The Big Apple Visit

The dancers use the 6-count when they are dancing the shag. 

  

The Big Apple was founded in 1937 after the building was originally a synagogue. There are still details of Jewish symbols in the building today. There is a Star of David in the ceiling of the building. 

During 1937, the Big Apple dance had become very popular among African American students at the University of South Carolina and they practiced it at the building in Columbia. The dance made its way up to New York thanks to these students. 

After the building was abandoned in 1979, it moved to its location today which is the corner of Hampton and Park Street. The Historic Columbia Foundation acquired it in 1993 and it is used today for rental uses.

 

 The Shag started in New York in the 1940s, but South Carolinians adapted it in the 1940s. It is a version of swing dancing and is the state dance for both South and North Carolina.