ELEMENTS OF DANCE 

The Elements of Dance are the foundational concepts and vocabulary

that help everyone develop movement skills and understand dance as an
artistic practice.

The acronym BASTE helps everyone remember the elements:

B-ody

A-ction

S-pace

T-ime

E-nergy

Body

 Body is the mobile figure or shape, felt by the dancer, seen by

others. The body is sometimes relatively still and sometimes
changing as the dancer moves in place or travels through the
dance area. Dancers may emphasize specific parts of their body in
a dance phrase or use their whole body all at once.

Action

 Action is any human movement included in the act of dancing— it

can include dance steps, facial movements, partner lifts,
gestures, and even everyday movements such as walking.

Movement can be divided into two general categories:

· Non-locomotor or axial movement:  bend, stretch, swing, rise,

fall, shake, turn, rock, tip, suspend, and twist.

· Locomotor movement: run, jump, walk, slide, hop, skip, somersault,

leap, crawl, gallop, and roll.

The action has been “set,” or finalized, the dancers must memorize
their movement sequences in order to be able to perform them.

Space

 Dancers interact with space in myriad ways. They may stay in one
place or they may travel from one place to another.
Here are some ways a choreographer or dancer thinks about space:

· Level: Is the movement on the floor, or reaching upward? Are they

performed high, medium, or low?

· Direction: Does the movement go forward, backward, sideways,

right, left, or on a diagonal?

· Place: Is the movement done on the spot (personal space), or does

it move through space (general space, downstage, upstage)?

· Orientation: Which way are the dancers facing?

· Pathway: Is the path through space made by the dancers curved,

straight, or zigzagged? Or is it random?

· Size: Does the movement take up a small, narrow space, or a big,

wide space?

· Relationships: How are the dancers positioned in space in

relationship to one another? Are they close together or far
apart?

Time

 It is the rhythm and repetition patterns of a dance. It is this

element that dictates not only the duration of a dance, but the
speed in the execution of its steps.
 Rhythmic patterns may be metered or free rhythm. Much of western
music uses repeating patterns (2/4 or 3/4 for example)

Time may also be organized in other ways including:

• Clock time: The dance is based on units of seconds, minutes,

and/or hours.
• Sensed time: Dancers pick up on each other's timing by cueing
off each other.
• Free Rhythm: Dancers may perform movement without using music,
relying on cues from one another.

• Event-sequence: An internal or external event signals a change.

Dancers may take sight cues from each other to start the next
phrase or listen for music cues.

Energy
  The energy corresponds to the degree of tension or fluidity with
which the steps are executed. Energy is considered as the most
complex of the elements of dance, it can take years to develop.
 Energy helps us to identify how the dancers move. It also
represents the quality of the movement—its power and richness.

Here are some ways to think about energy:

• Attack: Is the movement sharp and sudden, or smooth and

sustained?
• Weight: Does the movement show heaviness, as if giving into
gravity, or is it light with a tendency upward?
• Flow: Does the movement seem restricted or bound, with a lot of
muscle tension, or is it relaxed, free, and easy?
• Quality: Is the movement tight, flowing, loose, sharp, swinging,
swaying, suspended, collapsed, or smooth?

DANCE GENRES

Dance has been a part of human culture since the very earliest
communities and civilizations, with recorded evidence of dancing being
found dating back to 30,000 years ago.

Since then, different dances have changed, merged and evolved into
what we know today as the most well-known dance genres.

BALLET

 The term “ballet” stem from the Italian word "ballare," means "to
dance."
 An artistic dance form based on an elaborate formal technique,
characterized by gestures and movements of grace, precision, and
fluidity.
 It is theatrical– performed on a stage to an audience utilizing
costumes, scenic design and lighting.

Major Styles of Ballet

Classical

- This is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique, its

flowing, precise movements, and its ethereal qualities.

Romantic
 - This emphasizes supernaturally inflected storytelling and
innovations in ballet dancing and dresses.

Neoclassical

- This style disregards sets and costumes and focuses on

minimalistic aesthetics.

Contemporary

- This incorporates elements of both classical ballet and modern

dance.

