A Real Dancer
October 6, 2008
Maybe it is the mystique of Fred Astaire that coaxes me to pick up and read FRED ASTAIRE by Joseph Epstein cover to cover this evening. A dancer myself, I want to know why Astaire is considered one of our greatest dancers.
What I find is a witty biography of a man who captivated theatre audiences and movie-goers for decades -- beginning in the great Depression. What I find is a boy whose mother totally changed his fate by taking him and his sister Adele from their father and their Omaha home to NY to dance. What I find is that, at 5'4", 115 pounds, I would have been too big a dancer for Astaire -- too heavy to lift, with his thin shoulders and sinewy arms.
Every woman wanted to be his partner. Every man wanted to be him. Every dancer said he was the best.
So, what was it about Fred Astaire? Or, Fred Austerlitz until a NY dance teacher changed his name. "A star" Epstein says the name implies.
This story -- often told -- is of Astaire's Hollywood screen test -- the critique was "Balding. Can't sing. Dances a little."
Epstein quotes Astaire himself as saying he was far from good-looking "a weird-looking character" and he didn't like photographs of himself. But he had a personality, and he could sing light songs while dancing these intricate, smooth steps. He taught Ginger Rogers -- who'd had no training -- how to dance. Epstein scoffs at Texas Governor Ann Richards' remark that Ginger did everything Fred did, but backwards and in high heels -- saying without his training, Ginger likely wouldn't have been able to dance.
What I find is a serious man who -- once his career was chosen for him as a small boy -- works enormously hard, uses his entire body in the dance, and paid no attention to his critics or to his self-criticism.
What is it about dance? I discover as I dance in the front row, or when I'm coaxed onto the stage, the greatest pleasure can only come from dancing full out. The hips, the arms, the smile.
What I find is inspiration -- that knowing what you're here for, working hard at your skills and shooting for the stars -- make you a winner.
Maybe it is the mystique of Fred Astaire that coaxes me to pick up and read FRED ASTAIRE by Joseph Epstein cover to cover this evening. A dancer myself, I want to know why Astaire is considered one of our greatest dancers.
What I find is a witty biography of a man who captivated theatre audiences and movie-goers for decades -- beginning in the great Depression. What I find is a boy whose mother totally changed his fate by taking him and his sister Adele from their father and their Omaha home to NY to dance. What I find is that, at 5'4", 115 pounds, I would have been too big a dancer for Astaire -- too heavy to lift, with his thin shoulders and sinewy arms.
Every woman wanted to be his partner. Every man wanted to be him. Every dancer said he was the best.
So, what was it about Fred Astaire? Or, Fred Austerlitz until a NY dance teacher changed his name. "A star" Epstein says the name implies.
This story -- often told -- is of Astaire's Hollywood screen test -- the critique was "Balding. Can't sing. Dances a little."
Epstein quotes Astaire himself as saying he was far from good-looking "a weird-looking character" and he didn't like photographs of himself. But he had a personality, and he could sing light songs while dancing these intricate, smooth steps. He taught Ginger Rogers -- who'd had no training -- how to dance. Epstein scoffs at Texas Governor Ann Richards' remark that Ginger did everything Fred did, but backwards and in high heels -- saying without his training, Ginger likely wouldn't have been able to dance.
What I find is a serious man who -- once his career was chosen for him as a small boy -- works enormously hard, uses his entire body in the dance, and paid no attention to his critics or to his self-criticism.
What is it about dance? I discover as I dance in the front row, or when I'm coaxed onto the stage, the greatest pleasure can only come from dancing full out. The hips, the arms, the smile.
What I find is inspiration -- that knowing what you're here for, working hard at your skills and shooting for the stars -- make you a winner.
Labels: book review, dance, FRED ASTAIRE, Ginger Rogers, inspiration., Joseph Epstein
posted by Diana Page Jordan @ 9:51 PM
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