LAUGH

Abstract

AbstractThe LAUGH chapter first looks at two parodies of Maddie Ziegler in Sia’s “Chandelier” video: the first features talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel and the second is a YouTube mash-up of Star Wars and “Chandelier.” Both draw attention to Ziegler’s viral dancing face to generate laughter. While the first takes an uncritical stance on the original to pursue commercial interests, the second offers a radical interpretation of the original which pushes back against the hold of the mainstream media. The second part of the chapter turns to hip hop battles in which dancers deride or laugh with their opponents to tickle the crowd. Although breaking is often perceived as an aggressive dance practice, the author shows how breakers laugh in the face of their opponents through a corporeal clowning that creates communities of laughter. The chapter develops the idea of a cathartic laugh as each example offers some degree of emotional release.