BALLROOM

 A partnership dance, where couples use step-patterns, move

rhythmically, and express the characteristics of music.
 A popular form of competitive dance, which is called
“dancesport.”
Styles of Ballroom
Smooth or Standard Style

 Focuses on the elegance, grace and fluidity of movement. Dancers

rotate in a counter-clockwise direction, moving around the entire
floor.
 Foxtrot, Waltz, Tango, Viennese Waltz and Quickstep are danced in
this manner.
Rhythm or Latin Style

 Focuses on a display of vibrant energy and a personal flair.

 The couple’s dancing pattern is syncopated to the rhythm of the
music.
 East Coast Swing, Jive, Rumba, Bolero, Cha-Cha, Mambo, Samba and
Paso Doble are danced in this manner.
CONTEMPORARY DANCE

 Contemporary dance is a style of interpretive dance that

embraces innovation, blending techniques from various genres,
including classical ballet, jazz, modern dance, and lyrical
dance.
 This dance relies on improvisation and versatility and is
characterized by freedom of movement and fluidity, letting
dancers explore the mind-body connection and ideally evoking
emotion in the audience.
 Floorwork is used extensively in this dance, using gravity to
pull them down to the floor. This dance genre is often done in
 bare feet. Contemporary dance can be performed to many different
styles of music.

MODERN DANCE

 This dance is a highly expressive style. While most forms of

dance are structured and feature set steps, the initial motif of
the modern dance genre was to break away from the mold of
classical Ballet and focus on freedom of movement and expression.
 Modern choreography is often created with the intention of
telling a story or representing a thought.

HIP HOP

- A range of street dance styles primarily performed to hip hop

music or that have evolved as part of hip hop culture.
- The elements of Hip Hop came together in New York City in the
early 1970s.

Major Styles of Hip Hop

Breaking/ Breakdancing/ B-boying

- Performs a series of explosive acrobatic maneuvers with pauses or

freezes in between.
- Consists of toprock, downrock, power moves and freezes.

Popping

- The jerking of various joints is caused by a rapid contraction

and relaxation of muscles.

Locking

- A combination of fast movements then immediately stopping and

striking a pose.

Krumping

- Separating body parts so that one is rigid while the other is

swinging, stomping, or popping

Tutting

- It's a type of dance that mimics the angular stances found in

ancient Egyptian art.

TAP DANCE
 - Using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of
percussion.
- Originated in America in the early 19th century.

Major Styles of Tap

Classical tap

- This style combined upper-body movement, wild and wiggly leg

movements, and sensational acrobatic stunts with percussive,
syncopated footwork.

Rhythm tap

- This focuses on the acoustic rather than the aesthetic.

Musical tap/ Broadway tap

- This focuses on the visual aesthetics of the dance.

JAZZ

- Style that arose in the United States in the mid- 20th century.
- Style that blended traditional African steps with European styles
of movement.

Major Styles of Jazz

Cakewalk

- A dance made for slaves to mock their masters and even became a
competition.

Charleston

- It involves pivoting the feet in and out, while straightening and

bending the knees.

Afro- jazz

- This focuses more on rhythm and improvisation, making it simpler

but very cultural.

Jazz- pop

- The focus will be on overall style and attitude but will also
incorporate learning jumps, turns, and kicks.

Latino- jazz
 - Jazz dance that is performed under Latin American influence such
as their music and dances.

FOLK DANCE

 Cultural dances are so precious to many civilizations, as they

often contain pieces of their history and livelihood that would
otherwise be lost.

 It is celebrated worldwide with people of different cultures and

religions using various forms of folk dance to portray emotions,
stories, historical events or even aspects of daily life.

 Folk dancing is the most famous cultural dance. Folk dance is a
way for people to express, share, and connect with their own
traditional culture. 

 Some well-known folk dances in the Philippines include:

tinikling, binasuan, cariñosa, singkil, itik-itik and etc.

REFERENCES:
Alvarez, Brianna. (2018.). YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE TO DANCE.
The Different Types of Ballet. (2018, December 12.). FROM
https://www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk/different-types-ballet
Bedinghaus, Treva. (2019.). What Is Contemporary Dance? A Combination
of Several Dance Genres
Warta, Tamara. (2020.). Cultural Dances.
What Is Contemporary Dance? A History of Contemporary Dance. (2021,
December 06.). FROM https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-
contemporary-dance#what-is-contemporary-dance