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1. Noah, Beyonce's choreography is a variation of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon's "Mexican Breakfast," which originally aired in the 1960's. You can see the original on YouTube.

   It's also not the first time Beyonce has ripped Fosse off, she previously lifted a dance number from "Sweet Charity" for her "Get Me Bodied" video.

   Beyonce claimes it's "inspiration." I call it lack of originality.

   Posted by: Matty | Dec 30, 2008 2:13:46 PM

   
   

2. I don't think he was lip-syncing; he was singing along with the song like the rest of us!

   Posted by: Stephanie | Dec 30, 2008 4:03:56 PM

   
   

3. Sick of the song, sick of the dance, sick of the people who think I want to see them copy the girl who copied the dance.

   Posted by: Meanwhile | Dec 30, 2008 4:07:58 PM

   
   

4. "It's also not the first time Beyonce has ripped Fosse off"

   Beyonce has been open about the fact that the video was a tribute to Fosse and Gwen. What's the big deal? Artists do that in videos all the time. Madonna has done it with Marilyn Monroe and others; I guess Michael Jackson "ripped off" James Brown and Fred Astaire; and, of course, Usher, Timberlake, Chris Brown have ripped off Jackson, I guess. Very little out there on videos today, especially choreography, hasn't been done before by someone else.

   Posted by: sydney jane | Dec 30, 2008 4:15:26 PM

   
   

5. Fierce????? omg are the gays STILL using that one. What's the expiration date on overused ridiculous phrases?

   Further more what's with the gays constantly trying to imatate females can they not try something original. Talk about vag envy.

   Posted by: Letterman | Dec 30, 2008 5:49:53 PM

   
   

6. Only a few parts are gwens most of it was original work which came from J Setting a gay black club dance style

   Posted by: Rooney | Dec 30, 2008 6:01:33 PM

   
   

7. Please allow me to provide some perspective on this matter from a dance historian's point of view.

   Fosse and Verdon deserve great recognition for those aspects of their work that appear in Beyonce's video choreography for "Single Ladies".

   At the same time, it is important to point out that the choreography for the video largely draws from a distinct African American GLBT set-dance popularly called "J-setting" that became popular in young black gay clubs (and many a bedroom) since 2001.

   Thanks to youtube.com, amateur historians (and the occasional professional dance analysts) can compare j-setting clips to Beyonce's nd her many followers' interpretations.

   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-QRjkmLEuE

   This link's sidebar will take you to many more examples.

   A "set dance (or set-dance)" is a social dance term that sometimes refers to the relationship between performers in the group--or the degree to which their configurations are based on "set" patterns.

   Set dances from a host of different cultures and communities often involve sophisticated contrapuntal relationships between the dancers (meaning counterpoint is established; think of a "round" in which phrases of movement overlap or intersect).

   Square dancing involves set-dance. The 70s hustle and roller rink dance patterns sometimes involved set dance. The hand-off configurations of breakdancers and boogalooers in a competitive circle or line dance sometimes involved set patterns. And the "productions" of voguers at black/latino ball competitions (still going strong all over the country) often involve set dance patterns.

   It takes time for the complex living history of these dance traditions to be accurately identified, analyzed and documented. I think it's wonderful that popular music has exposed this dancing to mainstream audiences.

   My only sadness is that choreographers and the original groups that invent this artistry with the great force of their intelligence and ingenuity are not often given consistent written credit for what they do.

   Happy new year to everyone!

   Posted by: Jonathan David Jackson | Dec 31, 2008 12:42:11 AM

   
   

8. Jonathan David Jackson,

   spare me. if you want to say that all ART is derivative, fine. i will grant you that. but for you to try to categorize this as any other than a rip-off, makes both you and she disingenuous.

   Posted by: nic | Dec 31, 2008 3:22:25 PM

   
   

9. Limber! *drool*

   Posted by: Wheezy | Jan 1, 2009 10:27:00 AM

   
   

10. NIC: We actually are in agreement.

    If you read my comment carefully I went out of my way to say that Beyonce's choreographer "ripped off" many sources in the video for her "Single Ladies" song. My point was that Fosse wasn't the only source of the ripping off. J-setting was another source too.

    It's funny...very few things in pop culture are original. Mass media is a rip off at its root.

    So, NIC, we agree and I respect your opinion and the salty way that you put it.

    Happy new year!

    Posted by: Jonathan David Jackson | Jan 12, 2009 2:52:57 AM

    
    

11. I have attended theater and live concerts for years and every generation copies. However if the output is entertaining and not a poor version of the original I personally think it is fantastic as is this version. The dance, costumes, and the men are absolutely magnificent and I would pay to see them live.

    Posted by: Lois | Feb 5, 2009 9:29:57 PM

    
    
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