The Formation and Development of Classical Dance

In the process of its formation, classical dance absorbed many dance factors, such as folk dance, sign language, martial arts acrobatics and traces or written descriptions of dance movements preserved in ancient vessels, murals, sculptures and poetry novels. In addition, it is also deeply influenced by the traditional cultural customs, etiquette and morality, religious beliefs, aesthetic tastes and even political philosophy of regions, countries and nationalities. Classical dance is not static, but changes with the changes of social reality and aesthetic concepts of the times.

Different regions, countries and nationalities have their own unique styles of classical dance. Indian classical dance, for example, is composed of six traditional dance departments: balata, Kartak, Katakali, Manipur, Odisi and Kujipudi. One of its characteristics is the rich and specific sign language. European classical dance generally refers to ballet, which has strict program norms and highly concise dance skills.