The Genius of Savion

Went to Western Carolina Univ. in Cullowhee tonight to see Savion Glover's "SoLe Sanctuary: a hoofer's meditation on the art of tap." The blurb says that his "reverence for the art of tap is put to the stage literally in the form of a living altar where he can pay his respects to the craft that he has perfected."

First of all, the man is a stone genius. His tap dancing belongs to the style called "improvography" created by Gregory Hines and is nothing like the upright style most of us were used to. If you've seen the movie "Tap," starring Hines, along with Sammy Davis jr, Jimmy Slyde, Honi Coles, Bayard Nicholas, and others, you know what I'm talking about. Glover uses his whole body as a percussion instrument and it becomes the orchestra, as he dances without music most of the time.

Just think about watching a tap dancer for two hours without pause. It was stunning.

He had a fellow hoofer with him as both back-up and collaborator, named Marshall Davis jr, who has performed in Glover's Broadway show "Bring in Da' Noise Bring in Da' Funk." While Davis is obviously very talented, he pales beside Glover. His best set was when the two of them created a "challenge" dance, a traditional competition of hoofers who try to out-dance each other.

I've been a fan of Hines since he showed up on the Johnny Carson show many years ago with his father and brother (Maurice) as Hines Hines and Dad. Sadly, he died very young (age 57). And I've been a fan of Glover's since the movie "Tap," when he was only 14. Glover also did the dancing for the lead penguin in the movie "Happy Feet," though his credit for it was buried. I went to see that movie solely because I knew Glover was dancing.

You can see the genetic line from Sammy Davis and vaudeville-style hoofers, to Hines and his improvography, to Glover and his craft. It's a wonderful thing to see, and I'm very very glad I got to see him in person.

Recent Events

I'm feeling very virtuous today because yesterday I went and helped out at a Habitat house build. It was in an enclave with about 20 Habitat houses down the street from me about 1/2 mile. So, even though we had to be there at the crack of damn dawn (8:30 am) and it was toe & finger numbing cold, I set my alarm and got there on time. It warmed up nicely, especially after the copious rain we'd had over the last two weeks. I nailed stuff and then wound up running the table saw (fun; hadn't ever done one before). Finished up about 1pm when the knees said they'd been good for long enough. Trudged my way home, ate, took aspirin and a shower, and fell into bed for a two-hour nap. Still feeling some residual creakiness but not too bad.

Have applied for the bookstore job at the Grand Canyon because I have some wonderful friends who've volunteered gas money to get me there. I'm so lucky. And thanks much to them (they know who they are).

Very excited because this coming Thursday, I'm driving off to WCU in Cullowhee to see Savion Glover. I mean SAVION GLOVER!! In Cullowhee, yet. He's the greatest and most avant garde tap dancer working today, a direct heir of Gregory Hines. He was in the movie "Tap" with Hines but the movie also had Sammy Davis jr, Sandman Slim, Jimmy Slyde, one of the Nicholas Brothers, and other fabulous and famous hoofers. One of my all-time favorite films. If any of you saw "Happy Feet," Savion did the dancing for the lead penguin and choreographed all the dancing, though his credit was small and hidden, which I consider an outrage. Anyhow, he and his troupe are going to be in Cullowhee, for an absurdly low price, and I'm going to be there with my copy of "Tap" in hope I can get a signature but definitely to have a wonderful time.

TTFN