THE HISTORY OF DANCE.

THE HISTORY OF DANCE💃

Continue to read this teaching wiki to discover a quick history of dance you can tell to your children to get them excited for their dance lessons!

It’s believed that the oldest proof of the existence of dance is from paintings that were found in caves in India, created 9000 years ago. These paintings show various scenes of communal drinking, religious rites, hunting, childbirth, burials and, of course, dancing.

By looking at the tomb paintings that survived Egyptian times, it was believed that priests used musical instruments and dancers to show important events, stories of gods, and cosmic patterns of moving stars and sun.

In Ancient Greece dance was often enjoyed by the public, most notably just before the Olympic Games, as early as 8th century B.C!

Dance developed further over the following centuries, and it became an activity for everyone, not just to signal a ritual or event. A painting discovered from 1400 B.C.showed people dancing to entertain each other, supported by musicians.

This kind of entertainment continued to be refined, and at the beginning of the Renaissance, ballet became a popular form of dance for the wealthy to enjoy. During this time, new forms of music were created, and they brought about a change in fashion and dance styles. The tendency to jump and skip in dance became popular after the French Revolution and this was when the famous waltz was created.

The waltz inspired the creation of many complicated two-person ‘ballroom dances’ that children will recognise today. These paved the way for more modern dances in the 20th century such as the foxtrot, tango and swing dances

Types of dance genres

As you’ve read, dance has changed a lot since the time we understand it to have been created (9000 years ago!) There are many different types of dance genres in today’s society, with more being developed all the time. One thing is for sure, new types of dance always draw upon features of dance genres that have come before - whether they use a particular type of music or beat, have strict choreography or are open to interpretation.

Here are some of the most popular types of dance genre that children will see performed today:

 

• Ballet - Ballet was developed during the Italian Renaissance and is a choreographed dance set to classical music. 

• Contemporary - Contemporary dance was created in the mid-twentieth century. It draws on classical, modern and jazz dance styles, and is the most popular form of dance studied today.

• Tap Dance - Tap dancing is often performed as part of musical theatre and focuses on timing, with dancers often performing in unison.

• Ballroom - Ballroom dance is a partner dance like the waltz, tango and foxtrot. It is a popular form of competitive dance with competitions held all around the world.

• Hip Hop - Hip Hop or Street dance dates back to the late 1970s and draws upon the fashion and music of America at the time. Street dance can be a competitive dance, with groups challenging each other to a dance battle.

*Jazz - Jazz dancing is known for its improvisational and dramatic body movements. The Lindy Hop and the Charleston dance are popular types of jazz dance.

• Folk Dance - Folk dancing is used all around the world to convey emotion and traditional stories or legends.

• Irish Dance - Irish dancing requires precision and excellent timing as all dancers perform intricate footwork together - often in a line.

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