Dance: Topics in Dance and Dance History

Research topics in dance and dance history can be rich combinations of influences and subjects. You can begin to develop your topic with a specific style in mind, such as ballet or tap, or specific techniques such as en pointe or gancho. Combining techniques and styles in a particular place or period of time is a common way to develop a more complex research topic.

It is easy to develop complex topics further by also considering a specific time period, a specific location, or specific practitioners. Who are some of Mexico's women dancers and what are key features in their work? What are differences in the hip hop dance of Los Angeles and New York City?

In the study of dance history, styles and periods are central concepts in the discipline. Distinct historical time periods such as Baroque, Medieval, and Renaissance are organizing concepts used to describe significant periods artistic activity. Other important organizing concepts refer to stylist attributes, such as Mannerist, Gothic, or Moderne. Sometimes specific groups of dancers give rise to a school of work that refers both to stylistic or philosophical tendencies called movements or genres.

Before you begin your research, brainstorm keywords that will help you locate relevant material.

Examples of styles and techniques:

• aplomb (ballet)
• enpointe (ballet)
• bourree (ballet)
• Guapacha timing (ballroom)
• Promenade position (ballroom)
• Headspin (hip-hop)
• The worm (hip-hop)
• jazz piroutte (turn)
• grand jete (leap)
• Graham (Contemporary dance technique)

Examples of forms and genres:

• Jig
• Waltz
• Tango
• Disco
• Ballroom
• Electonica
• Hip-hop
• Ballet
• Tap
• Modern
  

 Examples of periods and styles:

• Medieval
• Renaissance
• Baroque
• English Regency
• Polka craze (mid 19th century)
• Ragtime
• Roaring twenties
• Swing (30's and 40's)
• Contemporary
• Street
  

• The Dance; Historic Illustrations of Dancing from 3300 B.C. to 1911 A.D.
  "It is hoped that this work may be of some use illustrating the costume, position and accessories of the dance in various periods." Text accompanies the images.To download a complete copy of this text yourself, visit http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/17289 .
• Society of Dance History Research - Resources
  A list of websites which are relevant to specific periods of dance history, beginning with the Medieval and Renaissance periods in Europe. Also some general dance websites.
• A History of Social Dance in America
  Article discusses 18th and 19th century American dance, its origins, and social roles, as well as types of dance, dance etiquette and fashion. Text is accompanied by images taken from dance programs, manuals, sheet music and periodicals of the era.
• An American Ballroom Companion: Dance Instruction Manuals, ca. 1490-1920
  From the Library of Congress, over 200 social dance manuals. Includes dance instruction manuals, as well as a significant number of antidance manuals, histories, treatises on etiquette, and more.
• History of Modern Dance (video)
  Brief preview version of a full-length documentary. Dance historians, modern dance instructors, and choreographers trace the evolution of modern dance and postmodern dance.
• 500 Years of Italian Dance: Treasures from the Cia Fornaroli Collection
  This exhibit from the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts focuses on the Cia Fornaroli Collection which covers Italian dance history from the Renaissance to the early twentieth century.