CHESMAYNE
Dance
Polynesian dancer from Bora Bora
01 The cycle of time and
movement around the world axis (movement of the heavens)
and conjuring up of cosmic forces. KI David
danced before the Ark of
the Covenant (spiritual joy). Connected with creative and
ordering powers due to its rhythmic structure and ecstatic movement. Ritual dances are used to
establish contact with the heavens.
Movement of the hands can also be important. “A
perpendicular expression of a horizontal desire”.
Left: One of
Renoir’s most-loved works, The Dance
at Bougival captures a tender moment.
Captured here in a quality 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle by Piatnik of
02 Tantarism (Hinduism):
teaching that the visible world presents an unending dance of the believers
with the Divine, in which unity of the worshipper with the worshipped is ultimately
achieved.
Left: “Dance Exercise”, Edgar Degas. Right:
Rose garden – dancer.
03 Salome by Richard Strauss:
Salome tries to seduce the imprisoned John the Baptist. Overcome with desire to kiss his mouth, she
agrees to dance the ‘Dance of the Seven Veils’ for Herod, in which she removes
one veil after another until she is naked - if he will grant her wish. When she had danced, she demanded the head
of John on a plate. Herod agreed, but
when he saw her kissing the dead head, he ordered his soldiers to kill
her. Salome danced a form of ballet or
pantomime.
04 Antler Dance: six dancers,
all male, hold antlers to their heads (three of which are painted red or, blue
and three white).
05 Dance Macabre: allegorical
representation of Death by a dancing skeleton and often with death playing the music.
06 Horn Dance, Floral Dance, Morris
Dance, Foxtrot, Waltz, Quickstep and Tango etc.
Left: Village girl
dancer on Vavau Island , Tonga
Right: Detail Of
“Corn Dancers”
Origin of the Morris
It is a little known fact that
there is a deep connection between Morris dancing and chess. Morris dancing was invented in the 13th
century by Russian chess-playing monks. They found
that, due to the long hours they spent studying chess, they needed something
physical and completely non-intellectual to exercise their limbs and relax
their minds.
They decided to invent the silliest-looking dance form
they could think of. They called it
Morris dance, from the Latin mora, to delay, since dancing tended to
delay their studies. The hobby horse is, of course, reminiscent
of the chess knight.
Morris was then brought to England when the Russian
chess players toured Europe, also spawning similar dance forms such as the
Calusari.
Posted to the Morris Dancing Discussion List by Andy Klapper.
mailto:klapper@cs.engr.uky.edu
Left:
Young dancer at
Right: Ceremonial Mask, Tibetan Mask Dance
