Hands and feet

September 12, 2010 4:24 AM

We No Speak Americano, Hand Dance, Hand Dance Live, Alles Gute zum St Patriks Tag from Cleary & Harding AKA Up And Over It
posted by fearfulsymmetry (10 comments total)

Why do I think of Spaulding Grey?
posted by Faze at 6:09 AM on September 12, 2010

you beat me to it, fearfulsymmetry - I just discovered that first video last night and found it really winsome - must have taken a ton of work to be so in sync. All that step dancing practice must account for why they could stay so deadpan. Thanks for posting.
posted by madamjujujive at 6:20 AM on September 12, 2010

I don't know what I expected, but this wasn't it. That said, Fantastic! But, at the end, my hands hurt in sympathy.
posted by HuronBob at 8:57 AM on September 12, 2010

The hand dance live clip would have livened up that awful Beckett play. A lot.

Reader: pauses, repeats the last full sentence and then waits for a further knock on the table
Listener: proceeds to finger tango with intensity.

Cool link though, thanks :)
posted by shinybaum at 9:24 AM on September 12, 2010

Heh, i found this song a few months ago when i was shopping for a dj gig. I liked it, but had no idea what the hell to do with it in a set, so i didn't buy it.
posted by empath at 9:58 AM on September 12, 2010

Before I even got to the step dancing link, (and about .3 seconds of hand movements in the first video) I *knew* they had an Irish dance background. Their hands are tapping out a reel performed in hard shoes. I knew exactly what they were "supposed" to be doing with their feet and I started counting along after their repetition. Their arm movements are from a partner or a 2-Hand dance and from progressive Irish dance movements that borrow from cheerleading. Really. Here's a totally random example of a traditional 2 hand. You might notice the similarities. Setting Irish dance to more modern music is an increasing trend that I abhor, but I am a no-fun traditionalist when it comes to dance (although I like the music in the video).

While teaching steps, almost every Irish dancer I've ever met dances with their hands without being told to do so. Even the littlest step dancers I teach do this. (They also like to dance with their eyes closed, but that's a different story.) It helps dancers memorize the very precise movements and think about the step without actually dancing. Sometimes if a dancer is struggling, I tell them to sit down and count the step out on their hands. It usually helps.

It's pretty neat to see something that kinda happens organically morph into something artsy, refined, very different yet at the same time very similar to the footwork.
posted by Hop123 at 1:26 PM on September 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

Kind of reminds me of a videoclip made by a french choregrapher: Philippe Decoufflé
posted by just_a_french_guy at 1:26 AM on September 13, 2010 [1 favorite]

They've got talent, but news anchors Robert Jordan and Jackie Bange give them a run for their money.
posted by Grimp0teuthis at 7:16 PM on September 13, 2010 [1 favorite]

Askme question.
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 6:18 AM on September 15, 2010

Great comments and links - some of these little sleeper threads are the best ;-)
posted by madamjujujive at 1:11 PM on September 16, 2010