Intro to Dance D.J. Brown 10/28/08 Break Dancing Break Dancing, also known as “breaking”, is a creative street dance that originated in the South Bronx during the early 1970s. It is an improvised mix of movements influenced by dance, martial arts, and gymnastics. I believe it can be described as an abstract dance. Break dancing seems so different from all other kinds of dancing that the first question people ask when they see it is: "Where did these kids learn to dance like that?" To many people, this dance seems to have come out of nowhere. But like everything else, Break dance did come from somewhere, something and someone. In the case of Break dancing, many believe the someone is the great superstar, James Brown. Its name started from the dancing that began when disc jockeys started using the drum solos in songs as the main part of the music. Originally, the DJ would play the drum solo on one record and extend the break by replaying or looping the same break on another record. The dancing during the drum solos created a new art form known as Breaking. As the dance grew in popularity and commercialization, the term “Break Dancing” was coined much to the breaking community’s chagrin. This term was originally an attempt by the mass media to explain the art form to the mainstream audience. In doing so, the breaking community shunned the term “Break Dancing” as it associated it with a movement to commercialize the dance without keeping the integrity of the art form. A person who does breaking is called a Break Boy or Break Girl, better known as a B-Boy, or B-Girl respectively. Consequently, the name “Breaking” is often interchanged with the term “B-Boying” to classify this type of dance. B-Boys and B-Girls are called Breakers. Breakers are organized by crews, consisting of groups or teams of b-boys and b-girls, who train, dance, practice, and learn together in preparation for battles. In break dancing, battles can occur at any time and can be initiated by a...