It is believed that the French cancan dance originated in the 30s of the 19th century in Paris at open balls. It came from the English counter-dance, known in England in the 16th century.
Music for the cancan
The version of this dance came to the French later. It was especially popular in the mid-19th century. At first, the cancan dance was known as a quadrille version. Later, society rejected it, considering it indecent. He began to dance in cafes, cabarets, operettas and all kinds of shows. For a cancan, music should be fun, size should be maintained 2/4.
The main elements of the dance are jumping, swinging legs, twine and swinging skirts, which became more violent by the end of the dance, which is why the legs of the dancers in openwork underwear were exposed. The cancan dance is quite interesting. Photos of the girls dancing it attracted the attention of many.
Stages of popularity
The dance was officially born in 1858 on October 21 at the premiere of the operetta “Orpheus in Hell” by J. Offenbach. He wrote the most famous music for the cancan.
The next stage of its popularity was in 1890. Then Paris was swept by the frantic quadrille of the Moulin Rouge cabaret. In 1889, on October 6, this legendary cabaret opened and space was created for this genre.
At the end of the second half of the 19th century, one impetus gave rise to the birth of an erotic cabaret. Once young graduates of the choreographic course in Paris celebrated the onset of autumn in a cafe with dancing and champagne. They were joined by the fashionistas and sitters. During the dance, the girls began to undress. Half-naked, dancing on the tables, they lifted their skirts and made a few waved legs. This was the beginning of a new genre - striptease. From these times, the French cancan dance became the style of Montmartre.
Prohibition and approval
Strip dancing has long been banned in Europe. The stern condemnation of depraved nudity was on the part of the church. But among the noble gentlemen at the feasts, the courtesans repeatedly showed their charms.
When Puritan time began to recede into the past, the cancan dance entered the world stage and established itself among the workers of Paris. At first it was performed in pairs. He was a version of the gallop popular at that time, and quite decent.
Soon, the cancan dance moved to the cabaret stage, where the dancers made it entertainment for men. In the "Moulin Rouge" performers came up with new dance steps. As a result, the final version of the indecent version appeared here.
Ups and downs
The French dance itself was glorified by Celeste Mogado, who performed it in 1889 at the opening of the Moulin Rouge. She came up with a "real quadrille" in 1850. After 10 years, C. Morton, the Englishman who organized the first music hall, called her the "French cancan." In England he was considered too obscene and removed from the scene. However, on this side of the English Channel, the cancan dance settled in and gained such popularity that Elizabeth II in November 21, 1981, attended a performance at the Moulin Rouge.
Clothes for dance
A suit for a cancan weighing at least 10 kg, because it only takes about 100 meters of fabric to make a skirt. Shoes were considered the most difficult model. To prevent the girls from slipping during pirouettes, a thin layer of rubber was glued to the sole. Heels were made thicker of pigskin and with a special bevel. However, after a couple of months of use, they were already exhausted. The fact is that when doing the twine, the main blow goes to the heel.
When performing the “tower” stunt, its performers require special shoes, otherwise when pulling the legs to the head for the heel, they can either injure the arm or ruin an expensive suit. The pace of the dance is frantic, there is no care.