Continuing with the theme of contrasting popular dance forms and music in American history, here is a wonderful video juxtaposing the Charleston dance with Daft Punk. Based on African rhythms, Charleston is one of the roots of Lindy Hop.

We see a lot of similarities between the Charleston and top rock form in breaking. In fact, Wikipedia states

Charleston can be danced solo, its simple, flexible basic step making it easy to concentrate on styling, improvisation and musicality.

which also perfectly describes breakdancing. Also, the high kicks in the beginning remind me of the outside crescent kick in Wushu.

I’ve always been fascinated by human movement. The frenetic energy, strength, and flexibility of the human body never ceases to amaze me. In the past, I’ve been involved in various different kinds of artistic movement, including ballroom dancing, breakdancing, martial arts, popping, and gymnastics. I’ve found that there is a core set of movements and skills that are common in all of these activities. After watching countless videos, I’m convinced that all of these activities can be tied together in a huge graph mapping out the various human movement characteristics.

This is why it’s always a joy to see two videos highlighting the similarities between two disparate movement arts. And, it’s even more satisfying when the two movements have radically different demographics and culture.

I stumbled upon an amazing Lindy Hop competition video that reminded me of the energy and movements in breakdancing. The video highlights a lot of fast and technical footwork similar to top rocking in breakdancing, in addition to the high flying acrobatics. Without further ado, this is the video of the Ultimate Lindy Hop Showdown 2006:

Now, compare this to the footwork of Dyzee, one of my favorite breakers. Pay attention to the footwork after the first cut (the rest of the video is a bit low on quality). Dyzee just has one of the most fluid footworks I’ve seen, and mirrors the footwork seen in the Lindy Hop video.

Also, here is another oldie but goodie from Dyzee. I remember watching this in my college days:

UPDATE: And let’s not forget the original Lindy Hop style, captured in this video from “Hellzapoppin” (1941) featuring Frankie Manning (in the Mechanic’s Dungarees).