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Concept
Sirtaki
Summary
Sirtaki or syrtaki (συρτάκι) is a dance of Greek origin, choreographed for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. It is a recent Greek folkdance, and a mixture of "syrtos" and the slow and fast rhythms of the hasapiko dance. The dance and the accompanying music by Mikis Theodorakis are also called Zorba's dance, the Zorba or "the dance of Zorba". The dance has become popular in Greece and one that is identified with the Greeks, becoming an "invented tradition".
The name sirtaki comes from the Greek word syrtos – from σύρω (τον χορό), which means "drag (the dance)" or "lead (the dance)" – a common name for a group of traditional Greek dances of so-called "dragging" style, as opposed to pidikhtos (πηδηχτός), a hopping or leaping style. Despite its name, sirtaki incorporates both syrtos (in its slower part) and pidikhtós (in its faster part) elements.
The dance was created specifically for the film Zorba the Greek rather than a traditional form of dance. The name sirtaki suggests it was created based on a traditional Cretan dance form "syrtos", a type of dance where the dancers drag their feet instead of hopping, however, the dance incorporates both a slower hasapiko dance style, and a faster hasaposerviko style. The dance is therefore an amalgamation of three different dance styles. It also has some characteristics of the zeybek dance. The choreography of the dance for the film has been attributed to Giorgos Provias.
During the filming of Zorba the Greek, Stelios Katsivelakis taught choreography to Anthony Quinn (although another dancer teacher contests this. claiming that several dancers, including himself, were involved in teaching Quinn), including various Greek dances such as the Kalamatianos, Chaniotikos syrtos (syrtos of Chania), pentozali with the psalidia (scissor-like) movements, and hasapiko. The zeibekiko was initially omitted, as the director felt it was not a suitable dance for a non-Greek and that the hasapiko looked better on screen.
Official source
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