Dancewear, Clothes, and Ballroom
Welcome to divadancewear.com. Our site is designed to find and share the best information about the various types of dancewear, costumes and apparel for the many different types of dance. The content of divadancewear.com is written strictly for informational purposes. We do not endorse or support any particular brand or product.
Though not as important as the dancer and the choreography, dancewear plays a very important role in both practice and performance. Can you imagine the reaction of a ballet audience if the star ballerina made her grand entrance in baggy jeans and t-shirt? Or imagine the reaction of a crowd if, at a hip-hop dance-off, the competing team arrived in tights and leotards. The essence of the dance would not be the same in either situation. The pages and links of this Website will give more detail on the specifics of selecting and wearing dancewear for specific dances.
The art of dance has been enjoyed by performers, choreographers and spectators throughout history. For thousands of years dance served many different purposes including self expression, exercise, entertainment, traditional and even religious. The spectacular movements of any dancer rely on dancewear fabrics for both practicing and performing.
Without the proper fabric to warm-up muscles dancers run the risk of sustaining serious injuries. Wearing proper dancewear made of the right fabrics are not only important for performances, but very important for warming up and practicing, for the health of the dancer. For warming up and casual dancewear, polar fleece, silk/cotton blend and cotton jersey fabrics are recommended. For movement dancewear silk knit jersey, nylon and polyester spandex, nylon mesh, and polyester stretch velvet allow the most movement and are recommended to avoid injury.
For performances, dancewear and costumes are important factors that affect the overall aesthetic quality of the performance. Many dance competitions have a section judged on costumes. In ballroom dance especially, the breathtaking dresses accentuate the movements of the dancers and add one more element of beauty to the performance. Many other styles of dance clothes are designed to accentuate the rhythms and flows of particular dance styles as well.
Particular fabrics are often chosen to draw attention to particular areas of the body or exaggerate the movement of particular body parts. In clogging and tap, for example, often the shoes will be flashy to draw attention to the intricate footwork. Similarly, fabrics can be chosen to hide or blend aspects of the dancer. Back-up dancers may be dressed in clothes matching the back-drop to put the focal point on the star dancer, but without a spotlight.
Each type of dance requires a specific type of clothing made to best fit the purposes of that particular dance style. Some of the more popular styles of dance are swing, ballroom, street, ballet, tap, belly, jazz and modern. Ballroom and swing are partner dance styles, and thus will almost always have the woman in a feminine dress and have the man in a fancy suit or pants. Ballet costumes fit tight and are often more conservative, while street and hip-hop dancers tend to dress in baggy, loud clothing.
Clothing and costumes are specifically picked and designed to emphasize the look of the dance and match the feel of the music. In ballroom, dances such as the samba have more of a sexual style, so usually the women’s dresses will be black and red, fit tight and be relatively leggy. Whereas, in a waltz the dress would more likely be elegant and more conservative.
Dancewear | Clothes | Learning Center | Site Map | Links | Contact | Home
Copyright © 2007