ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Camille A. Brown - Choreographer, educator
Camille A. Brown leads her dance company through excavations of ancestral stories, both timeless and traditional, that connect history with contemporary culture.

Why you should listen

Camille A. Brown is a prolific Black female choreographer reclaiming the cultural narrative of African American identity. She is a Ford Foundation Art of Change Fellow, Audelco Award recipient, four-time Princess Grace Award winner, Guggenheim Fellow, Jacob's Pillow Dance Award recipient, USA Jay Franke & David Herro Fellow, TED Fellow and Doris Duke Artist Award recipient.

Her Company, Camille A. Brown & Dancers (CABD), tours nationally and internationally. The repertory includes the Bessie award-winning Mr. TOL E. RAncE (2012), the Bessie-nominated BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play (2015) and ink (2017), which premiered at The Kennedy Center. CABD's community engagement platform, EVERY BODY MOVE, inspires collective action through the art of social dance and includes initiatives such as Black Girl Spectrum, Black Men Moving, The Gathering and more.

Brown has been commissioned to create concert dance works for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Philadanco!, Urban Bush Women, Complexions, Ailey II, Ballet Memphis and Hubbard Street II.

In addition to her company works, Brown brings a passion for storytelling to her choreography for Broadway and Off-Broadway theater productions. Notable theater credits for her choreography include: Tony-winning Broadway revival Once On This Island, The Emmy-winning Jesus Christ Superstar Live on NBC as well as A Streetcar Named Desire, The Fortress of Solitude (Lortel Nomination) and BELLA: An American Tall Tale (Lortel Nomination), among others.

Brown graduated from LaGuardia High School of the Performing Arts in New York City and she has a BFA from UNC School of the Arts. She is the choreographer for the upcoming Magic Mike The Musical and PAL JOEY, and she is movement director for Broadway's Choir Boy and Toni Stone.

