4 ms·

Zadie Smith: dance lessons for writers

47 points by tintinnabula 10y ago

dominotw 10y ago
Didn't Beyonce give dance lessons to Gaddafi too? How do these people turn into feminist icons while at the same time cozying up to monsters with grotesque harems. What a strange world to live in.
- wojcech 10y ago
  Don't know how much that applies here, but there is no inherent moral or egalitarian negative to a "harem" (or "unicorn" arrangements if I remember my polyamory lingo correctly) if everyone involved is actively and consciously consenting. But Gandhi is probably not in that camp
  - munificent 10y ago
    Gaddafi != Gandhi
  - dominotw 10y ago
    > But Gandhi is probably not in that camp Yes I definitely not. This book stayed on my mind of months after I read it. Just insane. https://www.amazon.com/Gaddafis-Harem-Annick-Cojean/dp/0802122825 https://www.amazon.com/Gaddafis-Harem-Annick-Cojean/dp/08021...
- pjc50 10y ago
  Odd comment for this article. A lot of people have ended up playing for dictators because their agents booked it and took the money without asking the star. Only occasionally do we get movements like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artists_United_Against_Apartheid https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artists_United_Against_Aparthe...
  - dominotw 10y ago
    >because their agents booked it and took the money without asking the star. Seriously? Some agent forced her to dance for dictator famous for parading his harem all over the world. Atleast Mariah Carey had the decency to admit that she made a mistake instead of some ridiculous 'agent made me do it' excuse.
yesbabyyes 10y ago
"Sure, [Fred Astaire] was great, but don't forget that Ginger Rogers did everything he did, ...backwards and in high heels." http://www.reelclassics.com/Actresses/Ginger/images9/ginger_frankernesttoon.jpg http://www.reelclassics.com/Actresses/Ginger/images9/ginger_...
- WalterBright 10y ago
  I know the famous quote. But I also know many professional ballroom dancers, and how good a couple looks is mostly determined by the man. The man drives the dance. It's his job to make his partner look good, and that means adjusting things to the skill level of his partner. A very good woman will have a much harder time making her man look good if he isn't, because she cannot backlead. Ginger Rogers was a very good dancer. But she just isn't as good as Astaire. If you watch closely, for example, he is always perfectly positioned, Ginger, not so. Astaire also developed the dances in parternship with Hermes Pan, who would play the female. They'd work it all out to perfection, and then bring Ginger in to teach it to her. Also, stepping backwards is not a problem for professional dancers, and women ballroom dancers spend thousands of hours dancing in heels, so those present no special difficulty, either.
- ahh 10y ago
  Anyone who says this has not seen an Astaire movie. Here are two routines I found in literally five seconds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfnNwXxJeIY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfnNwXxJeIY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac6o8PXthzQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac6o8PXthzQ
WalterBright 10y ago
> People will be dancing like Michael Jackson until the end of time. There's a curious quality to MJ's dance. His moves look simple, and are endlessly copied, by amateurs and pros alike. But none of them come off looking like MJ. All I can say is it's that last 2% of the move that makes it work, and nobody has been able to copy that. I know his poses and moves are all very carefully laid out and practiced, but they look so natural on him, they look like they are him.
gandolfinmyhead 10y ago
man ... how is this on hacker news?

47 points by tintinnabula 10y ago

Didn't Beyonce give dance lessons to Gaddafi too? How do these people turn into feminist icons while at the same time cozying up to monsters with grotesque harems. What a strange world to live in.

wojcech 10y ago
Don't know how much that applies here, but there is no inherent moral or egalitarian negative to a "harem" (or "unicorn" arrangements if I remember my polyamory lingo correctly) if everyone involved is actively and consciously consenting. But Gandhi is probably not in that camp
- munificent 10y ago
  Gaddafi != Gandhi
- dominotw 10y ago
  > But Gandhi is probably not in that camp Yes I definitely not. This book stayed on my mind of months after I read it. Just insane. https://www.amazon.com/Gaddafis-Harem-Annick-Cojean/dp/0802122825 https://www.amazon.com/Gaddafis-Harem-Annick-Cojean/dp/08021...
pjc50 10y ago
Odd comment for this article. A lot of people have ended up playing for dictators because their agents booked it and took the money without asking the star. Only occasionally do we get movements like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artists_United_Against_Apartheid https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artists_United_Against_Aparthe...
- dominotw 10y ago
  >because their agents booked it and took the money without asking the star. Seriously? Some agent forced her to dance for dictator famous for parading his harem all over the world. Atleast Mariah Carey had the decency to admit that she made a mistake instead of some ridiculous 'agent made me do it' excuse.

yesbabyyes 10y ago

"Sure, [Fred Astaire] was great, but don't forget that Ginger Rogers did everything he did, ...backwards and in high heels." http://www.reelclassics.com/Actresses/Ginger/images9/ginger_frankernesttoon.jpg http://www.reelclassics.com/Actresses/Ginger/images9/ginger_...

WalterBright 10y ago
I know the famous quote. But I also know many professional ballroom dancers, and how good a couple looks is mostly determined by the man. The man drives the dance. It's his job to make his partner look good, and that means adjusting things to the skill level of his partner. A very good woman will have a much harder time making her man look good if he isn't, because she cannot backlead. Ginger Rogers was a very good dancer. But she just isn't as good as Astaire. If you watch closely, for example, he is always perfectly positioned, Ginger, not so. Astaire also developed the dances in parternship with Hermes Pan, who would play the female. They'd work it all out to perfection, and then bring Ginger in to teach it to her. Also, stepping backwards is not a problem for professional dancers, and women ballroom dancers spend thousands of hours dancing in heels, so those present no special difficulty, either.
ahh 10y ago
Anyone who says this has not seen an Astaire movie. Here are two routines I found in literally five seconds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfnNwXxJeIY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfnNwXxJeIY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac6o8PXthzQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac6o8PXthzQ

WalterBright 10y ago

> People will be dancing like Michael Jackson until the end of time. There's a curious quality to MJ's dance. His moves look simple, and are endlessly copied, by amateurs and pros alike. But none of them come off looking like MJ. All I can say is it's that last 2% of the move that makes it work, and nobody has been able to copy that. I know his poses and moves are all very carefully laid out and practiced, but they look so natural on him, they look like they are him.

gandolfinmyhead 10y ago

man ... how is this on hacker news?