What is Brazilian Zouk?
Brazilian Zouk is a Latin partner dance which began in Brazil in the early 90s and is characterised by a sense of ‘flow’ and extensive use of body isolation, counterbalance, and off-axis techniques.
History
Brazilian Zouk evolved from an earlier partner dance known as Lambada, which was very popular in Brazil in the 80’s (as seen in 80s films like Lambada). However, as Brazilians began to tire of the Lambada music genre, dancers turned to another type of music called Caribbean Zouk (from the francophone, Caribbean Islands) as their music of choice for dancing. It was from this mix of the Lambada dance style and Carribean Zouk music that the dance known as Brazilian Zouk was born! In order to dance to the new style of music, the Lambada dance had to evolve - changing the rhythm and style of its basic steps to adjust to the different beat and vibe. After being called many different names - including ‘Zouk Lambada’ and ‘LambaZouk’ - the term "Brazilian Zouk" was adopted in order to distinguish the dance style from both the Lambada style and the musical genre Caribbean Zouk. Nowadays the term "Zouk" is commonly used to refer to the "Brazilian Zouk" dance style.
Brazilian Zouk can be distinguished from other Latin styles by its emphasis on certain features within the dance:
To begin with…
Characteristic pattern of stepping on the 1, 3 and 4 of a bar - which often sounds in music as a “boom-boom-chic”
Less use of side-to-side hip movement, as characteristic of dances like Salsa and Bachata
Body movements, such as body rolls or rib cage isolations
At the more advanced levels…
More complex body movement and manipulation
Tilted turns and other off-axis techniques, such as ‘boneca’
Counter-balance techniques