Classical Greek mythology

In a classical Greek song, Apollo, the son of Zeus, and the god of medicine, music, and poetry, was called The Dancer. In a Greek line Zeus himself is represented as dancing. In Sparta, a province of ancient Greece, the law compelled parents to exercise their children in dancing from the age of five years. They were led by grown men, and sang hymns and songs as they danced. In very early times a Greek chorus, consisting of the whole population of the city, would meet in the market-place to offer up thanksgivings to the god of the country. Their jubilees were always attended with hymn-singing and dancing.

Dance in Bible

The Jewish records often mentions dancing, as a religious ceremony, or as an expression of gratitude and praise. As a means of entertainment in private society, dancing was practiced in ancient times, but by professional dancers, and not by the company themselves. The Bible sanctions dancing as a religious rite, to be practiced on joyful occasions, at national feasts, and after great victories, and "performed by maidens in the daytime, in open air, in highways, fields, or woods;" however, there are no examples of dancing in the Bible, in which both sexes dance, either as an act of worship or as an amusement.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance_in_mythology)

The ancient Romans are known especially for their development of pantomime. Although professional Roman dancers, pantomimists, and acrobats worked as traveling entertainers, dance degenerated under the Romans, some of whom saw it as immoral.

Medieval Europe

The Christian church, which dominated the European Middle Ages, disapproved of dancing. Dancing continued among the people, however, both in communal festivals and as entertainment. Variations of medieval peasant dances continue today as folk dances. Some peasant dances, taken over and adapted by the aristocracy, became social dances that in turn developed into ballet.

Ballet and Modern Dance

Ballet originated in the courts of Italy and France during the Renaissance, becoming primarily a professional discipline by the late 17th century. Since that time it has remained a major art form of Western culture. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the American dancers Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis rebelled against ballet. In Europe the Swiss educator Emile Jaques-Dalcroze, the Hungarian dancer Rudolf von Laban, and the German dancer Mary Wigman also experimented with new ways of expression. The work of these modern dance pioneers led to the development of important new dance forms.

Folk Dance

A participatory dance form, folk dance is usually traditional and performed by members of a community. Although not easy to define, the term seems best to fit those dances originated by agricultural peoples for secular and sometimes ritual purposes, in countries that also have an art form of dance. The Balkan kolo, English morris dance, and North American square dance are examples, as are Maypole dances and the different kinds of sword dance. Folk dances are usually group forms that are passed from one generation to another. Some folk dances, however, are not traditional; many Israeli folk dances, for example, were choreographed in the 20th century in the style of European folk dances, to serve similar purposes. Today, folk dances are often performed onstage, for which they are usually adapted for presentation to an audience.

Popular or Social Dance

Some recreational dance forms, especially in industrialized societies, are termed popular dances or social dances. They resemble folk dances because they are for participation, are relatively easy to learn, and generally originate from the people rather than from a choreographer. Unlike most folk dances, these social dances tend to be couple dances and are popular only for a short time.

The social dances of the nobility in the Middle Ages, Renaissance, and baroque eras were derived from folk dances. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, with the growth of the middle class, social dancing expanded beyond the aristocracy and, as ballroom dance, became popular in Europe and North America. The waltz and polka of the peasants, like dances of earlier eras, became transformed into social dances.

Asian Classical Dance

Drama, music, and dance are closely interrelated in Asia. Often relying on symbolic gestures, masks or makeup, and magnificent costumes, Asian dances often tell stories based on mythology, historical events, and legends. Performances may last for many hours.

In India, classical dance forms that almost disappeared have been revived on the basis of old manuscript descriptions and of temple carvings depicting dance positions. Dance-dramas and solo dance forms based on the Hindu epics draw on symbolic hand gestures called mudras. Many of India's folk dances share specific characteristics with the more refined classical dances.

Japan is rich in folk dances, many of them of a religious nature. In addition, Japan possesses two major forms of dance-drama, no and kabuki. No, about 500 years old, is an extremely slow-paced dance and opera form full of symbolic meanings. Kabuki, developed in the 17th century, is a more popular form in which many theatrical devices are used.

Peking opera is the best-known genre of Chinese dance-drama. Developed in the mid-19th century from earlier varieties of Chinese opera, it includes spectacular acrobatics as an important part of the action. In the 1950s the Chinese government began promoting productions based on European ballet and emphasizing themes relevant to China's contemporary political and social environment.