Let’s perform
Everyone enjoys the spectacle of a show, be it a
play, an opera, a movie, or a dance. What these
performing arts have in common is that they
communicate between people, and reflect their
time and their culture.
Religious dance Bharatanatyam is a
Hindu dance performed by women. It is
the national dance of India. The steps are
incredibly precise—skilled dancers flow
from pose to pose with complex
movements of the feet, hands, arms,
neck, head, and even the eyes!Ballet requires great
strength, skill, and
grace, and it involves
very specific and formal
positions and movements.
Classical ballets like
Swan Lake and Giselle
feature only these
traditions, while
modern ballets (right)
are often much freer and
more expressive.DANCE
Everywhere in the world, people love to
dance. A dance can be a performance,
part of a religious ritual, or
something to do for fun.
Most dances happen in
time to music or a beat.Street dance is any dance that people
have created for themselves, instead of
being formally invented. Types of street
dance include break-dancing and tango.Tribal dance is important in many
traditional cultures. Dances are usually
performed to the rhythm of drums and there
are special dances for all kinds of occasions—
weddings, funerals, harvests, hunts, religious
ceremonies, and even to prepare for war. SALSA This popular
form of dance probably
originated in Cuba in
the mid-20th century.CULTURE
OThe oldest known play was written by
Thespis 2,500 years ago.
OWilliam Shakespeare wrote about 38
plays in the 16th century, and they are still
performed today.
OThe first animated cartoons were made
in the late 1920s. Mickey Mouse starred in
one called Steamboat Willie in 1928.
OThe Ring Cycle (Der Ring des Nibelungen),
a series of operas by German composer
Richard Wagner, takes 18 hours to perform.
OIn the Middle Ages dancing was thought
to help cure people suffering from seizures
or spider bites.FAST FACTS