Dancing in Early Modern Drama

This paper deals with various ways in which early 17th-century English plays used dance. During this fruitful period in the development of drama and court spectacles, plays ‘recycled’ dances from Jacobean court masques. In some revenge tragedies, court masques were used as the setting which allowed the revengers to carry out their plan and try to reinstate the cosmic order that had been disturbed by the original crime. Moreover, London’s huge expansion in the 16th and early 17th centuries led to the emergence of a new town culture in which social distinctions were not as clear-cut as they had been before. Wealthy citizens imitated the lifestyle of the court, for instance by organizing balls, and the first academies of manners were founded in London. All these developments were reflected in the theatre, especially in city or town comedies. Some plays question the idea that there is a fundamental difference between a gentleman and someone who looks and acts like one, and a graceful posture and dancing skills are an important part of a  gentlemanlike appearance. Others make fun of the pretensions of social climbers who think it is enough to buy a title and learn how to ‘make a leg’ in order to become a member of refined society. A few Caroline plays focus specifically on balls and academies, and some criticise the effeminate French manners and skills that were taught there. All these kinds of drama vanished before or during the Civil War, leaving few traces of their choreography behind.