Women and Dance: Sylphs and Sirens

From back cover: "Dance is a marginalized art form which has frequently been ignored in the various debates about cultural practices. This book redresses the balance and opens up some important areas for discussion. Christy Adair argues that dance is an arena for feminist practice, particularly as feminism has recognized the centrality of the arts in shaping our ideas about ourselves and our society. Women's high profile in dance leads to the popular opinion that is a female art form. But women tend to interpret rather than create dance images. The book highlights the consequences for female dancers of the development of Western dance techniques in a patriarchal society. The constraints placed upon them are revealed in the texture of the dances discussed. Christy Adair shows how women's work which challenges traditional images of women in dance offers us visions for the future. But, she argues, in order for women's perspectives to be clearly established and influential, women need to have access to positions of power as choreographers and directors." From Foreword by Janet Wolff: "Christy Adair's study is valuable, first, because it introduces non-dancer to a history of dance - a history from the point of view of gender. Conversely, it introduces students of the dance to critical theory, and suggest ways in which dance studies can benefit from this work. Most importantly, and crucially, she brings dance into the center of the study of gender and culture. Feminism, cultural studies and dance analysis will all benefit from this reorientation." Contents include: * Dancing hierarchies - dance in societies * Cultured bodies - the social construction of the body * Colonized bodies - the oppression of women * Viewing women - the production and reception of dance * Titillating tuts - women in ballet * Revolutionary women - modern dance * We say no - postmodern dance * Black power - black dance * Beginning again - new dance * The subversives - women's dance practice