Dance: Foundations and Traditions
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Dance is movement shaped by intention. It expresses feeling, tells stories, celebrates, and heals. Like music, dance has its own elements and its own history.
The Elements of Dance
A widely used framework analyzes dance through (Butterworth, 2012; Minton, 2018):
| Element | Questions |
| Body | Which parts move? What shapes does the body make? |
| Space | Where does the movement go? Direction, level, pathway, size |
| Time | Tempo, rhythm, duration |
| Energy | Quality of movement: sharp, smooth, heavy, light |
| Relationship | To other dancers, to props, to music, to the audience |
Rudolf Laban (1950) developed a system for describing movement quality that is used in dance education worldwide.
Dance Traditions of Sri Lanka
Scholars usually describe three major classical dance traditions of the island, which developed in different regions and settings, along with the Tamil classical tradition of the north and east (Reed, 2010; Wikipedia, "Dance in Sri Lanka," n.d.).
| Tradition | Region | Features |
| Kandyan (Udarata Natum) | The hill country | Often called the national dance; associated with the Kandyan kingdom and the ritual Kohomba Kankariya; vigorous footwork, jumps, and spins; the traditional costume is called ves; accompanied by the geta bera drum |
| Low-country (Pahatharata Natum) | The southern and western coastal areas | Strongly ritual and dramatic; includes the exorcism rituals known as thovil (such as sanni yakuma) and masked dance-drama; the yak bera drum is typical |
| Sabaragamuwa | Ratnapura and the surrounding region | Often described as combining elements of the other two; associated with worship at the shrine of the deity Saman; graceful, with the dawula drum |
| Bharatanatyam | Tamil communities, especially in the north and east | A classical Indian form with a long history in South India; taught in Sri Lankan schools in the Tamil medium |
Some authors list the Kandyan dance as having five main categories: ves, vannam, udekki, pantheru, and naiyandi, and 18 vannam, which are dances that imitate animals and birds, such as the peacock (mayura vannama) (SL Tours and Travel Blog, n.d.; Wikipedia, "Music of Sri Lanka," n.d.). Terminology and classifications vary by teacher and text, so follow your syllabus.
Kolam is a masked dance-drama of the low country, with roots in Buddhist Jataka tales and a tradition of mask carving in Ambalangoda. Reed (2010) discusses how these forms have been used in nation-building and modern performance, and de Zoete (1957) offers an early account of the dances and rituals.
Pioneers
Chitrasena (1921 to 2005) took Kandyan dance from the village and ritual setting onto the modern stage, founding a company and school that trained generations of dancers (Reed, 2010). His disciples, such as Channa Wijewardena, carried the work forward. The influence of Rabindranath Tagore's ideas on South Asian dance also shaped the modern revival.
Bharatanatyam
Bharatanatyam is built on three categories:
Nritta: pure dance, rhythmic movement without a story.
Nritya: expressive dance, using gesture and facial expression to convey meaning and mood.
Natya: dramatic presentation.
The dancer learns adavus (basic units of footwork and posture), hastas or mudras (hand gestures), bhava and rasa (expression), and the structured items of a recital: alarippu, jatiswaram, varnam, padam, and tillana (Kothari, 1979). Bharatanatyam is deeply connected with Carnatic music and with the Natya Shastra's theory of abhinaya (Chapter 2).
Western Dance Forms
Ballet (structured technique and positions), modern and contemporary dance (freer use of weight, floor, and expression), jazz, hip-hop, and ballroom each have their own history and vocabulary.
Choreography
Choreography is the art of making dances. Humphrey (1959) and Blom and Chaplin (1982) discuss a process that many students find useful:
1. Find an idea: a story, image, emotion, or piece of music.
2. Explore: improvise and collect movement material.
3. Select and develop: use repetition, variation, contrast, and transition.
4. Structure: give the dance a beginning, a development, and an end.
5. Refine and rehearse: attend to clarity, timing, and expression.
6. Present and reflect: perform and evaluate.
Costume, Makeup, and Staging
Costume and makeup (aharya abhinaya) show character and tradition, whether the Kandyan ves, the colorful masks of the low-country rituals, or the jewelry and makeup of a Bharatanatyam recital. Lighting, space, and sound complete the picture.
Health and Safety
Warm up, stretch, drink water, and cool down. Wear suitable clothing and use safe floors. Stop if you feel pain. Build strength and flexibility gradually. Good dancers are athletes and need rest as well as practice.
Appreciating Dance
Watch a dance and describe it using the elements: What does the body do? How is space used? What is the rhythm and energy? What does it express? What is the cultural context, and what do the costume and music contribute? Then judge how effectively the dancers achieve their purpose.
CHAPTER 7