In the late 1990s-early 2000s, Mike Minery was one of the most prolific and public faces of tap dance. Minery cut his teeth with tap dance companies New Jersey Tap Ensemble and Manhattan Tap, and taught at festivals and conventions around the world. His tap dance company, “Tapaholics,” has received rave reviews and helped launch the careers of some of the tap legends of the modern era. Many tap dancers own instructional tap dance video tapes, produced by Bob Rizzo, featuring Minery on the cover performing a signature step and accompanied by the catchphrase, “C’mon ‘n Shiggy Bop along with Mike!”
Presently, Minery has adapted to a more behind-the-scenes role, taking a position with DanceOne, the world’s largest family of dance brands, as Executive Director of their touring convention circuit. Despite now having a full-time job, Minery is not done dancing, and he returns to Chicago for a rare appearance in Giordano Dance Chicago’s upcoming “Ignite The Soul! Season 63” at the Harris Theater, April 10-11. Minery will premiere “My Kind of Girl,” a duet performed with GDC company dancer, Erina Ueda, on the same program as two other premiers: Emmy Award–winning Resident Choreographer Al Blackstone’s “Dumb Luck,” rooted in classic swing yet infused with contemporary flair, and “namuH,” by Colombian American performer and creator Jon Rua (original cast of “Hamilton,” choreographer for “Boop! The Musical”), described as a fusion of jazz dance, street styles, and urban funk sensibility. GDC rounds out the program with selections of audience favorites from their diverse repertoire.
For Minery, the choice of a duet is both necessary and serendipitous. “I’ve choreographed a lot of guy-girl duets,” says Minery. “My wife and I met tap dancing, so we’ve danced together many times—And my sister and I grew up dancing together, and we used to crush with our brother-sister duet in competitions.” A veteran competitor, Minery transitioned to Director of the successful JUMP and SLIDE dance conventions before assuming his role at DanceOne, which is where he began working with GDC Artistic Director, Nan Giordano, during an intercompany collaboration. Giordano approached Minery about setting a tap dance work on the company; there’s just one problem—GDC is not a tap dance company.
There was one who had the chops, company dancer Erina Ueda, who is versed in multiple styles, including tap dance. In “My Kind of Girl,” danced to the lighthearted, swinging jazz standard performed by Frank Sinatra and the Count Basie Orchestra, Minery draws from his influences, like the playful duets of Fred Astaire partnering with Ginger Rogers or Eleanor Powell, the carefree style of Gregory Hines, and the reservoir of rhythm gleaned from studying with tap dance masters of multiple generations.
“There’s a couple of steps that are heavily inspired by Gregory,” says Minery. “That’s probably the biggest reference in there.” Those familiar with Hines’ tap dancing will undoubtedly catch references, like spot turns, where the dancer explodes into a string of quick turns by pushing off with one foot and stopping sharply by putting the same foot down. Another reference is the cool toe drag, where Hines would move sideways on one leg while leaving the other leg limp and dragging the latter’s indolent toe behind supporting leg. The rest of the time, Minery uses his personal impression of Hines as an aesthetic guide. “He was a beacon of light in the tap dance community, for sure,” say Minery. “He enjoyed the way he danced. You could see it in all the movies. Just a confident performer.”
Inspiration from Classic Hollywood-era films from the 1930s–1950s comes through in the antecedent half of the work, a lighthearted tête-à-tête between Minery and Ueda. Minery’s voice raises with excitement as he describes the phrasing: “We flow in and out of double time,” says Minery. “There’s a lot of back and forth, playing off each other. We do a phrase—shaggadiggy do / sid-do di-do, diggy- / doo-goon, doo-goon diggy one-and two-and—the first part is in unison, then I take the one, two, and she takes the ‘ands.’” Their rhythmic conversation ends as Ueda takes off traveling in a wide circle, spinning, as Minery follows behind with a flurry of itinerant shuffles, a cat-and-mouse chase that captures the playfulness of those classic Hollywood musicals. “I do enjoy the dynamic of the old-school Fred & Ginger, Fred & Powell types of duets in the vein of the MGM stuff,” say Minery. “So, we’re playful; We’re Smiling; We’re having fun.” After that it’s off to the races, with the duo performing tricky time steps, slippery-looking slides, and a smorgasbord of references to other famous dancers.
With a full-time job and a family, Minery has had to limit his time on stage, but he is ready to tap when the chance arises. “It’s a little bit of a comeback for me,” says Minery. “I haven’t been on the stage for a while.” But tap dancers are notorious for their longevity, a fact that Minery knows through experience. “Tap dancing, you can do it at any age,” says Minery. “I toured with Buster Brown when he was in his eighties, and he was still crushing it. I’m forty-eight, and this is a nice opportunity, a goal to look [forward] to. Having this performance coming up has pushed me to get into the studio a lot more. I’m grateful to Nan for that.”
Tap dance and jazz dance share the same roots, and the inclusion of tap in GDC’s “Ignite The Soul!” furthers the company’s commitment to honoring the diaspora of jazz dance. As a prominent faculty member at multiple conventions and festivals, Minery has inspired two generations of tap dancers in Chicago and the surrounding areas, and this rare opportunity to see a genuine tap dance idol perform in person is sure to please fans old and new.
Giordano Dance Chicago presents “Ignite The Soul! Season 63” on April 10-11 at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph. Showtime for both performances is 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $36.80-$117.30. For more information, check out the event page by clicking HERE.
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