So, Matt thinks the video for "Single Ladies" is boring, and derivative of Bob Fosse. It's certainly the latter, and I don't think anyone's ever denied that or tried to minimize it. I disagree on the former, which I thought did more to save the dance video as a concept than anything else this decade: it was clean, precise, and ferocious. I say that as someone who hates most dance videos. And it's formed the basis for a number of totally astonishing live performances by Beyonce. Here she is on Saturday Night Live last November:
And last night at the Music Video Awards:
I don't necessarily know that the video should get credit for what it inspires, but I think it's undeniable that the video and the performances based on it kicked up the public sense of Beyonce as a performance. And I think "Single Ladies" is particularly relevant in the context of last night's Michael Jackson tribute, which I found both unnerving and moving:
It's rare to see people who can move enough like another person that they can seem to inhabit them completely--even rarer when the person performing the facsimile is the sister of the man who's gone. I'm still processing what I think this tribute means for how we view Janet Jackson as an entertainer in the context of Michael's parallel, and sometimes overshadowing, success. But I think it says something about the power of iconic dance performances. We may not be able to imitate someone's vocals, much less sing their songs on key. But if we can learn to follow, quite literally, in their footsteps, we can take on some of their physical power and expression. And when the dancing is as good as it is any of these performances, the power of movement is considerable.