Feature Article   Profiles in Excellence: A Celebration of Dance Distrbuted By: Stop & Shop by Melissa Minners               February marks the celebration of Black History Month, a month in which we celebrate the contributions made to industry and culture by African-Americans in every aspect of our lives throughout history.  Stop & Shop, a national food chain, in conjunction with the Colgate-Palmolive Company, have been marking this celebration in various ways throughout the years on their websites and in Profiles of Excellence, a publication distributed in local Stop & Shop stores.  Issue 18 of Profiles in Excellence features A Celebration of Dance.             In this issue, the focus is on the ways in which African-Americans have influenced how we dance in America.  In Africa, dance has always been a part of culture and a way of life.  In the early days of the United States, African slaves kept up their cultural heritage through song and dance.  Unfortunately, many of the traditional dances of their heritage were prohibited by slave owners, but the slaves would not be daunted and learned ways around these prohibitions by modifying their dances.  Foot shuffling and hip swaying became a new way to express themselves through dance.             We soon discover that this foot shuffling and hip swaying became a prominent dance style in the 18th Century.  In the Eastern and Southern United States, blacks danced the ring shout which involved a circle of people shuffling and stomping their feet and swaying their hips as a part of Protestant worship, much the way West African religious ceremonies were performed.  Mating dances like the calenda and the chica and the agility and rhythm challenging juba also were influenced by this style.             Later, in the 19th and 20th Century, we learn that plantation dances became part of a popular form of entertainment known as minstrel shows, which featured music, dance and theatrical skits.  Performed by both blacks and whites, the minstrel shows introduced black dance to a much larger mixed audience in the 1800s.  As the 1900s rolled in, a sense of great pride and culture grew in the black community and so began the Harlem Renaissance.  Black musical theater continued to be one of the most popular way to introduce black dance traditions and allow those of all races to recognize the talent of the black performer.  Shows created by African-Americans and featuring all-African-American casts such as Shuffle Along, Runnin' Wild and Blackbirds of 1928 became immensely popular, as did Josephine Baker, one of the members of the chorus line in Shuffle Along.              As the years moved on, new dances were introduced like the Charleston, the Lindy Hop, the Jitterbug and the ever-popular Twist.  Tap dancing was created by combining elements of the shuffle dancing, clog dancing and jigs.  African-American influence moved forward into new areas of dance such as ballet and modern dance, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, created by African-American dancer and choreographer Alvin Ailey, being the most popular modern-dance company of the 20th Century.  Looking around us over the last two decades, we can see the influence of African-American history on many dances of the day, including break dancing and hip-hop.             Profiles in Excellence: A Celebration of Dance  is 10 pages filled with pictures and compelling tales of history.  The publication is available free of charge at all Stop & Shop locations and on their website at www.stopandshop.com.  What a great way to teach the leaders of tomorrow important lessons about the influence African-Americans have had on the way we dance today.   For feedback, visit our message board or e-mail the author at talonkarrde@g-pop-net.