Where is the best place to find information about the Fox trot? Encyclopedia Americana, Britannica.com, Wikipedia? These are all good places to start looking.
Each source has the same essential information. What’s the difference?
Encyclopedia Americana and Britannica.com have the same information. They list the “suggested origins” – Harry Fox, Vernon and Irene Castle. What the dance entails (what steps are involved in the dance). They both mention that the fox trot was originally based off ragtime or black folk dancing.
Wikipedia seems to have more information. They show both sides of the dance (men and women), who takes what step when. While the other entries mentioned the steps involved they did not show how the steps connected with the dancers. Wikipedia also lists more possible origins of the dance.
The history of the dance is more detailed on the Wikipedia site. We even get a glimpse of the popularity of the dance throughout the birth of Rock and Roll.
All of the updates on this Wikipedia entry are moderated by WikiProject Dance. If changes are made, this group will make sure that the information is accurate. With Britannica.com, changes can not be made to the actual entry, but comments can be posted. Unfortunately, all comments must be approved by the site’s editors. Even if your comment is insightful and provides more information about the topic, other may not see you post if the editors don’t approve. With Wikipedia, the entry will remain for all eyes as long as the moderators agree with the content posted.
Here’s a little example of the Fox trot from the nation wide sensation – Dancing With The Stars
