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Aliona Vilani
Aliona Valeriya Kavanagh (''née'' Vilani on 1 May 1984; ), also known by her stage name Aliona Vilani, is a Russian-Kazakh TV personality and was a professional dancer in the BBC series of ''Strictly Come Dancing''. Biography Vilani started learning ballet when she was five years old. She moved to Russia with her parents at age 9 and started ballroom dancing at age 11, continuing ballet. In 1997, aged 13, she moved to the United States and joined the Kaiser Dance Academy in Brooklyn, New York. In 2001 she was part of the US Ballroom team for the National Dance Congress that won the Amateur Ballroom category. Vilani turned professional at the age of 17. Since 2006 she has lived in Los Angeles where she competed, performed and coached. Her speciality is 10 Dance, she is also skilled in Salsa, Hip Hop and Jazz. In 2008–2009 she appeared in Dancing with the Stars Arena Tour in the U.S. In 2009 she appeared three times as a guest professional dancer on '' Dancing with the Stars ...
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Kazakh SSR
The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, also known as Soviet Kazakhstan, the Kazakh SSR, KSSR, or simply Kazakhstan, was one of the transcontinental constituent republics of the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1936 to 1991. Located in northern Central Asia, it was created on 5 December 1936 from the Kazakh ASSR, an autonomous republic of the Russian SFSR. At in area, it was the second-largest republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata (today known as Almaty). During its existence as a Soviet Socialist Republic, it was ruled by the Communist Party of the Kazakh SSR (QKP). On 25 October 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the Kazakh SSR declared its sovereignty on its soil. QKP first secretary Nursultan Nazarbayev was elected president in April of that year – a role he remained in until 2019. The Kazakh SSR was renamed the Republic of Kazakhstan on 10 December 1991, which declared its independence six days later, as the last republic to secede from the USSR ...
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Foxtrot
The foxtrot is a smooth, progressive dance characterized by long, continuous flowing movements across the dance floor. It is danced to big band (usually vocal) music. The dance is similar in its look to waltz, although the rhythm is in a time signature instead of . Developed in the 1910s, the foxtrot reached its height of popularity in the 1930s and remains practiced today. History The dance was premiered in 1914, quickly catching the eye of the husband and wife duo Vernon and Irene Castle, who gave the dance its signature grace and style. The origin of the name of the dance is unclear, although one theory is that it took its name from its popularizer, the vaudevillian Harry Fox. Two sources, Vernon Castle and dance teacher Betty Lee, credit African American dancers as the source of the foxtrot. Castle saw the dance, which "had been danced by negroes, to his personal knowledge, for fifteen years, ta certain exclusive colored club". W. C. Handy ("Father of the Blues" ...
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Lynda Bellingham
Lynda Bellingham ( ; 31 May 194819 October 2014) was an English actress, broadcaster and author. She acted in television series such as ''All Creatures Great and Small (1978 TV series), All Creatures Great and Small'', ''Doctor Who'', ''Second Thoughts (TV series), Second Thoughts'' and ''Faith in the Future (TV series), Faith in the Future''. She was also known for her appearances as the mother in the long-running series of "Oxo Family" British TV advertisements between 1983 and 1999, and as a panellist on the ITV lunchtime chat show ''Loose Women'' between 2007 and 2011. Early life Bellingham was born Meredith Hughes in Montreal to a single mother, but was given up for adoption because she was born out of wedlock in a strict church-going family. She was adopted when she was four months old. Bellingham was educated at Aylesbury High School, and trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama. Film and television Acting Bellingham's first television role was an appearance in ...
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Strictly Come Dancing (series 7)
''Strictly Come Dancing'' returned for its seventh series on 18 September 2009 on BBC One. Bruce Forsyth and Tess Daly returned as presenters of the main show on BBC One, while Claudia Winkleman presented the spin-off show '' Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two'' on BBC Two. Len Goodman, Craig Revel Horwood, and Bruno Tonioli returned as judges. Series 5 winner Alesha Dixon joined the judging panel as a replacement for Arlene Phillips. Darcey Bussell served as a guest judge beginning with the quarterfinal. Camilla Dallerup, Karen Hardy, and Hayley Holt were replaced as professional female dancers by Natalie Lowe, Aliona Vilani, and Katya Virshilas. The show on 7 November was filmed from the Blackpool Tower Ballroom for the first time since the finale of series 2. Due to illness, Bruce Forsyth did not appear in the show on 14 November. As a result, Tess Daly took over as main presenter, and Claudia Winkleman took over Daly's normal role. ''BBC Breakfast'' sports presenter ...
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Waltz
The waltz ( , meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom dance, ballroom and folk dance, in triple (3/4 time, time), performed primarily in closed position. Along with the ländler and allemande, the waltz was sometimes referred to by the generic term German Dance in publications during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance, including ''volte'', that would evolve into the waltz that date from 16th-century Europe, including the representations of the Printmaking, printmaker Sebald Beham, Hans Sebald Beham. The French philosopher Michel de Montaigne wrote of a dance he saw in 1580 in Augsburg, where the dancers held each other so closely that their faces touched. Kunz Haas (of approximately the same period) wrote, "Now they are dancing the godless ''Weller'' or ''Spinner''."Nettl, Paul. "Birth of the Waltz." In ''Dance Index'' vol 5, no. 9. 1946 New York: Dance Index-Ballet Caravan, Inc. pages 208, 211 "The ...
