Ballroom dancing has its roots in the first decade of the 20th century, one of the most accelerated in history. Ballroom’s longevity and resurgent popularity in the 21st century is owed to men and women who, were and are, passionate, talented, benevolent and clever.
Ballroom’s nature is perennial. It carried on during the Great Depression with paying clients, survived in the ‘psychedelic’ 70’s and the Disco craze and has given us scores of gifted people with fascinating and often funny stories. Today throughout the world, millions of enthusiasts experience the joy of ballroom dancing.
But who are the men and women who brought this about? Who are the icons of ballroom dancing? What are their stories? We lose more and more of those who remember the roots of ballroom dancing with its emotional, colorful and almost hedonistic nature.
Brigitt Mayer, the author of Ballroom Icons, has been intrigued and passionate about preserving and recording the history of ballroom dancing before it is lost forever. Born and educated in the Rhineland, Germany’s dancing ‘hub’, she began her career at age 16. Due to her innovative and creative approach to ballroom dancing, she received an invitation to perform at Britain’s prestigious Albert Hall. She lives in Canada, teaches and adjudicates worldwide and had the opportunity and the skill to research and write Ballroom Icons.
Her book, Ballroom Icons with its archival and exquisite original photographs, documents the lives of the men and women who personify ballroom dancing.
