Topic outline of dance

:"For a more comprehensive list, see the List of dance topics."

Dance generally refers to human movement (the motion of human beings) either used as a form of expression or presented in a social, spiritual or performance setting. Choreography is the art of making dances, and the person who does this is called a choreographer. Definitions of what constitutes dance are dependent on social, cultural, aesthetic, artistic and moral constraints and range from functional movement (such as Folk dance) to codified, virtuoso techniques such as ballet.

The following topic outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to dance:

Essence of dance

Dance categories

The categories below are not mutually exclusive. For example, tango is doubtless a "partner dance". While it is mostly "social dance", its ballroom form may be "competitive dance", especially within DanceSport. At the same time it is enjoyed as "performance dance", whereby it may well be a "solo dance". There are tangos among round dances, and certainly "participation dances" can involve tango mixers. One might remember that at times it was a forbidden erotic dance. Finally, some try to trace its roots to African "ceremonial dances". Not to say that tango dance reaches beyond these categories: into ice dancing, burlesque and more.

Dance categories by number of interacting dancers

:Solo dance -Partner dance -Group dance

Dance categories by main purpose

:Ceremonial dance - - Erotic dance - Participation dance - Performance dance - Social dance - Concert dance

History of dance

Dance technique

:Choreography - Connection - Dance moves - Lead and follow - Musicality - Dance theory

Dance topics

:Dance etiquette - History of dance - Dance in mythology and religion - Dance in film - Dance music - Dance and health - Dance and society - Dance notation - Dance science

Dancers

:List of dancers - List of dance personalities

Glossaries

:Glossary of partner dance terms - Glossary of dance moves - Musical terminology - Glossary of ballet terms

Dance-related lists

*List of ballroom and social dance albums
*List of dance organizations
*List of dance style categories
*List of dance topics
*List of dance wikibooks
*General index list of dances
*List of DanceSport dances
*List of folk dances sorted by origin
*List of New York City Ballet repertory
*List of novelty and fad dances
*

See also

: Arts - Dance - Dance film - Dance music - Hobby - Music - Musical film - Musical terminology - Performing arts - Recreation

External links

* [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/17289 Historic Illustrations of Dancing from 3300 B.C. to 1911 A.D.] from Project Gutenberg
* [http://www.dancemuseum.org/ United States National Museum of Dance and Hall of Fame]