Customer Reviews

Ballet and Modern Dance: A Concise History

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This book is especially interesting and easy to follow. It provides a sound overview of the history of dance with special focus on ballet and modern dance. This book introduces the novice to the legendary art of dance and captures the reader's attention with crafty storytelling. I particularly enjoyed the portion focusing on the history of ballet. Anderson introduces the reader to many of the individuals who shaped and popularized this art form while providing a firm background of the origins and development of this art. This book begins with a history of dance in the Greco-Roman era and brings the reader full circle with discussions of recent triumphs in dance. Anderson creates a book that is informative and thorough while presenting the reader with drawings and photographs of many influential artists and great performances.

This is a good book offering the background of Ballet and Modern dance. It was nice to have one place to go for both, and it offers a much more extensive history than most technique books that give one page or so to history. The Ballet section focuses on the art form as a theatrical art - not information proceeding this (fine with me). There are some interesting aspects including the development of new ballet steps, costume design changes, and gender roles. Many many famous dancers/dance makers are mentioned in the book, and their contributions. I was surprised to see excerpts of writings of famous dancers/dance makers in the book - something I would be interested in. I would recommend the book, but rather suggest you buy the 2nd edition version, which offers more. I wasn't able to find the 2nd edition in hardback, only paperback.

ALTHOUGH I'M NOT A DANCE MAJOR, I WANTED TO HAVE A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE OF IT. I TOOK A DANCE CLASS THIS BOOK WAS REQUIRED, AND REALLY ENJOYED ITS HISTORY AND INFORMATION. WORTH TO ACTUALLY READ IT. ALSO ATTENDING SYNAPSES THAT WAS ENCOURAGED BY THIS BOOK.

This book is great. It is really interesting and truly tells a concise history of ballet and modern dance. At the end of each chapter, there are other readings from history and other documents that relate to the facts in the chapters. A must have for any dance enthusiast.