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Dance Performances: Art or Entertainment?

© Shira

What makes the difference between a dancer who has the audience going wild with enthusiasm over her show versus one who is barely able to hold their interest? Of course, there are many factors that can influence this, such as dance skill, but one that many dancers don't think about is the one that comes within themselves: what their motive is for the performance and what they're really trying to accomplish when they step out on stage.

Art is meant to disturb. Science is meant to reassure. - Georges Braque, Pensées Sur L'Art

What is your primary motive when you walk on stage to present an Oriental dance performance in front of an audience? Is it to deliver an artistic presentation, provide entertainment, or satisfy your own personal agenda?

Why Dancers Perform in Public

There is a difference between dancers who aspire to perform in public and those who don't. Dancers who want to perform may do so because:

• They want to share their enthusiasm for something they feel passionate about.
• They want to educate the public on their dance form and the culture it comes from.
• They have a message they want to communicate through their dance.
• They want to be the center of attention.
• They need the money from paying gigs.
• They find joy in enriching other people's lives through entertaining them.
• They are filled with the creative energy of an artist and want to share what they have created.
• If they're performing with a troupe, maybe they like the cameraderie of rehearsing and doing shows together.
• They've had issues in the past with their ability to be attractive to the opposite sex, and performing as a glamorous dancer is their attempt to validate themselves as a sensuous, desirable man or woman.

Of course, these aren't the only reasons why someone might want to dance as a public performer. In fact, several of these reasons could apply to the same person. But they illustrate the point that people dance in public for very different reasons, and it's often easy to tell by watching someone just which reasons are motivating his or her performance.

What Happens if You Don't Consider What the Audience Wants?

If you don't structure your performance to match the audience's expectations, you may find the experience disappointing. If you're lucky, they'll just feel a little bored. If you're not lucky, they may heckle you and you'll lose control of the situation. One way or another, you probably won't be invited back.

Let's say you're an intermediate dancer who is just beginning to perform publicly. You've found a singing telegram agency that will pay you to deliver "bellygrams". You're excited because you love being the center of attention, you love to dance, and you could really use the money.

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