BRIEF HISTORTY

AND
NATURE OF DANCE
WHAT IS DANCE?

• Differs from athletics or other daily activities because it focuses primarily on “an aesthetic or even
entertaining experience.
• It provided variety of functions throughout the history due to its multidimensionality. Although there
have been immense comparative differences in period and culture, people still dance mainly for
four reason.
1. to please Gods
2. to please others
3. self- expression
4. to build community within an ethnic group or social interaction
Do You Know Where Dances Come From?
 Dance can be seen among all the people and civilization of
the worlds.

Dances thrived at different periods of history and mostly were

a result of intercultural exchange and contact.

The origins of dance are rooted in the pre historic past.

Various artistic, religious, and social forces started out the

incorporation and development of dance.
 PRE HISTORIC PERIOD
• Major form of religious ritual and social expression
• Used as way of expressing and reinforcing tribal unity and strength
• As an approach for courtship and mating
• As means of worship, communication and therapeutic experience.
• It was said that the first use of dance was a gesture in order to communicate.
• People from this era performed ways they hoped would appease the forces of nature or give
them new powers of their own.
• As Kraus and Gaufman (1981) said, “ man danced originally to supplicate the Gods on all
important occasions of life”.
 ANCIENT EGYPT
• Dance become full blown and was richly recorded ancient Egypt
• It was reflected in their wall paintings, relief, and in the literary record in hieroglyphs
• Most of the dances during this era were chiefly a medium of religious expression
• Ancient Greeks also thought highly of dance
• For them, it was closely linked with other kind experiences
• Dances was taught as an aid to military education among the boys of Athens and Sparta.
• It was not just for religious and military training but also a form of entertainment.
• Dance was also commonly used in Education
• According to Plato there are 2 kinds of dance: noble(fine and honorable), ignoble(ugly)
 ANCIENT ROOM

• Gave less importance to dance

• It stopped valuing such qualities in arts as the nation grew healthy and powerful
• The Romans ceased to create and perform within the arts themselves
• Dance became brutal and sensationalized as their entertainers were slaves and captives from
many nationalities and it was more often used more often for gruesome purposes
• Dance eventually became an integral part of the corruption in the latter days of Roman empire,
resulting in the condemnation of dance by early Christians
 DEVELOPMENT OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN
EUROPE

• Church was the sole custodian of learning and education as well as the source of morals
• When the first Christian emperors came, theatrical entertainment was prohibited
• However, dance still existed and was performed within the Church during religious ceremonies
• The Christian fathers approved the used of dance, provided that its form and intent were holy and
profound
• Dance became part of worships and dance services
• Marked the beginning of Social Dancing
• The peasants performed two basic types od dancing: round dance and couple dance
• In round dance, dancers hold each other by hand, forming a long chain and move about in an
open or closed circle, or in an extended line
• In couple dance, at that time, was not as popular as round dance as it was considered scandalous
when first seen.
• Nobility soon followed (more refined and courtly form)
• Noblemen’s and women’s dance steps were limited to gliding, curtseying and posing because of
their nature of clothing
• Peasants’ dances, in contrast, have large movements and wide stepping figures this is also because
or the nature of their clothing.
 BENEFITS OF DANCE
AND
CREATIVE MOVEMENT
• Physical
- develops cardiovascular and muscular endurance
- improves coordination, balance, flexibility, and body coordination
- lower risk of cardiovascular diseases
- lower body mass index
- lower resting heart rate
- improves lipid metabolism
- enables joint mobility (hip motion and spine flexibility)
- helps improve and maintain bone density, helps prevents osteoporosis
- helps recover coordination and neuromuscular skills after injury
• Mental/Emotional
-helps keep the brain sharp
- decreases incidence of dementia and Alzheimer’s decease
- decrease depressive symptoms
- increases self- esteem and improves body image
- aids in releasing emotional and physical tension
• Social
- gives sense of togetherness within a group
- encourages positive social interaction and interpersonal relationship in a group
- contributes to the individuals potential for self-actualization in society
• Cultural
- promotes cultural value