Contemporary+Dance

=**A Story Without Words**=

Upon hearing the word "dance," the mind may conjure up a picture of French girls standing beside a barre in pink tights and black leotards. But more recently, a different picture has started to arise: one of a dance without shoes or artistic boundaries and with a looser view on technique. We call this new vision contemporary dance. Contemporary dance combines the arts of classical ballet, lyrical dance, and jazz to create a new "free" type of movement that has grown even more popular in the last half a century. Contemporary dance has not only opened new doors for different artists and dancers, but also has created new opportunities for artistic expression.


 * Modern, or contemporary, dance was started in the early 20th century in Europe. Classical ballet dancers wanted to challenge the tight constraints of ballet and break into something new. This dance style also developed in America at about the same time. The name of the style is almost as flexible as the actual dancers. Other names for contemporary dance include modern, jazz, lyrical, free, and expressionist dance. But no matter what people call it, the dance remains the same. Contemporary dance includes many elements of classical ballet while still keeping the modern feel to it. The music chosen for the piece often creates and emphasizes the moderness of the dance. Thus, a ballet piece with some modern movements added performed to an alternative rock song may still be considered a contemporary piece. The defining characteristics of contemporary dance are as follows: || [[image:sch200210030635-012.jpg]] ||

Intense emotion between all dancers and the audience. There has to be a connection between the story being told through the dance and the audience. Lots of dancing having to do with the floor. This characterization of contemporay dance leaves room for interpretation. It could mean that the dancer is trying to portray a person who has an innocent nature, has had previous experiences to make them "fallen," or just wants to stay "grounded". Fluid movement creates a contemporary piece, while choppy and "chunky" movements make the dance a hip-hop routine. Freedom of interpretation hides at the core of this style. At a dance recital, the program may contain some background information on the basic "plot" of the dance while the rest is up to the audience to decipher. This connection between audience and dancer has made contemporary dance a popular dance style today. Many people can relate to a dance because of the highly adaptable and interpretive feel to the piece. Audiences consisder contemporary dance to be one of the most beautiful and inspirational styles of dances. The story told may be uplifting and give people hope.

The best thing about contemporary dance is that most anyone can do it. Not everyone can do the splits, but regardless, the flexibility of the dance style means that anything goes. As the African Proverb says: "If you can talk, you can sing. If you can walk, you can dance."