Saturday, February 27, 2010

Dance, if you must.

There has been a breakout of dancing of late and I would like to express my outrage. What do these ne'er do wells think they are trying to accomplish.

As a hardcore blogalist, I researched this phenomenon and here is what I can report.

On July 26, 2009, 3 separate flash mobs of approximately 200 reportedly broke out in Paris. Reportedly there are approximately 7 dancers in the mix. The rest of the crowd just joined, singing and dancing "Beat It." A young man in yellow t-shirt and tennis hat appears to be the ring leader, dancing and snapping his fingers, emulating the Michael Jackson signature leg fling.(Don't pretend you haven't tried it.)

Dancing, hips gyrating, hands clapping. Singing out of tune. Then, as quickly as it began, the song ended, and the dancers dispersed. A shocking display of fun and entertainment.

Another flash mob reportedly broke out in December 2009 in a Lisbon airport, no less, adding to the security risks of every day folk. A man dressed as Santa appeared to be the ring leader. (Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-G5c2qxwlY&NR=1)

Then most recently, a flash mob broke out in Rio airport, during Carnival. Once again, hips shaking, dancing, sambas and short skirts.

The infamous Oprah kick off flash mob, lead by the Black Eyed Peas singing "I got a feeling" is also worth noting, suggesting that perhaps there is a corporate application in the flash mob dance strategy.

One girl in the front caused a ripple effect. At first, one wonders if she is having a convulsion, but then it becomes apparent. A dance has been planned and carefully executed. Hundreds of people broke out into dance, no doubt clogging traffic, upsetting the people and generally interfering with commerce.

I've got a feeling this is rampant. If you google "flash mob dance" you will find 7 pages of examples of when and where these outbreaks have occurred. No word from officials as to a response to this.

Is entertainment making its way into our daily lives? Can we stop it? What will happen to productivity if these people are distracting workers from working and customers from spending their money? What about security costs? Do we need a policy on how to institute a flash mob in public places? Are decision makers worried?

All good questions, but no answers as of yet. I can only guess that more jocularity will continue until this outburst of fun and frivolity is addressed.

No comments: