a professional theater company emphasizing social justice and highly physical work in Burlington, Ontario, Canada. Copp has performed in over 30 international cities and theater festivals. The salsa scene keeps him dancing, however. Locally, he coaches the World Salsa Champions, and internationally he's an avid salsa tourist, having danced it in 13 countries so far.
Copp and Jeff Fox met as colleagues during their shared tenure with Fred Astaire's Canada and remained friends after Copp retired from teaching. They would dance at social occasions where they developed their "playing fair" method of sharing the lead, which caught the eye of local dramaturge, Lisa O’Connell. Thus began the theatrical collaboration which led to the creation of a full-length Ballroom Dance/Theatre production, "First Dance," about the development of the first dance for a same sex wedding. Through building the show they formalized their "Liquid Lead" concept and continue to tour the piece at regional professional theaters, festivals and even as part of an international dance festival in Tirana, Albania. In 2015 Alida Esmail, a former student of Copp's, championed the TEDx Montreal proposal and graciously volunteered to help the Fox and Copp demonstrate their work on the TEDx stage.
Trevor Copp | Speaker | TED.com
Jeff Fox - Dancer
Jeff Fox is a professional dancer, competitor, choreographer who has won professional titles in American Smooth, Rhythm, Theatre Arts and Showdance.
Why you should listen
After graduating with an honors degree in psychology, Jeff Fox entered the world of dance in the fall of 2000 almost by accident, investigating an ad out of curiosity, and he hasn't looked back. Working as a full-time instructor, choreographer and competitor, Fox has taught hundreds of students and won professional titles in American Smooth, Rhythm, Theatre Arts and Showdance. In addition to his ballroom work, Fox is a double black belt martial artist and creates lyrical contemporary work focusing on the universal experiences we all share, which has been featured in festivals across southern Ontario, Canada.
Fox and Trevor Copp met as colleagues during their shared tenure with Fred Astaire's Canada and remained friends after Copp retired from teaching. They would dance at social occasions where they developed their "playing fair" method of sharing the lead, which caught the eye of local dramaturge, Lisa O’Connell. Thus began the theatrical collaboration which led to the creation of a full-length Ballroom Dance/Theatre production, "First Dance," about the development of the first dance for a same sex wedding. Through building the show they formalized their "Liquid Lead" concept and continue to tour the piece at regional professional theaters, festivals and even as part of an international dance festival in Tirana, Albania. In 2015 Alida Esmail, a former student of Copp's, championed the TEDx Montreal proposal and graciously volunteered to help the Fox and Copp demonstrate their work on the TEDx stage.
Jeff Fox | Speaker | TED.com