Modern dance is a style of dance that is more emotionally expressive than classical ballet. It is actually one of the more recent inventions in the world of dance. When modern dancing first got started, the public society did not like it at all, but it eventually grew on them. Now, it is an integral part of the dance world.



The early 20th century saw the beginnings of modern dance. Its style originated in the U.S. and Germany, probably because the US had no ancient, traditional dancing styles to follow, such as classical ballet. Now, many ballet school classes offer modern dancing lessons. The idea behind it was that people should be allowed to express themselves and other things through their movements.

A lot of classical ballet dancers frowned on this form of dance because it broke the traditional rules of structure. Some of the things that dancers have interpreted through modern dancing are the weather, animals and emotions. By the 1950s, it was an established fact that modern dancing had its own style.

Modern dance is now classified through things such as harsh body movements, contortions of the body that were never done in the past, and a more emotional dance experience. In the beginning, modern dances were used as a freedom from the forms of classical ballet, but now it has developed into its own structured style. There are four basic principles that it uses. These principles are: substance of movement, dynamism and impact, form of body, and metakinesis.

Some modern dancers that helped form this art style were Martha Graham, Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis. Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis used more flowing movements in their dances, while Martha Graham was the pioneer in the form of angular dance. More modern dances of today use Martha Graham's method, and it has become one of the hallmarks of modern dancing.

Doris Humphrey was also a pioneer in its styles, but her dancing was purely aesthetic in nature. None of her dances were based on emotions or anything interpretive, she just wanted to move in a way that flowed with the music. All of these ladies were important to the evolution of modern dancing.

Modern dance is a wonderful way of dancing to express emotions or just to break free from the old structures of classical ballet. Now, it is much more structured than it was in early years, because it is has now been established as its own form, with its own rules.

However, it is still a beautiful and expressive form of movement. Anyone interested in dance should try and learn at least a little in the area of modern dancing through an alternative ballet class.