CHAPTER XIX 

 SCIENCE AND DANCING 



THERE is at the present day in this country a real 

 and most happy revival of interest in the great 

 art of dancing as exhibited on the stage. We owe this 

 to the creative ability of the musical composers and 

 directors of the Russian Imperial Ballet, as well as to 

 the highly-trained and gifted Russian artists who have 

 visited this country, and especially to the poetical genius 

 of Madame Anna Pavlova. Though dancing may seem, 

 on first thought, a subject remote from science, yet, like 

 all other human developments, it is a matter for scientific 

 investigation, and one upon which science can throw 

 much light. What is the origin and essential nature of 

 " dancing " ? Do animals dance ? What is its early 

 history in mankind ? What is its relation not merely 

 historically, but from the point of view of psychology 

 the study of the mind to other arts ? What is its real 

 " value " and possible achievement ? 



To dance is to trip with measured steps, and, whilst 

 primarily referring to human movement, the word is 

 secondarily applied to rapid rhythmic movements even 

 of inanimate objects; Rhythm is what distinguishes 

 dancing from ordinary movement of progression or from 



simple gesture or mere antics. Dancing on the part of 



170 