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Viennese Waltz
Viennese waltz () is a genre of ballroom dance. At least four different meanings are recognized. In the historically first sense, the name may refer to several versions of the waltz, including the earliest waltzes done in ballroom dancing, danced to the music of Viennese waltz. What is now called the Viennese waltz is the original form of the waltz. It was the first ballroom dance performed in the Closed position, closed hold or "waltz" position. The dance that is popularly known as the waltz is actually the English or slow waltz, danced at approximately 90 beats per minute with 3 beats to the bar (the international standard of 30 Glossary of partner dance terms#Measures per minute, measures per minute), while the Viennese waltz is danced at about 180 beats (58-60 measures) per minute. To this day however, in Germany, Austria, Scandinavia, and France, the words (German), (Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish), and (French) still implicitly refer to the original dance and not the s ...
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Tango (ballroom)
Ballroom tango is a ballroom dance that branched away from its original Argentine roots by allowing European, American, Hollywood, and competitive influences into the style and execution of the dance. The present day ballroom tango is divided into two disciplines: American Style and International Style The International Style is a major architectural style and movement that began in western Europe in the 1920s and dominated modern architecture until the 1970s. It is defined by strict adherence to Functionalism (architecture), functional and Fo .... Both styles may be found in social and competitive dances, but the International version is more globally accepted as a competitive style. Both styles share a closed dance position, but the American style allows its practitioners to separate from closed position to execute open moves, like underarm turns, alternate hand holds, dancing apart, and side-by-side choreography. History upAmerican tango American style tango America ...
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Showdance
Concert dance (also known as performance dance or theatre dance in the United Kingdom) is dance performed for an audience. It is frequently performed in a theatre setting, though this is not a requirement, and it is usually choreographed and performed to set music. By contrast, social dance and participation dance may be performed without an audience and, typically, these dance forms are neither choreographed nor danced to set music, though there are exceptions. For example, some ceremonial dances and baroque dances blend concert dance with participation dance by having participants assume the role of performer or audience at different moments. Forms Many dance styles are principally performed in a concert dance context, including these: *Ballet originated as courtroom dance in Italy, then flourished in France and Russia before spreading across Europe and abroad. Over time, it became an academic discipline taught in schools and institutions. Amateur and professional troupes for ...
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Samba
Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or prefix used for several rhythmic variants, such as samba urbano carioca (''urban Carioca samba''), samba de roda (sometimes also called ''rural samba''), among many other forms of samba, mostly originated in the Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro and Bahia states. Having its roots in Brazilian mythology, Brazilian folk traditions, especially those linked to the primitive rural samba of the Colonial Brazil, colonial and Empire of Brazil, imperial periods, is considered one of the most important cultural phenomena in Brazil and one of the country symbols. Present in the Portuguese language at least since the 19th century, the word "samba" was originally used to designate a "popular dance". Over time, its meaning has been extended to a "B ...
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Salsa (dance)
Salsa is the name for Latin American dances that are danced to salsa music. Salsa is one of the most popular types of Latin dance that is practiced worldwide, and is typically danced with a partner, although there are elements of solo footwork as well. There are several distinct styles of salsa that are danced around the world. Origin The term "salsa" was coined by Johnny Pacheco in the 1960s in New York, as an umbrella term for Cuban dance music being played in the city at the time. Salsa as a dance emerged soon after, being a combination of mambo (which was popular in New York in the 1950s) as well as Latin dances such as Son and Rumba along with American dances such as swing, hustle, and tap. As salsa music spread to other countries, different styles emerged. Description Salsa dance steps can be done individually, but salsa is most popularly known as a partnered dance where the lead takes the follower through a series of spins and turn patterns to music. Salsa's tem ...
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Rhumba
Rhumba, also known as ballroom rumba, is a genre of ballroom music and ballroom dance, dance that appeared in the East Coast of the United States during the 1930s. It combined American big band music with Afro-Cuban rhythms, primarily the son cubano, but also conga (music), conga and Cuban rumba, rumba. Although taking its name from the latter, ballroom rumba differs completely from Cuban rumba in both its music and its dance. Hence, authors prefer the Americanized spelling of the word (''rhumba'') to distinguish between them. Music Although the term ''rhumba'' began to be used by American record companies to label all kinds of Latin music (genre), Latin music between 1913 and 1915, the history of rhumba as a specific form of ballroom music can be traced back to May 1930, when Don Azpiazú and his Havana Casino Orchestra recorded their song "El manisero" (The Peanut Vendor) in New York City. This single, released four months later by Victor Talking Machine Company, Victor, be ...
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Rav Wilding
Ravin Mika Wilding (born 16 October 1977) is a British television presenter and former police officer who served with the British Transport Police and Metropolitan Police Service. Prior to joining the police, Wilding served in the British Army and worked as a security guard at Harrods department store in London. He is best known for his role as a presenter on the BBC TV show ''Crimewatch.'' Military and police career In January 2021, it was announced by Chief Superintendent Martin Fry that Wilding had joined British Transport Police as a detective. Yet, according to his LinkedIn profile, Wilding ended his service with the British Transport Police shortly after in March 2021. Television career Wilding had to go through numerous interviews and auditions as well as formal television presenter training. Having also auditioned for '' Blue Peter,'' he was offered a part on BBC ''Crimewatch,'' which he has appeared on since June 2004. After taking a period of unpaid leave, Wildi ...
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