Dance Librarian
Best Bests: Reference Resources
A more comprehensive list of reference resource for dance research are listed on the Background page of this research guide.
International Encyclopedia of Dance, 2005With nearly 2,000 articles written by scholars from fifty countries, the encyclopedia covers the full spectrum of dance—theatrical, ritual, dance-drama, folk, traditional, ethnic, and social dance.
The Oxford Dictionary of Dance, 2010With over 2,600 entries, the second edition of The Oxford Dictionary of Dance is a unique single volume reference on all aspects of dance performance written by two leading dance writers, Debra Craine and Judith Mackrell. The work covers all aspects of the diverse dance world from classical ballet to modern, from flamenco to hip-hop, from tap to South Asian dance forms and includes detailed entries on technical terms, steps, styles, works and countries, in addition to many biographies of dancers, choreographers, and companies.
Best Bests: Articles
A more comprehensive list of research databases for dance research are listed on the Articles page of this research guide.
- International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance Full Text This link opens in a new windowIndexes journal articles, books, book chapters and dissertations covering all aspects of theatre and performance for over 126 countries.
- Performing Arts Periodicals Database This link opens in a new windowFull text and indexing for the performing arts, including film, theatre, dance, stagecraft, and television
Writing About the Field of Dance
The below books by dance scholars discuss research in dance. These books are ideal for students to sample, to get a sense of what research in the world of dance means, but don't let them intimidate you. If you have questions, ask me or any of your professors. These books are also ideal for advanced researchers who are searching for things to write about as well as those looking for an understanding about how dance research evolved over time.
As an example for those new to research, a great way to understand the idea of "dance research evolving over time" is to look at a review of Dance on Its Own Terms : Histories and Methodologies (2013). The reviewer, Dr. Ariel Nereson, Professor of Dance Studies at the University of Buffalo, notes that in the 1990s, dance studies "integrated with other disciplines, including performance studies, visual studies, cultural studies, and others." Nereson also notes that books like Meaning in Motion: New Cultural Studies of Dance (1997), "set a standard for this kind of interdisciplinary work" while other books like Moving History/Dancing Cultures: A Dance History Reader (2001) and The Routledge Dance Studies Reader (2010) were written in response to the dance "field's increased visibility in academia." Nereson goes on to discuss how the book, Dance on Its Own Terms, fits into that ecosystem by describing how it argues dance studies leaned too far into other disciplines and that it's time for the field to reconnect with the core aspects of dance, calling for "familiarity with particular schools of movement analysis and notation, allowing for scholarship that springs from dancing itself rather than beginning with external concerns about the body as a site or sign."
Of course, with this example, I should also note that other dance scholars may have a very different things to say about these books and what they mean for their field. As you're asked to use research literature in courses, you'll see that scholars understanding of their field changes over time as new scholars contribute to these on-going scholarly conversations.
The Routledge Companion to Dance in Asia and the Pacific, 2021Presents various dance forms from Australia, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and the South Pacific. Discusses themes such as tradition, contemporization, interdisciplinarity, dance education, youth dance, dance networks, curatorial practices, and evolving performative practices of dance companies and independents.
Futures of Dance Studies, 2020A collaboration between well-established and rising scholars, Futures of Dance Studies suggests multiple directions for new research in the field. Essays address dance in a wider range of contexts--onstage, on screen, in the studio, and on the street--and deploy methods from diverse disciplines. Engaging African American and African diasporic studies, Latinx and Latin American studies, gender and sexuality studies, and Asian American and Asian studies, this anthology demonstrates the relevance of dance analysis to adjacent fields.
The Routledge Companion to Dance Studies, 2020Authors from around the world contributed chapters based on theoretical, methodological, ethnographic, and practice-based case studies, bringing together a wealth of expertise and insight to offer a study that is in-depth and wide-ranging.
The Bloomsbury Companion to Dance Studies, 2019The Bloomsbury Companion to Dance Studies brings together leading international dance scholars in this single collection to provide a vivid picture of the state of contemporary dance research. The book commences with an introduction that privileges dancing as both a site of knowledge formation and a methodological approach, followed by a provocative overview of the methods and problems that dance studies currently faces as an established disciplinary field. The dances under investigation range from experimental conceptual concert dance through to underground street dance practices, and the geographic reach encompasses dance-making from Europe, North and South America, the Caribbean and Asia.
The Routledge Dance Studies Reader, 2019The Routledge dance studies reader has been expanded and updated, giving readers essential texts that address the social, political, cultural, and economic impact of globalization on embodiment and choreography. These interdisciplinary essays in dance scholarship consider a broad range of dance forms in relation to historical, ethnographic, and interdisciplinary research methods including cultural studies, reconstruction, media studies, and popular culture.
The Oxford Handbook of Dance and Politics, 2017A compendium book chapters by 30 dance scholars from the U.S. and Europe address the interdisciplinary and global scope of dance theory - its political philosophy, social movements, and approaches to bodily difference such as disability, postcolonial, and critical race and queer studies.
Dance on Its Own Terms : Histories and Methodologies, 2013Covers a wide range of subjects examined from dance-centered methodologies: modes of research that are emergent, based in relevant systems of movement analysis, use primary sources, and rely on critical, informed observation of movement. The chapters emphasize dance history and core disciplinary knowledge in three categories of significant dance activity: performance and reconstruction, pedagogy and choreographic process, and notational and other written forms that analyze and document dance. Conceptually, each chapter also raises concerns and questions that point to broadly inclusive methodological applications. Engaging and insightful, Dance on its Own Terms represents a major contribution to research on dance.
Researching Dance: Evolving Modes of Inquiry, 1999Explores dance as evolutional, defining it in view of its intrinsic participatory values, its developmental aspects, and its purposes from art to ritual. The authors also examine the role of theory in research. Essays by dancer-scholars examine qualitative and quantitative inquiry and delineate the most common approaches for investigating dance, raising concerns about philosophy and aesthetics, historical scholarship, movement analysis, sexual and gender identification, cultural diversity, and the resources available to students.
