Character dance

Character dance is a special subset of classical dance that is based on folk dances of different peoples or nations. These were stylized and inserted into the classical ballets. The term "character" is related to the trade of the performers or their movement and is " fine " in the 19th century as the coarser contrast to the behavior of the mean noble figures.

Until the beginning of the 19th century, when there was a clear distinction between the popular pantomime and the courtly ballet, one speaks in this context of grotesque dance.

Examples

• Arabian Dance, Chinese Dance and Russian Trepak in The Nutcracker
• Hungarian Czardas, Neapolitan dance, Spanish dance and Polish Mazurka in Swan Lake
• Mazurka, Czardas, Bolero and Gigue in Coppélia
• Seguidilla and dances of the Toreros in Don Quixote

When character dance not the usual ballet shoes ( pointe shoes or ballet slippers ) are usually worn, but shoes (or lace-up shoes for men) with a heel.

• Dance form
• Ballet