Dance Goes VIRAL
Today’s social media has created a world where individuals can curate their own cultural programming. Since its inception in 2005, YouTube has become the Internet’s most popular site for people seeking to display their talent online. Through web-sharing, a video may become so popular that it goes viral. The irony is that these individually created videos can instantly access an audience never before imagined. Social media allows dance to be experienced on a vastly inclusive scale, with everyone from small children to the first lady participating. It has also sparked the rise of flash mobs, a new form of entertainment that pops up everywhere from advertisements to wedding receptions. And with a simple click, the whole world is watching them!
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
October 4, 2013 through July 13, 2014
Beyoncé “Single Ladies” adaptationBeyoncé’s music video “Single Ladies/Put a Ring on It” sparked a trend for fans to learn the dance themselves and record it for YouTube. View video →
Liverpool Street Station flash mob advertisementIn train stations and shopping malls, libraries and street corners, flash mobs began popping up everywhere, and were often recorded and put online.
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Wedding reception dance to “Thriller”Wedding receptions, birthdays, and just-for-fun, “spontaneous” dances draw attention.
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“Evolution of Mom Dancing” (Michelle Obama and Jimmy Fallon)
Dance can tell beautiful, moving stories. It can also be very, very funny.
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Ellen DeGeneres presents six-year-old Tanner Evans
Some videos are just for fun, while others are from people hoping to get noticed by the entertainment industry. Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres seems to regularly discover young talent via the Internet.
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Dancer Rebecca Rose
YouTube and other online platforms such as Vimeo allow anyone with a camera and web access to upload video of themselves performing.
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