World Dance Cultures: From Ritual to Spectacle

World Dance Cultures: From Ritual to Spectacle

<P>From healing, fertility and religious rituals, through theatrical entertainment, to death ceremonies and ancestor worship, <I>World Dance Cultures</I> introduces an extraordinary variety of dance forms practiced around the world. </P> <P>This highly illustrated textbook draws on wide-ranging historical documentation and first-hand accounts, taking in India, Bali, Java, Cambodia, China, Japan, Hawai'i, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Africa, Turkey, Spain, Native America, South America, and the Caribbean. </P> <P>Each chapter covers a certain region's distinctive dances, pinpoints key issues and trends from the form's development to its modern iteration, and offers a wealth of study features including:</P> <UL> <LI>Case Studies – zooming in on key details of a dance form's cultural, historical, and religious contexts</LI> <P> <LI>‘Explorations' – first-hand descriptions of dances, from scholars, anthropologists and practitioners </LI> <P></P> <P> <LI>‘Think About' – provocations to encourage critical analysis of dance forms and the ways in which they're understood</LI> <P></P> <P> <LI>Discussion Questions – starting points for group work, classroom seminars or individual study</LI> <P></P></UL> <UL> <LI>Further Study Tips – listing essential books, essays and video material. </LI></UL> <P>Offering a comprehensive overview of each dance form covered with over 100 full color photos, <I>World Dance Cultures</I> is an essential introductory resource for students and instructors alike.</P>