I don't usually write about foxtrot in November, but I don't usually teach foxtrot in Ukraine in the middle of a war, either, and last month, the dancers of Kyiv's Vintage Dance Community wanted something for foxtrot that I hadn't previously described here on Kickery. Here is the description for their future reference and that of others interested in the variations for the foxtrot of the 1910s.
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At least two versions of a zig-zag sequence appeared in short booklets published in 1914 and 1915:
- The Zig-Zag Step and "Trot": Joan Sawyer's How to Dance the Fox Trot (Columbia Graphaphone Company, New York,1914)
- The Zig-Zag Run: Description of Modern Dances as Standardized by the New York Society Teachers of Dancing and approved by the Congress of Dancing Societies of America at meeting held December 27th, 1914, in New York City, N. Y. (American National Association Masters of Dancing, Pittsburgh, 1915)
Sawyer characterized the figure as a "hard one" but also "loads of fun". Her description:
- the gentleman steps left foot to the side, crosses right foot behind, and steps left to the side again (the "zig")
- next, he steps right to the side, crosses left foot behind, and steps right to the side again (the "zag")
- the lady dances on the opposite foot and crosses in front rather than behind
- this is a forward- traveling step for the gentleman, backward for the lady, so the zig-zag must be done at an slight angle so that the dancers continue moving along line of dance
- Sawyer did not give details for the "Trot" part of the name, but judging from her other variations, the zig-zag should be followed by eight trotting steps along the line of dance
- No timing was given, but since Sawyer stated that it was done "quicker than lightning", I think the most likely timing of the zig-zag section is "quick-quick-slow, quick-quick-slow", followed by eight quick trotting steps. That would be a four-bar sequence.
The illustration shown above at left (click to enlarge) is the crossing step in the "zag" half of the dance, the lady's right foot crossing in front of her left and the gentleman's left behind his right. Sawyer commented that the picture would not help much.
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The dancing masters' group appears to have cribbed their all their foxtrot from Sawyer's booklet, since their four variations are remarkably similar in general theme. But the timing and pattern of their Zig-Zag Run were altered from Sawyer's, and (in my opinion) not for the better. Their pattern:
- twelve quick counts of zig-zag, the gentleman going to the left (zig), right (zag), left (zig), and right (zag) and the lady dancing opposite with the same crosses as Sawyer described
- two slow walking steps, giving a total of four measures
- repeat all of the above for a total of eight measures
I really don't care for twelve quick steps in a row, no matter what one is doing with them, and I find the transition between zigs and zags awkward even with very small steps, almost dancing in place. It's worse if one is trying to actual travel during them. I'm also not a huge fan of the way the zig-zags cross the musical measure. Compare:
Sawyer: 1&2 3&4 5&6&7&8
Masters: 1&2 &3& 4&5 &6& 7 8 (and then repeat)
The two descriptions are incompatible, so one must simply choose which to learn, or perhaps learn both. Personally, I teach the Sawyer version, which I think is both the original and more pleasant to dance.
This post is dedicated to my amazing Kyiv students, who are continuing their
dance classes and events under extraordinarily difficult conditions.
I'll be back, I promise, and we'll dance together again!
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