In the film Tap, there are many elements of tap dancing that are described throughout the movie. The beginning of the film starts with main character Max Washington listening to drops of water while he is in prison, with him saying to himself “it is all about the rhythm.” Throughout the film, sounds with rhythm from various noises give a tempo for the dancer to tap dance to. This demonstrates that rhythm is a crucial element for tap dancing, as Washington is seen vocalizing what his steps should sound like before performing them. The characters who tap dance often sit still listening to the beat of the music or rhythmic noise before beginning to dance to it, emphasizing that they are catching the tempo flow before performing. Additionally, …show more content…
Just as in many other different styles of dance, each individual person in tap dancing may have a unique style that will distinguish one from another. In the film, the character speak about the different styles and how they would exchange certain moves from other dancers, or that they would simply steal a move from another dancer. The dancers often later develop their own style and creativity by modifying other moves that they have acquired, or simply completely making it up from scratch on their own. The film also exposes the difference between individualistic freestyle tap dancing and commercial choreography tap dancing. In the individual freestyle, the dancer is free to use any move that her or she would desire, but in commercial dancing, dancers must follow the routine and dance in a certain fashion that fits the needs of the director.
My observation of the film has allowed me to look at the basics of tap dancing, seeing that the shoe has two metal parts, with one on the ball of the foot and another on the heel for generating the “tapping” noise. Unlike some other footwork based dance styles, tap dancers appear to mostly use a heel-toe style footwork on both feet, depending on the tap noise that they desire. The movement appears to require great speed and agility in moving the feet to generate the smooth and rapid tapping