More profile about the speaker
Camille A. Brown | Speaker | TED.com
TED Studio

Camille A. Brown: A visual history of social dance in 25 moves

Camille A. Brown: En visuell historie av sosial dans i 25 steg

Filmed:
1,390,738 views

Hvorfor danser vi? Afro-Amerikanske sosiale danser begynte som en måte for Afrikanske slaver å holde kulturelle tradisjoner i live og beholde en følelse av indre frihet. De består som bekreftelse på identitet og selvstendighet. I denne elektriske demonstrasjonen, stappet med live opptredener, utforsker koreograf, utdanner og TED Fellow Camille A. Brown hva som skjer når samfunn slippes løs og uttrykker seg gjennom å danse sammen.
- Choreographer, educator
Camille A. Brown leads her dance company through excavations of ancestral stories, both timeless and traditional, that connect history with contemporary culture. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:06
This is the BopBOP.
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Dette er Bop.
00:09
The BopBOP is a typetype of socialsosial dancedanse.
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Bop er en type sosial dans.
00:15
DanceDans is a languageSpråk,
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Dans er et språk,
00:16
and socialsosial dancedanse is an expressionuttrykk
that emergesframgår from a communitysamfunnet.
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og sosial dans er et uttrykk
som kommer fra et samfunn.
00:21
A socialsosial dancedanse isn't choreographedkoreografert
by any one personperson.
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En sosial dans er ikke koreografert
av en enkelt person.
00:24
It can't be tracedspores to any one momentøyeblikk.
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Det kan ikke spores
til et enkelt øyeblikk.
00:27
EachHver dancedanse has stepstrinn
that everyonealle can agreebli enige on,
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Hver dans har steg alle kan være enige om,
00:30
but it's about the individualindividuell
and theirderes creativekreativ identityidentitet.
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men det handler om individet
og deres kreative identitet.
00:35
Because of that,
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På grunn av det,
00:36
socialsosial dancesdanser bubbleboble up,
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bobler sosiale danser opp,
00:38
they changeendring
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de endres
00:39
and they spreadspredt like wildfireild.
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og de spres som skogbrann.
00:42
They are as oldgammel as our rememberedhusket historyhistorie.
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De er like gamle som vår husket historie.
00:47
In African-AmericanAfrican-American socialsosial dancesdanser,
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I Afro-Amerikanske sosiale danser,
00:49
we see over 200 yearsår
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ser vi over 200 år
00:51
of how AfricanAfrikanske and African-AmericanAfrican-American
traditionstradisjoner influencedpåvirket our historyhistorie.
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av Afrikanske og Afro-Amerikanske
tradisjoners innflytelse på vår historie.
00:58
The presentnåværende always containsinneholder the pastforbi.
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Nåtiden inneholder alltid fortiden.
01:01
And the pastforbi shapesfigurer who we are
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Og fortiden former hvem vi er
01:03
and who we will be.
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og hvem vi vil være.
01:05
(ClappingKlapping)
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(Klapping)
01:09
The JubaJuba dancedanse was bornFødt
from enslavedslaver Africans'Afrikanere experienceerfaring
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Juba dansen oppsto
fra Afrikanske slavers erfaring
01:12
on the plantationplantasjen.
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på plantasjene.
01:14
BroughtBrakt to the AmericasAmerika,
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Brakt til Amerika,
01:15
strippedstrippet of a commonfelles spokenmuntlig languageSpråk,
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strippet for et felles talespråk,
01:17
this dancedanse was a way for enslavedslaver AfricansAfrikanere
to rememberhuske where they're from.
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var dansen en måte for Afrikanske slaver
å minnes hvor de kom fra.
01:22
It maykan have looked something like this.
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Det kan ha sett slik ut.
01:30
SlappingSlapping thighslårene,
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Klasking på lår,
01:31
shufflingshuffling feetføtter
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shuffling med føttene
01:33
and pattingklappet handshender:
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og klappende hender;
01:34
this was how they got around
the slaveslave owners'eiernes banforby on drummingtromming,
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slik unngikk de slave-eiernes
forbud på tromming,
01:38
improvisingimprovisere complexkomplekse rhythmsrytmer
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improviserte komplekse rytmer
01:41
just like ancestorsforfedre did
with drumstrommer in HaitiHaiti
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akkurat som forfedrene
gjorde med trommer i Haiti
01:44
or in the YorubaJoruba communitieslokalsamfunn
of WestWest AfricaAfrika.
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eller i Joruba samfunnene
av Vest Afrika.
01:50
It was about keepingholde
culturalkulturell traditionstradisjoner alivei live
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Det handlet om å holde
kulturelle tradisjoner i live
01:53
and retainingbeholde a senseføle of innerindre freedomfrihet
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og beholde en følelse av indre frihet
01:56
underunder captivityfangenskap.
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under fangenskap.
01:59
It was the samesamme subversiveundergravende spiritånd
that createdopprettet this dancedanse:
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Det var den samme subversive ånden
som laget denne dansen:
02:04
the CakewalkCakewalk,
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Cakewalk,
02:05
a dancedanse that parodiedparodiert the mannerismsatferd
of SouthernSør highhøy societysamfunn --
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en dans som parodierte
manerene til Sør-sosieteten --
02:09
a way for the enslavedslaver
to throwkaste shadeskygge at the mastersMasters.
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en måte for slavene
å kaste skygge over mesterne.
02:12
The crazygal thing about this dancedanse
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Det utrolige med denne dansen
02:14
is that the CakewalkCakewalk
was performedutføres for the mastersMasters,
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er at Cakewalk ble fremført for mesterne,
02:17
who never suspectedmistenkt
they were beingå være madelaget funmoro of.
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som aldri mistenkte
at de ble gjort narr av.
02:23
Now you mightkanskje recognizegjenkjenne this one.
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Du kjenner kanskje igjen denne.
02:25
1920s --
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1920-tallet --
02:26
the CharlestonCharleston.
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Charleston.
02:31
The CharlestonCharleston was all about
improvisationimprovisasjon and musicalitymusikalitet,
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Charleston handlet om
improvisering og musikalitet,
02:35
makinglager its way into LindyLindy HopHop,
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gjennom Lindy Hop,
02:37
swingsvinge dancingdans
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swing dansing
02:38
and even the KidGutt n PlaySpill,
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og også Kid n Play,
02:39
originallyopprinnelig calledkalt the FunkyFunky CharlestonCharleston.
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originalt kalt Funky Charleston.
02:47
StartedStartet by a tight-knittett sammensveiset BlackSvart communitysamfunnet
nearnær CharlestonCharleston, SouthSør CarolinaCarolina,
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Startet av et tett-knyttet svart samfunn
nær Charleston, Sør Carolina,
02:51
the CharlestonCharleston permeatedgjennomsyret dancedanse hallshaller
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Charleston yret i dansehaller
02:53
where youngung womenkvinner suddenlyplutselig had
the freedomfrihet to kicksparke theirderes heelshæler
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hvor unge kvinner nå hadde
friheten til å riste støvet av støvlene
02:56
and movebevege seg theirderes legsben.
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og slå seg løs.
03:03
Now, socialsosial dancedanse is about
communitysamfunnet and connectionforbindelse;
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Sosial dans handler om
samfunn og tilknyttning;
03:06
if you knewvisste the stepstrinn,
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hvis du kunne stegene,
03:08
it meantbetydde you belongedtilhørte to a groupgruppe.
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betydde det at du tilhørte en gruppe.
03:10
But what if it becomesblir a worldwideverdensomspennende crazemani?
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Men hva om det blir en
verdensomspennende mani?
03:13
EnterAngi the TwistVri.
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Inn kommer Twist.
03:14
It's no surpriseoverraskelse that the TwistVri
can be tracedspores back to the 19thth centuryårhundre,
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Det er ingen overraskelse at Twist
kan spores tilbake til det 19. århundre,
03:19
broughtbrakte med seg to AmericaAmerika from the CongoKongo
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brakt til Amerika fra Kongo
03:21
duringi løpet av slaveryslaveri.
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under slaveri.
03:22
But in the latesent '50s,
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Men sent på 50-tallet,
03:24
right before the CivilSivile RightsRettigheter MovementBevegelse,
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rett før borgerrettighetsbevegelsen,
03:26
the TwistVri is popularizedpopularisert
by ChubbyLubne CheckerKontrolløren and DickDick ClarkClark.
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blir Twist popularisert
av Chubby Checker og Dick Clark.
03:29
SuddenlyPlutselig, everybody'salles doing the TwistVri:
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Plutselig driver alle med Twist:
03:32
whitehvit teenagerstenåringer,
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hvite tenåringer,
03:33
kidsbarn in LatinLatin AmericaAmerika,
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barn i Latin-Amerika,
03:35
makinglager its way into songssanger and moviesfilmer.
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den gjør inntreden i sanger og filmer.
03:38
ThroughGjennom socialsosial dancedanse,
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Gjennom sosial dans,
03:39
the boundariesgrenser betweenmellom groupsgrupper
becomebli blurreduskarpt.
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ble grenser mellom grupper uklare.
03:45
The storyhistorie continuesfortsetter in the 1980s and '90s.
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Historien fortsetter
gjennom 1980- og 90-tallet.
03:48
AlongLangs with the emergenceveksten of hip-hopHip Hop,
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Med fremveksten av hip-hop,
03:51
African-AmericanAfrican-American socialsosial dancedanse
tooktok on even more visibilitysynlighet,
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fikk Afro-Amerikansk sosial dans
enda mer synlighet,
03:55
borrowinglån from its long pastforbi,
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med lån fra sin lange fortid,
03:57
shapingforme culturekultur and beingå være shapedformet by it.
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former den kulturen
og blir formet av den.
04:08
TodayI dag, these dancesdanser continueFortsette
to evolveutvikle seg, growvokse and spreadspredt.
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Disse dansene fortsetter
å utvikle seg, vokse og spre seg.
04:14
Why do we dancedanse?
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Hvorfor danser vi?
04:15
To movebevege seg,
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For å bevege,
04:16
to let looseløs,
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for å slippe løs,
04:17
to expressuttrykke.
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for å uttrykke.
04:19
Why do we dancedanse togethersammen?
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Hvorfor danser vi sammen?
04:21
To healhelbrede,
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For å hele,
04:22
to rememberhuske,
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for å erindre,
04:23
to say: "We speaksnakke a commonfelles languageSpråk.
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for å si: "Vi snakker et felles språk.
04:26
We existeksistere
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Vi eksisterer
04:27
and we are freegratis."
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og vi er fri."
Translated by Ronja Dahl
Reviewed by Martin Hassel

