What Styles of Dance Are Used in Musical Theatre?

Musical Theatre|Theater

Musical theatre has been around since the late 19th century, and it has evolved in many ways since then. It is a form of entertainment that combines singing, dancing, and acting to tell a story.

One of the most important elements of musical theatre is the dance. In order to bring the characters to life, choreography must be used to create movement that adds to the story and emotion of the show.

Broadway Style Dance is one of the most popular styles used in musical theatre. This style originated in New York City and it is characterized by its high energy and intricate choreography.

Performers use a combination of ballet and jazz techniques to create dynamic movements that capture the audience’s attention. Broadway style dance can also include tap dancing, which adds an extra layer of excitement to musical numbers.

Jazz Dance is another popular style used in musical theatre. Jazz dance has its roots in African American vernacular dance and it is often seen as a form of storytelling through movement.

Jazz dance is usually very energetic and focuses on isolations, body rolls, turns, kicks, leaps, and jumps. Jazz dancers must have excellent technique in order to properly execute these movements with grace and precision.

Contemporary Dance is another style used in musical theatre that allows performers to express their emotions through movement. Contemporary dance combines elements from modern dance, ballet, jazz, hip-hop, and other styles into one cohesive language. This type of choreography can be very complex with intricate patterns or more simplistic with abstract movements that tell a story without words.

Tap Dance is another classic style used in musical theatre productions. Tap dancers use their shoes as percussion instruments by making rhythmic patterns on the floor with their feet. This type of choreography requires excellent timing and coordination between feet and hands so that each movement is precise and audible.

Hip-Hop Dance has become increasingly popular in recent years due to its energetic nature and upbeat music accompaniment. Hip-hop incorporates elements from other styles such as jazz, contemporary, breakdance, house dance etc., but it also has its own unique moves like popping & locking which makes it stand out from other forms of choreography.

In conclusion there are many different styles of dances used in musical theatre including Broadway style dance jazz dance contemporary dance tap dancing hip-hop dancing etc., each style adds its own unique flair to performances while helping bring characters stories emotions etc., alive on stage.