Savion Glover Finds His Funk
A TRUE TALE WITH
A CHERRY ON TOP
Holiday House
(pub.3.28.2023) 40 pages
Author: Selene Castrovilla
Illustrator: Laura Freeman
Character: Savion Glover
Overview:
" This is a story about tap dancing, a distinctly American art form that blended English-Scottish-Irish clog dancing with African tribal dancing. And it’s about a boy, Savion Glover — who was born to feel the music—to dance and perform and invent. And to delight and awe audiences with the movements of his body.
Savion Glover revitalized modern tap dancing with his jazz and hip-hop influenced 'free-form hard core”style. From his appearances on Sesame Street and choreographing Happy Feet to his Tony award-winning musical Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk, Savion has inspired a new generation of tap dancers."
Tantalizing taste:
"Mixin' it up
in a hip-hop club,
Savion found
his groove
'Da beat
swirled through him,
boppin' round his body
like a challenge
to be met
Only one choice:
let it loose
His feet hammered out
those feelin's inside:
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!
BAH, BUH,
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM,
TIGGITY, SWIGGITY,
TAGGITY, BAGGITY,
SWEET,
SWEET,
SWEET!
And something more: The AFTERWORD explains: "Savion loved to perform, but something was missing. He wasn't bringing his essence to the audience. He was dancing to someone else's beat. How could he be himself on stage? The solution hit him one night at a hip- hop club. Why not tap to today's rhythms? Funk grooved through Savion, bopping round his body like a challenge to be met. He responded instantly, stomping out the feelings stirring up inside of him. Tap meets hip-hop...
In Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk, Savion used tap and hip-hop to trace racism's roots- to which the origin of tap is linked. Slaves created rhythms to communicate with each other secretly when their drums were forbidden. Portraying "'da Beat," Savion danced through some of history's darker moments."