Dance is the art of expressively move the body following rhythmic movements, in general to the sound of music.
The primitive people started the art of dancing and practiced it on different occasions: during the harvest period, in the rituals to the gods, at hunting times, at weddings, in moments of joy or sadness, or even, in honor of the mother nature. It is considered the most complete of the arts, as it involves artistic elements such as music, theater, painting and sculpture, being able to express both the simplest and the strongest emotions.
The meaning of dance goes beyond artistic expression and can be seen as a means to acquire knowledge, as a leisure option, a source of pleasure, development of creativity and an important way of Communication. Through dance, a person can express their state of mind. The dance can be accompanied by percussion or melodic instruments, or by reading different texts.
Dance has had a strong influence on societies over time. As a way of socialization and dissemination of culture, it provided the world with knowledge about the cultural diversity of different peoples around the world, especially through folk dances.
In schools, dance is part of the Physical Education area. As an academic discipline, dance integrates different university courses related to Arts and Humanities. It is also a modality widely practiced in gyms and clubs to maintain physical and mental health.
THE belly dance, was originally practiced by women in North Africa and Western and Southern Asia. This type of dance has as its main characteristic the rhythmic movement of the hips and belly muscles. Originally, this dance was an integral part of the fertility ritual, however, nowadays the connection with fertility is not so common, being seen as an artistic, cultural and professional.
There are several types of dance, such as street dance, funk, kuduro, which are types of folk dance. At folk dances are dances specific to a particular country and culture. There are so many folk dances that it's hard to come up with a complete list of them all.
The program "Famous dance" is a program where the contestants are celebrities and have to prepare performances in different types of dance, being evaluated by a jury and by the viewers.
“get into the dance” is a popular expression that means getting involved in some subject, being part of some risky business.
ballroom dances
Ballroom dances emerged in Italy between the 15th and 16th centuries and are characterized by precise and elegant movements. From the 17th century onwards, French-style ballroom dancing gained more popularity and with the French Revolution it lost its ceremonial aspect, becoming freer.
The influence of the American continent on ballroom dancing gained strength in the 20th century, with dances such as tango (Buenos Aires), foxtrot, O Charleston, a rumba, etc. After World War II, the mambo, O tea Tea Tea, the samba and the twist.
See too: types of dance and The Types of Art.
Origin and history of dance
Dance is one of the oldest forms of expression of feelings used by Man. In the Paleolithic period it is possible to find paintings of people dancing. There are also several cave paintings from Prehistory in which there are demonstrations of dances in circles and in rows.
In ancient times, the Bible makes reference to various sacred or profane dances, such as King David (2 Samuel 6:14) and prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:26). In Egypt there were funeral dances, harvest dances and worship dances (in worship of Osiris, for example).
Christianity tried to combat dancing as a ritual of idolatry. Despite this, the Church did not prohibit all forms of dancing, and some dances performed in processions were allowed.
During the Renaissance, many popular dances became more stylized and artistic dance schools emerged from the 15th century onwards.
