Shim Sham

Shim Sham or Sham is actually part of a tap dance step sequence. It should be invented by Leonard Reed, who called it Goofus, or by Willie Bryant. Today ( 2005) Shim Sham is a kind dance series ( Line Dance), reminiscent of the origins of Swing. He belongs to the repertoire of many Lindy Hop dancer, and there is danced at many events as the final dance or at the height of a celebration.

In the late 1920s and in the 1930s all musicians, singers and dancers came at the end of a performance on the stage and danced together Shim Sham. Everyone did it as well as he or she could. However, the tap dancers danced very imaginative variations.

So there is no " a " valid Shim Sham choreography, but many different. When you see a group of people dancing Shim Sham, if the participants come from different places especially, you will notice many similar steps with some deviating and even several improvised. A variant is well known and can be easily learned by anyone who is dancing only from time to time. Two others - developed by Frankie Manning and another by Dean Collins - are more complicated, and it takes some practice for them.

Shim Sham is a dance with step 10 episodes, each lasting four bars. So actually only the first part of a song will be used. Any changes at the end of the choreographed part to normal swing. Shim Sham can be danced to almost every song with a medium tempo. Another possibility is the Shim Sham Song (played by Bill Elliot Swing Orchestra ), in which all changes in place are available. But the band often gets in between: " Freeze! " (Everyone stops dancing ) and: " Dance" (everyone moves again ), just as a change of pace.