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Sayaw Kikay - Dance, Its Elements and Genres

  • Amaya Ponce
  • Jan 24, 2022
  • 5 min read
By Amaya Ponce


As Martha Graham says ", the body says what words cannot.” (Svoboda, n.d.). Just like in dancing, we move to express art and the message we want to deliver. In technical terms, dance is a series of repetitive moves or gestures that are frequently accompanied by music or as a kind of social engagement. (Definitions Net, n.d.). Dance can also be considered either choreographed or freestyle on-the-spot dance movements.


Dancing has been around for a long time, even before the invention of written and vocal communication. During ritual dances, celebrations, and social gatherings, dances are portrayed in the evolution of early human civilizations. Even though ancient dances originated in India or Egypt over a millennium ago, the records of the most common introduction of dance into modern culture are from Ancient Greece, China, and India. These historic dances evolved into a wide range of middle ages of Roman, European, and Indian dances, as well as Hindi and other regional and national dances. (Dance Facts, 2000).


Figure 1: Ancient Egypt Dancing (Ancient Egypt culture, dancing in ancient Egypt, 2017)



The Elements of Dance is the underlying principles and terminology that help learners achieve movement abilities and understand dance as an aesthetic discipline. It is also accompanied by an acronym BASTE which defines B for Body, A for Action, S for Space, T for time, E for energy. (The Elements of Dance, 2018). The following description from each element is information from The Kennedy Center.


Body

As everyone knows, we move our bodies when dancing. In the element of dance, people perceive the human body when someone dances. The body may be stationary at times, while it may be moving at other times. While dancing, a dancer can move their entire body or focus on certain body parts only. They can also use their bodies to bring their inner thoughts, feelings, and ambitions to the surface and share these with others.

Figure 2: Body Dance Element (The Elements of Dance, 2018).


Action

In the act of dance, and humanistic approach is referred to as action. Small motions, such as facial expressions or signs, as well as larger actions, such as lifts, carries, or catches done with a partner or in a group, are all examples of action. The term "action" also refers to the intervals or pauses that occur between actions.


Figure 3: Action Dance Element (The Elements of Dance, 2018).



Space

This refers to the location of the dance's action. In a limitless range of methods, dance flows through spaces. Dancers or choreographers classify space in different terms, these are (1) level or the intensity of the dance, (2) direction or which side you’re moving in, (3) place or where and how it is executed, (4) orientation or the direction where dancers face, (5) path or where dancers move through space like straight, (6) size or the space it occupies, (7) relationship or the closeness of dances to one another. Overall, it can be indoor or outdoor.


Figure 4: Space Dance Element (The Elements of Dance, 2018).


Time

Timing is a crucial part of the dance. This can be done using different instruments such as (1) clock to record the seconds, minutes, or hour duration of a dance, (2) metered time or the rhythm, beat, and tempo, (3) free rhythm or dance based on cues and not music.


Figure 5: Time Dance Element (The Elements of Dance, 2018).


Energy

Energy is what boosts the dancers to dance. It shows how powerful or elegant a dance can be. It allows dancers to express an impression whether a gentle and light touch between two dancers might indicate concern or affection, while it can be quick and powerful, signifying anger or amusement.

Figure 6: Energy Dance Element (The Elements of Dance, 2018).




While dance can be composed of elements, it also includes different genres or ways of dancing. Genres can show the roughness, softness, intenseness, and beauty of each genre.


Ballet Dance

It's a stage production with costumes, scenery, and illumination, and it's performed in front of an audience. It can either tell a tale or express a feeling, a notion, or a feeling. Ballet dance can be captivating, enchanting, provocative, or thrilling. (Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, n.d.).


Contemporary Dance

Modern, jazz, lyrical, and classical ballet are all examples of contemporary dance, which is a form of expressive dance that blends elements of various dance styles. The term "contemporary" is a bit misleading: it refers to a genre that emerged in the mid-twentieth century and is still popular today. (Bedinghaus, 2019).


Ballroom Dance

The term "ballroom dance" refers to a style of partner dance that originated in France towards the end of the sixteenth century. The waltz, tango, and foxtrot, as well as pasodoble, bolero, and samba, are examples of dances that fall into these categories. (Floors, 2020).


Tap Dance

The "tap" of a person's shoes hitting the floor while they dance is a characteristic of tap dancing, which is a sort of rhythmic dance. To emphasize the sound, tap dancers frequently wear metal "taps" on the heel and toe of their shoes. Flamenco, rhythm, classical, broadway and postmodern tap are all examples of tap dancing. (Floors, 2020).


Folk Dance

Folk dancing is performed throughout the world, with people from all countries and traditions performing a variety of dances to express emotions, legends, historical accounts, and even parts of everyday life. (Floors, 2020).


Modern Dance

Modern dance is a diverse type of dance that originated in the late 1800s in western countries such as the United States and Germany. Because of the constraints of ancient dances like ballet, which often imprisoned dancers with stifling rules and procedures, modern dance was formed. (Floors, 2020).


Street Dance

In the 1970s, street dancing emerged as a kind of mainstream culture and social dance in the United States, and it has since spread around the world. People would dance in any open space they could find, whether it was a park, a street, or a party. Because the street dance was improvised in an informal setting, it was one of the most fundamental characteristics of this style. (Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing, n.d.).


Philippine Folk Dance

Immigrants and invaders have influenced Philippine folk dancing's history, but it still has its own distinct Filipino roots. (History - Philippine Folk dance, n.d.)


Neo-Ethnic Dance

The merger of tribal dance and classical ballet is known as neo-ethnic choreography.


Foreign Folk Dance

A dance that separates itself from Filipino folk dances, rather than a word that encompasses dances from other cultural groups.


Cheer Dance

Stunts, pyramids, baskets, tumbling, jumps, and dancing are all part of cheerleading, often known as cheer dance. (ThemeGrill, 2018).


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