Rapp on Jazz: Jazz and dance

Published September 19, 2025 at 6:47 AM EDT

Choreographer-director Bob Fosse is surrounded by some of his dancers as they celebrate the second anniversary of "Dancin'," Fosse's musical on Broadway, in New York City, Thursday night, March 27, 1980. Fosse, center, is shown with performers, from left, Eileen Casey, Katherine Meloche, Gail Mae Ferguson, Gail Benedict, original cast member, and Christine Colby. (AP Photo)

TRANSCRIPT:

Hi, I’m Mark Rapp, and this is Rapp on Jazz.

From the jump, jazz and dance have been inseparable—born in the same spaces of joy, resistance, and rhythm.

In the early 20^th century, jazz drove the energy of the Charleston, the Lindy Hop, and swing dancing, turning ballrooms into kinetic playgrounds. Bands like those of Duke Ellington and Count Basie didn’t just play music—they moved people.

In the 1940s and ’50s, jazz found a new partner in modern dance and Broadway. Choreographers like Bob Fosse fused jazz’s sharp syncopation with dramatic stage movement, creating an iconic style today.

Even in contemporary dance, jazz remains a powerful pulse—from tap to hip-hop, its influence appears in phrasing, improvisation, and groove.

Jazz is music and motion. It speaks to the body as much as the soul.

This has been Rapp on Jazz, a co-production of ColaJazz and South Carolina Public Radio, made possible by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina.