Para Para
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Para Para (Japanese: パラパラ; also "Para-Para" or "ParaPara") is a popular Japanese solo dance. Unlike most club dancing and rave dancing, there are specific, preset movements for each song, and everyone does the same moves at once, much like line dancing. Para Para is said to have existed since the 1970s, but did not achieve much popularity outside of Japan until recently.[citation needed] Today, it is known throughout the world, especially the Pacific Rim.
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[edit] Description
Para Para is performed using mostly arm movements; very little lower body movement is involved save for perhaps moving one's hips or stepping in place, although a few routines require more detailed leg motions. It has been speculated that it is a descendant of the traditional Bon Odori dance.[citation needed] The dances are performed to fast, upbeat music such as Eurobeat. Fans of Para Para dancing often call themselves "Paralists".
[edit] Variants
Some variants of Para Para are also present such as TechPara (which would be danced to Hyper Techno techno) and TraPara (which would be danced to trance). This is also known as Torapara.
[edit] Popular culture
Para Para experienced a huge boom in Japan in 1998–1999 when pop idol Takuya Kimura of SMAP performed it on television. It was such a great impact that even Mickey Mouse danced it in Tokyo Disneyland. People in Mickey Mouse and other Tokyo Disneyland costumes appeared on television dancing it with Takuya Kimura.
The Japanese video game company Konami has released a series of video games called ParaParaParadise as part of its Bemani series of music-based games. The game features an octagonal platform with motion detecting sensors above it. Players must trigger the sensors by moving their arms (or other body parts) under the sensors when a corresponding arrow reaches the top of the screen placed at the front of the platform.
Para Para Sakura, a film starring Aaron Kwok, features some Para Para dancing in the context of a romantic plot. The theme song for the film, Para Para Sakura, is not related to any form of Para Para based music. Paralists do not consider the film to be of any relation to the original Para Para.
In one episode of Dragon Ball GT, Goku, his granddaughter Pan, their friend Trunks, and even the robot Giru are put under a Para Para-type dance by the three Para Para Brothers.
In a number of Ayumi Hamasaki's concerts, Ayumi teached her fans the routines for her songs 'Trauma' and 'independent' and gets her fans to dance them along with her.
In School Rumble Ni Gakki, Tenma does the para para in Episode 17 to try to ruin an arranged marriage between Sawachika Eri and an unnamed groom.
In the anime Super Gals!, para para dancing is a popular pastime for the main character, Kotobuki Ran.
[edit] Current trends
In April of 2005, the Para Para dance for "Dragostea Din Tei" was aired on the popular show SMAP in Japan, which created the boom in 1998. To replace the Para Para Paradise video series, there is now the Gazen Para Para!! series with CDs and DVDs. The series is marketed to younger teens using popular ganguro models from Egg magazine. Recent events in 2005 included the Super Eurobeat Vol.160 CD Release event, and Avex Rave 2005 held on August 20, 2005 Velfarre, sponsored by avex trax. 3 American paralists under the name American Dream took part. Another American dance team called Paralization Globalization performed in Tokyo in the summer of 2005, at Starfire and B-1 Dynamite, which are extremely popular club events in the para para scene. Also, a DJ from the club Velfarre, attended an anime convention in Texas during the summer of 2005 to help promote parapara. As a result of these efforts, Para Para has regained its popularity in Japan; however, it has failed to become a new trend there partly due to numerous factors, one of which includes the Super Free case.
In United States, Geneon Entertainment has released the Para Para MAX US Mix series of CDs. The discs contain remixes of anime theme music from Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gunbuster and many other different anime productions. Volumes 1, 2 and 3 were released in August, October, and December 2005, respectively. Geneon also holds contests to promote the CD and its anime series. 2005's contest was held at Otakon on 20 August 2005.
