2.2. What is modern dance?
Description
This article is from the Ballet and Modern Dance FAQ, by Tom Parsons twp@panix.com with numerous contributions by others.
2.2. What is modern dance?
Modern dance (sometimes just "modern" for short and also called
"contemporary" in Britain and on the Continent) is the name given to a
dance tradition that arose as a reaction to ballet. It may have started
as a rebellion against the formalism and conventions of ballet, but it was
probably also a reaction to the sorry state of Western European ballet in
the late 19th century (see question 4.8.4). It also arose out of a desire
to express things and feelings that were thought appropriate to the new
century, things that, it was felt, the traditional ballet vocabulary
couldn't express. It rejected many of the conventions of ballet--turnout,
pointed feet, the stated positions, the attempt to defy gravity with leaps
and other steps of elevation, dancing on pointe, the use of ballet shoes,
and so on.
The two styles have borrowed from each other to the point that the
lines between them are becoming blurred. For a discussion of whether there
is or still ought to be a distinction between ballet and modern dance at
this late date, see the file modern-vs-ballet.txt or scan the archived
material in the ballet-modern directory, both in the Dancers' Archive. Tom
Parke < itcp@praxis.co.uk> , posting in rec.arts.dance, offered the following
definitions:
If the dancers are attempting to prove that gravity does not exist,
then it's ballet.
If the dancers are attempting to demonstrate that gravity does
exist and it's a bitch, then it's modern.
If the dancers are attempting to demonstrate that gravity does
exist but they'd rather die fighting it than give in to it,
then it's jazz.
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