DANCE

APPRECIATION &
COMPOSITION
RECREATIONAL DANCE
- It is a social activity in which people of all ages can
participate. Recreational dances comes from all over the
world and include folk, cultural, and historical dances, and
social dances from the past and present. These types of
dances use a variety of steps, figures, and formation. The
styles, performance and music are related to the cultural
roots, historical eras and geographic areas from which the
dance originates.
 What makes a good dance?
- A good dance displays a significant meaning or conveys a message.
Sometimes it also portrays life experiences. Dance maybe presented
abstractly and symbolically but still convey emotion and meaning. A
good dance lifts and transports the audience from the seats during
the performance.
- It has a beginning, middle, and end/conclusion. The beginning may
come in a shape, a pose, or an entrance. The middle consists of a
development or the exploration of the main idea. The
ending/conclusion should be clear and may be in a form of a shape, a
pose or an exit.
-All works, whether it is sports, music, or dance, must
have a form brought to their elements by means of
orderly arrangement, meaning, and purpose
( Lockhart, 1982). There must be a sense of the direction.
A good dance therefore, must have a shape or form for
its choreography to be effective.
 What is a phrase?
- When you combine one movement with several others, they form a
unit. When units are pieced together, they make up a section in the
choreography and the sections together form a whole dance.
Therefore a “ phrase is the smallest unit of form in the whole
dance”(Blom and Chaplin, 1998).
- Although Minton(1997) suggests that movement phrases should vary
in length and shape, most of the dances these days use equal length
phrases. Commonly a single phrase consist of 8 counts . It is easier for
building routines and choreographic combinations with an 8-count
phrase.
 What is a motif?
-A good dance contains a theme or a motif to be able to convey its
meaning or intention to the audience. A dance without meaning
makes it a harder for the audience to understand : thus, making it
superficial and easy to forget.

- A single movement or a short phrase of movement that embodies

the style and intention of the dance is called a motif. A good dance
uses a motif in which the movements are repeated , varied, and
developed by manipulating the movements components or elements.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD
DANCE
UNITY
The interconnected phrases of the dance are coherent and flow
smoothly together. The movements fits together and each plays an
important role that contributes to the entirety of a dance.
CONTINUITY & DEVELOPMENT
The phrases of the dance that are organized progressively, making each
movement phrase move naturally into the next. There is a continuous
development of the movement phrase and the audience is swept.
VARIETY & CONTRAST
- Making one or several variations that highlight the facet of the motif.
This provides variety within the development of a dance. Variety and
contrast in movement phrases add excitement and flavor in the dance.
Changing the direction , use of energy timing of a movement phrases
add excitement avoid repeating them in the exact way are ways to add
variety to the dance.
TRANSITION
- This is the link between movements, phrases, and sections of the dance
. It makes the logical progression of the dance flow smoothly. Also it is
vital because it keeps the unity and continuity of the dance.
REPETITION
- It emphasizes movements and phrases that are important to the
dance and gives a feeling of closure to a work( Minton, 2007). Some
phrases needs to be repeated in choreography so that the audience
can see those movements again and identify its significance.

CLIMAX
-This is where the apex of energy in the dance is reached(Schrader,
1996). It is similar to a climax in a story where a series of events
culminates. The climax may be enraged blast of energy and action, or it
could fade away to a gentle and quiet exit that marks the end of a
particular story, (Rickett-Young, 1996).
 Evaluating a Good Dance
- According to Linda Rickett-Young, the evaluators role are categorized as:

Choreographers
- They will evaluate a part of an ongoing process of developing
a personal which is both spontaneous and organized.
DANCERS
- They will evaluate according to the specific demands that
The performance places on them.

AUDIENCES
-They will evaluate according to the particular context of
the dance