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Sep 18, 2024 · Dance, the movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for the purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the movement itself. Learn more about the history, styles, and aesthetics of dance in this article.
- Drama
Dance - Drama, Expression, Movement: Throughout history...
- Theatre Dance
Dance - Theatre, Performance, Expression: Ballet has been...
- Theatrical Elements
Dance - Choreography, Movement, Expression: Music, design,...
- Differences Among Dancers
Dance - Styles, Movements, Techniques: However rigorous and...
- Choreography
Choreography, the art of creating and arranging dances. The...
- Music
Dance - Music, Movement, Expression: Many of the terms used...
- Set and Design
Dance - Set, Design, Performance: Just as music can enhance...
- The Aesthetics of Dance
Dance - Movement, Expression, Art: One of the most basic...
- Drama
- Overview
- Basic motives: self-expression and physical release
One of the most basic motives of dance is the expression and communication of emotion. People—and even certain animals—often dance as a way of releasing powerful feelings, such as sudden accesses of high spirits, joy, impatience, or anger. These motive forces can be seen not only in the spontaneous skipping, stamping, and jumping movements often performed in moments of intense emotion, but also in the more formalized movements of “set” dances, such as tribal war dances or festive folk dances. Here the dance helps to generate emotions as well as release them.
People also dance for the pleasure of experiencing the body and the surrounding environment in new and special ways. Dance often involves movement being taken to an extreme, with, for example, the arms being flung or stretched out, the head lifted back, and the body arched or twisted. Also, it often involves a special effort or stylization, such as high kicks, leaps, or measured walks. Dance movements tend to be organized into a spatial or rhythmic pattern, tracing lines or circles on the ground, following a certain order of steps, or conforming to a pattern of regular accents or stresses.
All of these characteristics may produce a state of mind and body that is very different from that of everyday experience. The dance requires unaccustomed patterns of muscular exertion and relaxation as well as an unusually intense or sustained expenditure of energy. The dancer may become intensely aware of the force of gravity and of a state of equilibrium or disequilibrium that normal activities do not generate. At the same time, the dance creates a very different perception of time and space for the dancer: time is marked by the rhythmic ordering of movement and by the duration of the dance, and space is organized around the paths along which the dancer travels or around the shapes made by the body.
Dance can, in fact, create a completely self-contained world for dancers, in which they are capable of physical effort, prowess, and endurance far beyond their normal powers. Sufi dervishes, as an extreme example, can whirl ecstatically for long stretches of time without appearing tired or giddy, and certain Indonesian dancers can strike daggers against their naked chests without causing apparent pain or injury.
One of the most basic motives of dance is the expression and communication of emotion. People—and even certain animals—often dance as a way of releasing powerful feelings, such as sudden accesses of high spirits, joy, impatience, or anger. These motive forces can be seen not only in the spontaneous skipping, stamping, and jumping movements often performed in moments of intense emotion, but also in the more formalized movements of “set” dances, such as tribal war dances or festive folk dances. Here the dance helps to generate emotions as well as release them.
People also dance for the pleasure of experiencing the body and the surrounding environment in new and special ways. Dance often involves movement being taken to an extreme, with, for example, the arms being flung or stretched out, the head lifted back, and the body arched or twisted. Also, it often involves a special effort or stylization, such as high kicks, leaps, or measured walks. Dance movements tend to be organized into a spatial or rhythmic pattern, tracing lines or circles on the ground, following a certain order of steps, or conforming to a pattern of regular accents or stresses.
All of these characteristics may produce a state of mind and body that is very different from that of everyday experience. The dance requires unaccustomed patterns of muscular exertion and relaxation as well as an unusually intense or sustained expenditure of energy. The dancer may become intensely aware of the force of gravity and of a state of equilibrium or disequilibrium that normal activities do not generate. At the same time, the dance creates a very different perception of time and space for the dancer: time is marked by the rhythmic ordering of movement and by the duration of the dance, and space is organized around the paths along which the dancer travels or around the shapes made by the body.
Dance can, in fact, create a completely self-contained world for dancers, in which they are capable of physical effort, prowess, and endurance far beyond their normal powers. Sufi dervishes, as an extreme example, can whirl ecstatically for long stretches of time without appearing tired or giddy, and certain Indonesian dancers can strike daggers against their naked chests without causing apparent pain or injury.
Feb 12, 2021 · The .ART of Dance is a performing art form. It transmits culture, emotions , tells stories and can be a testimony of a historical moment or a place of origin. Energy exults out of the performance of a succession of gesture.
Dec 7, 2021 · Learn about the importance of contemporary dance as an art form through a brief exploration of its history, influences, and techniques. Contemporary dance blends elements of multiple dance styles and lets dancers express emotionality through movements and breath.
Sep 18, 2024 · Dance - Movement, Expression, Art: In Western theatre-dance traditions, notably ballet and modern dance, the most recurrent clash of principles has been over the question of expression.
Nov 18, 2021 · Dance has been part of human history since its earliest origins, bringing transcendence to spiritual rituals and creating bonds within communities. Dance styles have changed through history, but dance itself remains one of the most expressive physical art forms.
Dance is an art form, often classified as a sport, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. [nb 1] Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements or by its historical period or place of origin. [3]
