What can someone walking down the high street expect to encounter if they pass by Passey Place?
Lots of people joining in with some fun and infectious dancing to great jazz and funk music that you can’t resist tapping away to.
Tell us a little more about lindy hop….where does it come from?
Lindy Hop is the original Swing partner dance, predecessor of all Jive and Jitterbug. Comes from the US and reached its high point back in the 1930’s golden era of Jazz in venues such the Savoy Ballroom and Lenox Lounge in New York’s cultural melting pot, Harlem. Past masters include Frankie Manning, Norma Miller and Al Minns, members of Whiteys Lindy Hoppers, who were an amazing group who feature in the movie Hellzappopin, performing arguably the most iconic of Lindy Hop sequences!
What does lindy hop feel like to do? Is it hard t master?!
It feels like being free and on top of the world, and in Frankie Mannings words, you can’t help but smile when you do it. It can be done on many different levels so it’s really accessible and rewarding to learn but also plenty of scope to develop and master some very skilful steps.
Do you have any more performances and projects coming up?
Grounded Movement have just finished a youth performance commission for the Crystal Palace Festival and will be at First Light Festival in Lowestoft 22 June and The Great Get Together at the Olympic Park 23 June and their sister company Grounded UK and adult community Dance Company Lindy Kicks will take part in Protein’s (In)Visible Dancing on 4 August in Gordon Square, Woolwich.
Tell us a bit more about you and what you do?
Grounded Movement produce work inspired by social and street derived dances, drawing on a rich blend forms from Lindy Hop and Tap to Funk, Soul and Hip Hop. Through both professional and community productions and events, they bring together a wide range of people, artists and cultures. With their sister company Grounded UK, they also invest in young people’s training in Breakin’ and other forms, giving access to top competitions and professional performance opportunities such as Youth Olympics, B-Supreme, UK B.Boy Champs and the Southbank Centre’s Urban Mix. Testament to directors Temujin Gill and Sunanda Biswas’ commitment to producing high quality work, came with the amazing honour they received when asked to join Danny Boyle’s award-winning Creative Team, to choreograph the NHS section of the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony.
What better people could you get? Danny Boyle on Temujin and Sunanda, for BBC1 ‘One Night in 2012’
Facebook @TemujinGrounded
Twitter @Groundedmoves
Instagram @groundedmoves
groundedmovement.com
