Dance is a case in point in the study of performance and performativity.

First because of its historiography. Despite methodologies dating back from the 15^th century and groundbreaking objective methods and notation systems such as Rudolf Laban's Labanotation / Kynetography (Laban, 1928) and other notation systems of human movement (Conté, 1931, Benesh, 1957 see link 1, Eshkol and Wachmann, see picture 1 below), dance has been "anecdotal" and lacked sufficient, solid conceptual background throughout the 20^th century, most theories being focused on ballet (Morris, 2).

Another challenge in the study of dance is that it is at the crossroads between several subject areas: (ethno)choreology (Benesh, see video below), physical anthropology, linguistics (dance as a system of signs) and archaeology and history. Since the 1960s and 1970s and the booming of contemporary and postmodern dance, dance theory has flourished; it is only recently that dance has been considered as being part of performing arts, with a double dimension, "performative (executive and poietic) and communicative" (Angelino, in Roquet, 2019, 11).

Second, because choreographed forms are constantly "in the making" and "on the move," at the crossroads between and cross-fertilizing with multiple arts and art forms (theatre, costume and fashion design, happening, music, film making…). Furthermore, and contrary to music and theatre, which are based on stable and fixed forms (the music sheet and script) and except for improvised forms (which are never totally improvised, as shall be seen further), choreographed dancing is unique as its referent is unstable (Roquet, 2015, 13). The same goes with the dancers' way of performing (movements, grace, muscular strengths, velocity…), which has more to do with the "embodiment," "incarnation," or "incorporation" of the movement than the mere reproduction of the choreography (Roquet, 2015, 13).

Third, because the variety of dance forms and genres and the many discursive elements and props at stake in any choreography make it sometimes even more challenging to process a dance performance, the act and art of dancing depend on a specific time and space, but also on the performers' heterogeneous movements, body and bodily capacities, and the fluctuating relationship between bodies, space, music (if applicable) and time. The performer's gender is another element to be taken into account.

---

References:

• Benesh, R., & Benesh, J. (1977). Reading Dance : The Birth of Choreology. Souvenir Press.
• Conté, P. (1931). Écriture de la danse théâtrale et de la danse en général. Impr. du Progrès.
• Eschkol, Noa, & Washmann, A. (1958). Mouvement Notation : Early Years (1950-1958).Roquet, C. (2019). Vu du Geste—Interpréter le Mouvement Danse (Illustrated édition). Centre National de la Danse Pantin.