Tap City – The New York Tap Festival
My first day here in New York has been a great one. This morning I attended my first class in a three day tap course with Barbara Duffy. She began the class with some exercises designed to get everyone loose and develop proper technique. She also began to develop some choreography in the Swing style to Miles Davis’ “All Blues” from the groundbreaking album “Kind of Blue
Her emphasis on precision and giving each sound the attention it deserves were inspiring. In addition we worked on tap dancing while clapping and vocalizing at the same time(Trust me, it’s a lot harder to do than it is to read.)
This afternoon I attended a class taught by the phenomenal Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards. Let me first say that Mrs. Sumbry-Edwards can do things with her feet that are absolutely incredible. Her class emphasizes developing speed and precision in the “funk” style of tap.
We didn’t utilize any music in this class, instead focusing on creating the music in our dancing. The combinations she taught were extremely challenging, all of which she was able to execute with breathtaking speed and precision. Unfortunately, the rest of us were left just wishing we could do the same. It was Insanity!
Needless to say I am looking forward to tomorrow’s classes!
October 11th, 2007 at 10:17 am
[...] for Tony Waag’s Annual New York City Tap Festival has begun. The festival will include 3-day courses, Master classes, discussion panels, and multiple [...]
October 16th, 2007 at 5:04 am
[...] love that these tap dancers are getting their due. During my time at the New York City Tap Festival in July I got to hang out with the three of them in addition to taking Mrs. Sumbry-Edwards class. [...]
March 18th, 2008 at 11:49 am
[...] festival dates are in! Tony Waag’s American Tap Dance Foundation will be hosting it’s annual New York City Tap Festival “Tap City 2008″. Tap City is an amazing event that offers master classes and programs [...]
May 8th, 2008 at 11:44 pm
[...] year’s line up features legendary instructors Barbara Duffy & Germaine Salsberg, both of whom I have taken classes with in the past. These two can teach [...]
July 7th, 2008 at 1:49 pm
[...] attended last year’s New York Tap Festival and had a great time. Get your tickets to the performances early as they do tend to sell out [...]
October 2nd, 2008 at 3:29 pm
[...] View My Previous post from the NYC Tap Festival [...]