Trevor Copp and Jeff Fox: Ballroom dance that breaks gender roles
Trevor Copp, Jeff Fox: El baile de salón que desarticula los roles de género
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,
"Bailando con las estrellas",
baile de salón a tiempo completo
ballroom dance instructors
del baile de salón en la TV,
que trota -trot-
geeking out that we had always done
hecho los nerds del baile de salón,
than the competitive rumba
de la rumba competitiva,
se mueve diferente al vals,
the public consciousness,
somehow, we were cool --
de alguna manera, éramos cool,
juntábamos para seminarios de formación
would get together for training seminars
que guiar todo el tiempo.
to lead all the time.
for switching lead and follow
para cambiar de guía y acompañante
as part of a performance
como parte de una actuación
on the shoulder.
and director of a playwright center,
de un centro de dramaturgia,
del espectáculo y dijo:
how political that was?"
collaboration to create a play
de ocho años de crear una obra
our system for switching
sistema de conmutación
of being locked into a single role,
de estar encerrado en un único rol,
isn't just a system of dancing;
no es solo un sistema de baile;
consistent, though:
se mantuvo consistente:
it's all the same --
es todo lo mismo...
you don't throw it out,
that this is the past.
respect it, revive it -- great!
lo revivimos, ¡genial!
de la pareja de baile
of partner dancing
the other one follows.
y la otra acompaña.
regardless of who's playing which role.
quién juega qué papel.
give a crap about your gender.
no le importa el género.
la forma existente,
more representative
más representativa
don't just watch what's there.
no vemos solo lo que hay allí.
only a man or a woman.
un hombre o una mujer.
couples just disappear.
inconformistas de género, desaparecen.
de baile de salón internacionales,
ballroom competitions,
recognized on the floor,
parejas del mismo sexo
"professional Latin dancer,"
"profesional del baile latino"
of white, straight Russian couples
rusas blancas, heterosexuales,
there are no Asians,
just disappeared.
la gente que no es blanca.
couple-only paradigm --
pareja solo-blanca-heterosexual
would never stand for this.
nunca permitiríamos esto.
straight or anything --
heterosexual o cualquiera --
or functional looks like that,
o funcional tendría ese aspecto
you slap some makeup on it,
lo maquillamos un poco,
as movement, not as text,
como movimiento, no como texto
from partner dancing.
desaparecido del baile en pareja.
two men dancing together.
dos hombres bailando juntos.
de baile de salón del mismo sexo dan fe,
ballroom circuit can attest
can be dynamic and strong and exciting,
puede ser dinámico, fuerte y emocionante,
closed ballroom hold ...
abrazo del baile de salón,
must be larger and masculine
debe ser más grande y masculino
from a totally different angle.
desde un ángulo totalmente diferente.
the idea of lead and follow
la idea de guiar y acompañar
was connected to gender?
de relacionarlo con el género?
could lead and follow each other
pudiera liderar y acompañar
como una conversación,
como hacemos en la vida?
just like we do in life?
called the cross-body lead.
clave, llamado "dile que no".
to break up the improvisation.
para romper la improvisación.
si uno no está acostumbrado a buscarlo,
if you're not used to looking for it,
to this transitional step,
líquida a este paso de transición,
se intercambian.
to take over the lead,
puede elegir guiar,
to surrender it,
puede dejar de hacerlo,
a counter-cross-body lead.
un contra dile que no.
when we danced it in the opening dance.
en el baile de apertura.
the dance moves from being a dictation
pasa de ser un dictado
Cualquiera puede acompañar.
you can change your mind.
uno puede cambiar de opinión.
of how this applies,
de cómo se aplica esto,
las luces, todo puede suceder.
anything can happen.
could apply to a classic waltz.
la guía líquida a un vals clásico.
the dance itself more efficient.
al propio baile.
traveling backwards,
viajando hacia atrás,
where they're going.
hacia dónde va.
of accidents out there
muchos accidentes
of this blind spot.
were to just allow for
permitieran cambiar
but allowed this switch to happen,
pero permitiera este cambio,
offering new aesthetics into the waltz.
una nueva estética al vals.
about your gender.
no le importa el género.
en clubes, centros de convenciones
in clubs, convention centers
the play we created with Lisa,
la obra que creamos con Lisa,
del Norte y Europa.
of seeing two men dancing together,
dos hombres que bailan juntos,
ver nuestra demostración inicial
Lisa see our initial demonstration
switching lead and follow;
cambiando entre guiar y acompañar;
in our presence, our personality
en nuestra presencia y personalidad
of which role we were playing.
qué rol estábamos desempeñando.
by whichever role you're playing,
por el rol que se está jugando,
true to yourself.
siempre fiel a uno mismo.
to look like, or a follow.
quien guía o acompaña.
off the dance floor as well,
a la pista de baile también,
the perfect opportunity
la oportunidad perfecta
reinvigorate an old relic,
revitalizar una antigua reliquia,
of our era and our current way of being.
época y de nuestra manera de ser.
all the time with women and men
todo el tiempo con mujeres y hombres
that this is a historic form
de que esta es una forma histórica
and produce invisibility
y la invisibilidad
that we enjoy today.
que hoy disfrutamos.
all the ideas that don't belong to us
las ideas que no nos pertenecen
to what it really always was:
a lo que en realidad siempre fue:
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