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Camille A. Brown - Choreographer, educator
Camille A. Brown leads her dance company through excavations of ancestral stories, both timeless and traditional, that connect history with contemporary culture.

Why you should listen

Camille A. Brown is a prolific Black female choreographer reclaiming the cultural narrative of African American identity. She is a Ford Foundation Art of Change Fellow, Audelco Award recipient, four-time Princess Grace Award winner, Guggenheim Fellow, Jacob's Pillow Dance Award recipient, USA Jay Franke & David Herro Fellow, TED Fellow and Doris Duke Artist Award recipient.

Her Company, Camille A. Brown & Dancers (CABD), tours nationally and internationally. The repertory includes the Bessie award-winning Mr. TOL E. RAncE (2012), the Bessie-nominated BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play (2015) and ink (2017), which premiered at The Kennedy Center. CABD's community engagement platform, EVERY BODY MOVE, inspires collective action through the art of social dance and includes initiatives such as Black Girl Spectrum, Black Men Moving, The Gathering and more.

Brown has been commissioned to create concert dance works for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Philadanco!, Urban Bush Women, Complexions, Ailey II, Ballet Memphis and Hubbard Street II.

In addition to her company works, Brown brings a passion for storytelling to her choreography for Broadway and Off-Broadway theater productions. Notable theater credits for her choreography include: Tony-winning Broadway revival Once On This Island, The Emmy-winning Jesus Christ Superstar Live on NBC as well as A Streetcar Named Desire, The Fortress of Solitude (Lortel Nomination) and BELLA: An American Tall Tale (Lortel Nomination), among others.

Brown graduated from LaGuardia High School of the Performing Arts in New York City and she has a BFA from UNC School of the Arts. She is the choreographer for the upcoming Magic Mike The Musical and PAL JOEY, and she is movement director for Broadway's Choir Boy and Toni Stone.

More profile about the speaker
Camille A. Brown | Speaker | TED.com