The sixties were a fun and lively decade.
And it gave birth to so many energetic dance styles that prove it. It was a decade that gave birth to plenty of dance moves that are hard to forget: the twist, limbo, monkey, strut, frug, loco-motion and many more styles.
We’ve probably all heard of the twist, but are you familiar with the nitty-gritty?
Nitty-gritty dancers can dance on their own—you don’t require a partner, just a lot of energy and a spacious stage.
The video were talking about today was taken from the 1964 Judy Garland Show.
It was American musical variety television series that aired on CBS on Sunday nights during the 1963-1964 television season. The charming black and white video not only reminds us of a beloved The Wizard of Oz star, but it also brings a little flavor of old-time elegance when performing. As the video begins, Peter Lawford comes on stage and announces the nitty-gritty dancers. There are six of them; three men, and three women. The women are in white dresses with bows in their hair, and all the men wear tuxedos. It’s an all-around classy scene.
It might be the choreography or the fact that we’re not used to seeing people dance on their own in those times, but this is certainly a very unique routine!
“The Nitty Gritty” by Shirley Ellis is blasting in the room, and the six dancers are breaking out into very creative moves onstage. We could use some of these moves in the clubs today! Strangely enough, the choreography would likely suit the contemporary dance style…we can already imagine it all.
The only difference would be the clothes they’re wearing.
That’s what we love the most about the nitty-gritty—it’s easily adaptable, funny and simple to learn. Of course, there’s always someone who stands out, and this video is no exception!
Bobby Banas is one of those dancers we should all know and love.
If you don’t know who Bobby Banas is, don’t worry—just watch the whole video!
It’s quite short and self-explanatory. There is one male dancer in the center of the stage who is the most energetic and precise. That’s Banas, the American dancer known for his work on movies such as West Side Story (1961) and Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986). The dancer is also famous for kissing Marylin Monroe in a 1960 musical comedy Let’s Make Love. Bobby later went on to become a choreographer, and as far as this video goes, Bobby is absolutely on fire. He is an inspiration to his colleagues, and they are all following his lead. We love how much fun he’s having, and the energy is definitely contagious! As it turns out, today Bobby Banas is 86 years old and still lives in New York City.
After watching this, we want to give the nitty-gritty a try for ourselves—and the YouTube viewers are giving us 10 million reasons why!
The video was uploaded on YouTube in 2012 and it only accumulating more views by the day.
In all, the dance doesn’t seem all that hard—it simply tempts you to stand up and try it. So don’t resist—give it a try! Find out why Bobby is so happy doing it. That’s the whole purpose of dance: to let yourself loose and have as much fun as possible.
Watch the full performance in the link below:
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