Ballroom: A People’s History of Dancing

by Hilary French

A tune-filled, light-footed people’s history of ballroom dancing, from Vernon and Irene Castle and Arthur Murray to Dancing with the Stars .
 
In the early twentieth century, American ragtime and the Parisian Tango fueled a dancing craze in Britain. Public ballrooms—which had never been seen before—were built throughout the country, providing a glamorous setting for all classes to dance. The new styles of dance being defined and taught in the 1920s, as well as the films of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the 1930s, ensured that ballroom dancing continued to be the most popular pastime until the 1960s, rivaled only by the cinema.
 
This book explores the vibrant history of Ballroom and the dances, the lavish venues, competitions, and influential instructors. It also traces the decline of competitive dancing and its resurgence in recent years with the hugely popular TV shows Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing with the Stars .

304 pages, Hardcover

Published August 9, 2022

Reviews

[Estrella Alonso · Rating 3 out of 5]

quite UK/US focused so unless u know about strictly come dancing i don’t see how u would find this amusing. great pics though!!

[Joseph R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starting from the early 1900s, this book chronicles the various rises and falls of ballroom dancing in Britain. At the dawn of the twentieth century, English culture shifted with the beginning of working-class holidays, partly spurred by new laws that guaranteed paid time off. Since travel was very limited, seaside vacations became popular. With the unreliable English weather, ballrooms and other indoor entertainments sprang up, especially in Blackpool. The popularity caused entrepreneurs to build venues or start dance studios. Some people even started dance camps--a whole vacation centered around social dancing! Dances came in from Europe and America, fueling the early craze. Competitions were started; radio programs played ballroom music; when television came, some of the instructors and radio personalities made the transition. Once international travel became more feasible, fewer local vacations happened and the British public became more interested in sunny seaside resorts, like on the Mediterranean. Dancing went through a decline in the 1950s and 1960s. Movies like Saturday Night Fever or Strictly Ballroom would fuel new crazes. The book covers all the way to the late 2010s.

The narrative covers a wide swath of British culture, following the various trends and social expectations around partner dancing. It gives a lot of good detail though sometimes the writing is a little dry. It's more about the things and places than the people, making it less compelling reading than it could be. I learned a lot but was not wowed.

Mildly recommended--you need to be into the topic to enjoy the book.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this! A great book for big fans of ballroom dancing who want to get into the detail of its history and British significance.

[Alex Harveys]

this is actually the first book ive ever read!