Practicality Counts

Think of dancing and what is the first thing that springs to mind?  Some think of the joy that comes from dancing, other, more self conscious individuals may think of stressful situations and events where they have felt obliged to dance.  One thing the majority of people have in common is a deep respect for those who perform skilled dances.  Over the years there have been many dancing styles, and dance has been a respected career for a lot of professionals.  A lot of people think that ballet dancers are quite unique in their abilities and the professionalism which their role requires, but there are numerous other careers that revolve around dancing, for example backing dancers that work alongside pop stars on stage and in music videos.
Since dance began it has often been performed in certain dress.  For many cultures dance was, and still is, symbolic.  Dance clothes can be used to show the audience which character, animal or other role a particular dancer represents.  Many classical dances that were created as entertainment tell stories, a number of classical ballets rely on dance clothes to help tell the story.

Modern dance, such as hip hop are also very impressive to watch, but are often not reliant on clothing which tells a story, outfits are governed by fashion and by practicality.  Today, the majority of dance clothes are designed with performance in mind.  Modern fabrics allow for outfits such as leotards and unitards to be stretchy, but able to return to their original shape and size time after time.  Dance is recognised as a demanding physical activity and this is reflected in dance wear, as materials and designs used for sports are often adopted by dance wear manufacturers.  Keeping performers comfortable physically and psychologically (in the knowledge their clothes will not let them down) can help them to concentrate on more important things – the dance in question.