Fred Astaire 1951 Royal Wedding

"Royal Wedding" is a 1951 MGM musical comedy film starring Fred Astaire and Jane Powell.  In the dance scene above, called "Sunday Jumps", Fred Astaire parodies himself by dancing with a hatstand, crediting the idea to his choreographic collaborator Hermes Pan.

In 1997, Astaire's widow Robyn authorized a digitally altered version of the scene for a Dirt Devil TV commercial.

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Nicholas Brothers Stormy Weather 1943

 

The Nicholas brothers, Fayard and Harold, were a famous African Amercian dancing duo. Considered the greatest tap dancers of their day, notable for their technique of "flash dancing" a combination of tap dancing, ballet and acrobatics. 

The clip above is from 20th Century Fox's 1943 film "Story Weather", said by Fred Astaire to be the finest tap dancing sequence ever filmed.

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Katherine Dunham Dance Scene "Stormy Weather" 1943

Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) American dancer and choreographer.   Renowned throughout the World during the 1940s and 50s and hugely popular in the United States, where the Washington Post called her "dance's Katherine the Great." 

An innovator in African-American modern dance as well as a leader in the field of dance anthropology. For almost thirty years she maintained the Katherine Dunham Dance Company, the only self-supported American black dance troupe of the time.

The clip above is taken from "Stormy Weather" an American musical produced and released by 20th Century Fox in 1943. Fred Astaire commented that the "Jumping Jive" sequence (featuring Cab Calloway and his band) was "the greatest movie musical number he had ever seen"

In 2001, "Stormy Weather" was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." It was released on DVD in North America in 2005.

Katherine Dunham, Full Bio on Wikipedia

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Lindy Hop scene "A Day at the Races" 1937

Whitey's Lindy Hoppers

From the 1937 Marx Bros hit "A Day at the Races", a Lindy Hop scene featuring Whitey's Lindy Hoppers dancing to the song 'All God's Chillun Got Rhythm'.

The Lindy Hop evolved in Harlem, New York, in the 1920s and 1930s, based on jazz, tap, breakaway and Charleston.

See Lindy Hop on Wikipedia

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Tayluer and Elliott Got to Dance Final 2012

Tayluer Amos (10) and Elliott Hanna (8) and their stunning performance from the final of Sky TV's Got to Dance series 2012. Their dance teacher put them together just months before they auditioned for Got To Dance.

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Movie Dance Scene: The Little Colonel 1935

1935 American comedy drama film directed by David Butler, the first of four cinematic pairings between Shirley Temple and Bill Robinson, and features the duo's famous staircase dance.

Bill Robinson claimed that the idea for his "staircase dance" with Shirley Temple came to him in a dream. He later recalled of the dream, "I was being made a lord by the King of England and he was standing at the head of a flight of stairs. Rather than walk, I danced up."

Performing their "staircase dance" together in this film made the duo the first interracial dancing couple in American movie history.

When Temple and Robinson finished rehearsing the staircase dance, Robinson reportedly knelt, wept, and kissed Temple’s feet. “God, he made her all by herself,” he said, “No series. Just one. Uncle Bill doesn’t tell her feet where to go, her heart tells her.”

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Turkish Bellydancing: Didem

Turkish born Didem Kinali has gained international recognition since her first appearance on  live Turkish TV.  Didem has performed across the world and through her popularity on YouTube, has won the hearts of many loyal fans.
 
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Swing Tme 1935

A 1936 RKO musical comedy film that is arguably Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' best dance musical, featuring four dance routines that are each regarded as masterpieces of their kind..