Frankie Manning brings Lindy Hop to Japan

              ''When the dance moved underground, I started working at a post office, but I continued to dance in ballrooms,'' he told Kyodo News on a recent visit to Japan.

              Manning and a group of instructors from the United States traveled to Japan for a Lindy Hop workshop May 27-28 sponsored by the Tokyo Swing Dance Society. The workshop closed with a party to celebrate Manning's 86th birthday.

              It was Manning's second visit to Japan. His first Lindy Hop workshop in Japan coincided with the dance society's establishment in March 1998.

              A revival in swing dance began in Europe and the U.S. in the early 1980s, but Manning said he had not been interested in teaching until two dancers visited his home in 1987 asking him to teach. ''I changed my mind when I saw them dance,'' he said. The same year, he quit his postal job to start a career as an instructor.

              The name Lindy Hop comes from Charles Lindbergh's solo nonstop flight over the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. Evolved from the Charleston, which was popularized in the 1920s, the Lindy Hop was danced by couples in accompaniment to the jazz music of ''Big Bands'' such as the Duke Ellington and Glen Miller orchestras.

              During the heyday of the Lindy Hop, Manning was the main choreographer for Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, a troupe formed from professional dancers at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, New York.

              Now he travels around the world to give workshops. ''I'm a busy man. Everyone considers me an ambassador of Lindy Hop and I'm always very enthusiastic to travel if there is anyone who wants to learn and listen to someone who has been there,'' he said..

              Manning is credited with introducing new ideas to the swing dance such as the slanted body posture. ''I wanted the body to be loose and to be able to feel the rhythm. I also aimed for a visual effect different from that of the erect body in ballroom dancing.''

              Manning is famous for inventing the ''air step,'' or aerials in which the male throws his partner up in the air.

              At last month's Tokyo workshop, he recounted to the audience how he began dancing at the Savoy Ballroom at the age of 18.

              ''In New York at that time, they had a ballroom on every corner, but the Savoy was the biggest because of the big name bands, and it was open every night of the week,'' he said.

              It was there, Manning said, that he was inspired by the first generation of Lindy Hop dancers such as Leroy ''Stretch'' Jones and ''Shorty George'' Snowdown, ''whose feet moved like crazy.''

              It was also where he was inspired to create the air step.

              Manning said he and his partner practiced for three hours every day for two weeks, perfecting the acrobatic feat which helped them win a famous dance contest at the Savoy.

              ''For one second the audience couldn't say anything,'' said Manning with a laugh, recalling the stunned silence that fell over the room when his partner leaped over his head.

              About 100 people attended Manning's Tokyo workshop, which consisted of three 75-minute classes each day. Participants came from around Japan, as well as Canada and the U.S., for the event.

              ''I think just about every serious Lindy Hopper in Japan came to the workshop. They wouldn't miss the opportunity to see Frankie,'' said Hiroyuki Yamada, founder of the Tokyo Swing Dance Society.

              Yamada said he set up the club after seeing people dance the Lindy Hop at a party in the U.S. three years ago. ''I was totally knocked out when I saw the dance. It was so cool and unlike anything I'd seen before.''

              His wife, Azusa, also was smitten. ''We'd been doing ballroom competitions for more than 10 years and it was refreshing to discover a dance that was so improvisational, so free and fun,'' she said.

              The organization offers weekend classes in Yoga, Setagaya Ward, and often invites overseas instructors to give workshops. Many foreigners who live in Japan or are visiting, drop by after seeing the organization's Internet site, Azusa said.

              Some participants at Manning's workshop were relatively new to the dance. Yoshiko Ohata, 27, who has attended only a couple of Lindy Hop classes, said she was impressed by the general atmosphere.

              ''The only couples' dance I'd experienced was folk dancing at high school where no one wanted to hold hands. Here, people aren't shy about dancing together. I was surprised that it can be so natural,'' she said.

              During the lessons, Manning urged participants to introduce themselves to each other when pairing up and told the men to treat their partners ''like the Empress of Japan.'' He also shouted advice such as ''Listen to the music!'' and ''Don't rush! Enjoy the moment!''

              Among those intently learning the steps was Yasushi Nishinaga, 41, a graphic designer and founder of the Osaka Lindy Society. ''We are trying to soak up as much as we can so we can teach people back home,'' he said.

              Nishinaga said many people in Osaka have become interested in the dance because of the fashion. ''The clothes of the 1930s and 1940s are very appealing to people in their 30s,'' he said. At Manning's birthday party, several participants arrived decked out in swing-era style.

              Yamada said Singapore and Japan are probably the only Asian countries where swing dance has taken root. He said there are about eight people who teach the Lindy Hop in Tokyo, including an American who holds weekly classes in a bar called Vietti in Roppongi.

              ''We are just amateurs teaching in our spare time but for the Lindy Hop to really spread, we need dance schools and professional teachers teaching full time,'' Yamada said. ''I am hopeful that this will happen, considering that not long ago salsa was unknown and now everyone has heard of it.''

==Kyodo
2000-06-09 11:30:51

NORIKO SATO