By Kirstien Billings
LifeAtStart.com Reporter
Some kids join karate, others join football, but I chose at nine years old to dance. I began with ballet and jazz. Then as the years went on I joined hip-hop, pointe, and tap. My favorite style of dance would be ballet because of how delicate the choreography can be when incorporated into the music.
Dancing has been around for centuries. It was first dated back to circa 3300 BC. It is a type of art, a way for someone to express themselves in movement. Dance has choreography that can be symbolic in many cultures, or it can be an aesthetic in performing art. Dancing can be categorized by the choreography, song choice, the dances origin, and the historical period. The main styles of dancing are tap, jazz, ballet, pointe, and hip hop.
The types of footwear are tap shoes, which have two pieces of metal on them at the toe and heel which sounds like they are “tapping.” Ballet slippers are flexible so you can point or flex your foot during turns and leaps. Jazz shoes are like ballet slippers, they also aid in turning, but they have a heel that are shock absorbent when landing a leap so that the weight does not land on your ankle or toe.
Pointe shoes are tight-fit slippers that have a wood block toward the tip of the foot for support when on your tip-toes. Hip Hop shoes are mainly sneakers or combat boots that absorb the weight of your body when performing stunts.
I am currently dancing for Mini Motions Dance Center. They had yearly recitals at Maumee High School, and this year we will be performing at the Stranahan Theater. Our main recital is on Saturday, June 8, 2019. I’ll see you there!