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Dating back to 8500 B.C. performing arts have been a popular art form for many cultures. They include a variety of arts such as dance, theater, musical performance, operas and more. Performing arts are based on employing a person’s face, body and presence as the performance medium. This is the opposite of plastic arts, where one uses materials such as clay or paint to create a physical work of art. To learn more about performing arts, check out the resources below to take a look into theater, dance, music and more.

theatre masks

PERFORMING ARTS

Performing Arts Reading Room – This website, from the Library of Congress, offers a variety of helpful links to dance, music and theater.

Early Performing Arts History – From Iowa Public Television comes a helpful article that outlines various influences on early performing arts.

Department – This website features an example of a performing arts department at a university. It is a good resource for students.

Performing Arts Subject Guide – From Elon University library, this subject guide offers resources in dance, theater and film.

Safety at Performing Arts Venues – This article allows people to take a look into different venues that performing arts take place in and how they handle safety.

Explanation – This website presents a basic explanation of what the performing arts entail. It is good for those new to the subject.

Performing Arts: Whitney – This website features information on the history of performing arts at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

shakespeare's globe theatre

THEATER

A History of the Theater – This website features information on a history of theater in the world. This is Central Washington University’s website.

Theatre History Website – This website provides people with a look at a comprehensive history of the theater. It features the theaters of different cultures.

History of Theater Timeline – Glencoe theater offers an interactive timeline to help people understand the history of theater dating all the way back to 8500 B.C.

Polk Theatre Website – This website offers people a look at the Polk Theater, one of America’s most reputed theaters. This is the official website of the theater.

Theater Library – This website offers general theater history, as well as a look into ancient, medieval and modern theater.

Shakespeare’s Works – This website provides all of Shakespeare’s works. It is provided by MIT.

Shakespeare on the Internet – This website is another source of Shakespeare’s plays on the Internet. This is Palomar College’s website.

Modernist Theater, Eastern Themes – This website examines the relationship between modernism and eastern themes. This website is Yale’s.

Modern Theater Revisited – This website analyzes some concepts of Modern Theater. It is Victoria & Albert Museum website.

ballet dancer silhouette

DANCE

Voice of the Shuttle: Dance – UC Santa Barbara offers an expansive list of resources that relate to many different types of dance.

Dance History Timeline – Dallas and Houston Dance Association offers an education timeline to help teach about dance throughout history.

Western Social Dance – The Library of Congress offers a collection on the different types of western dance.

Dance in the 20s – This website explores dance back in the 1920s. It is Illinois State University’s website.

Ballet and Modern Dance – This website briefly discusses modern dance and ballet’s fusion.

All About the Dancing Occupation – This website looks at many aspect of a dancer’s career. It is a federal government website.

music note for voice training

MUSIC

Music History Explored – This website looks at the history of music. It goes as far back as the Middle Ages.

Research Guide on Music History – This website offers an extensive list of websites and books to check out in order to learn more about the history of music.

Jazz and Seattle – This website talks about the history of Jazz music in Seattle. It is a government website.

All About Musical Composition – This guide looks at the factors involved in musical composition.

Musical Term Glossary – This website presents a list of musical terms. It features words like “canon,” “cadenza” and many others.

Composing Piano Music – This website talks about composing piano music. Interested visitors are given advice on composing piano music.

Symbols in Music – This website is all about music symbols and how and when to use them.