Dances in Iran or Iranian dances (
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
:رقص ایرانی) are dance styles indigenous to
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. Genres of dance in Iran vary depending on the area, culture, and language of the local people, and can range from sophisticated reconstructions of refined court dances to energetic folk dances.
The population of Iran includes many
ethnicities
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
, such as
Kurds ug:كۇردلار
Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Ir ...
,
Azerbaijanis
Azerbaijanis (; az, Azərbaycanlılar, ), Azeris ( az, Azərilər, ), or Azerbaijani Turks ( az, Azərbaycan Türkləri, ) are a Turkic people living mainly in northwestern Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan. They are the second-most numer ...
,
Turkmen
Turkmen, Türkmen, Turkoman, or Turkman may refer to:
Peoples Historical ethnonym
* Turkoman (ethnonym), ethnonym used for the Oghuz Turks during the Middle Ages
Ethnic groups
* Turkmen in Anatolia and the Levant (Seljuk and Ottoman-Turkish desc ...
,
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
,
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
,
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
peoples, in addition to numerous Iranian tribal groups which can be found within the borders of modern-day Iran.
Each group, region, and historical epoch has specific dance styles associated with it.
Raghs (also spelled as Raqs) is the Arabic word for dance, and is almost exclusively the word used for dance in
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
, as the Persian word for dance, paykubi, is no longer in common usage. It is also the word in Azerbaijani for dance (''Reqs''). The
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
word for dance is Halperke, and the Lurs from
Lorestan use the word Bākhten (or Bāzee) for dance.
Prehistory
The people of the Iranian plateau have known dance in the forms of music, play, drama or religious rituals and have used instruments like mask, costumes of animals or plants, and musical instruments for rhythm, at least since the 6th millennium BC. Cultural mixed forms of dance, play and drama have served rituals like celebration, mourning and worship. And the actors have been masters of music, dance, physical acts and manners of expression. Artifacts with pictures of dancers, players or actors were found in many archaeological prehistoric sites in Iran, like Tepe Sabz, Ja'far Abad, Chogha Mish, Tall-e Jari, Cheshmeh Ali, Ismaeel Abad, Tal-e bakun, Tepe Sialk, Tepe Musian, tepe Yahya, Shahdad, Tepe Gian, Kul Farah, Susa, Kok Tepe, Cemeteries of Luristan, etc.
History
![Dancers and musicians on a Sasanian bowl](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Dancers_and_musicians_on_a_Sasanian_bowl.jpg)
The earliest researched dance from historic Iran is a dance worshiping
Mithra
Mithra ( ae, ''Miθra'', peo, 𐎷𐎰𐎼 ''Miça'') commonly known as Mehr, is the Iranian deity of covenant, light, oath, justice and the sun. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing ...
(as in the Cult of Mithras) in which a bull was sacrificed.
This cult later became highly adhered in the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
. This dance was to promote vigor in life.
Ancient Persian dance was significantly researched by Greek historian from
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
of Halikarnassos, in his work ''Book IX (Calliope)'', in which he describes the history of Asian empires and Persian wars until 478 BC.
Ancient Persia was occupied by foreign powers, first
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
, then
Arabs
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...
, and then
Mongols
The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal membe ...
and in turn political instability and civil wars occurred. Throughout these changes a slow disappearance of heritage dance traditions occurred.
Religious prohibition of dancing in Iran came with the spread of Islam, but it was spurred by historical events.
Religious prohibition to dancing waxed and waned over the years, but after the
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...
in 1979 dancing was no longer allowed due to its frequent mixing of the sexes.
The Islamic Revolution of 1979 was the end of a successful era for dancing and the art of ballet in Iran.
The Iranian national ballet company was dissolved and its members emigrated to different countries.
According to the principles of the “cultural revolution” in Iran, dancing was considered to be perverse, a great sin, immoral and corrupting.
As a result, many of the talented Persian dancers moved to the West and spread out mainly in Europe and the United States and a new generation of Iranian dancers and ballet artists have grown up in the Diaspora.
With the ignition of
revolutionary uprising in Iran, catalysed by the death of
Mahsa Amini
On 16 September 2022, the 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, also known as Jina Amini,; ku, ژینا ئەمینی, Jîna Emînî died in a hospital in Tehran, Iran, under suspicious circumstances. The Guidance Patrol, the religious mor ...
, dance has become a medium for protest and yearning for freedom.
Genres of dance
Iran has four categories of dance: chain or line dances, solo improvisational dance, war or combat dances and ritual or spiritual dances.
* Chain or Line dances are often named for the region or the ethnic groups with which they are associated.
* Solo dance usually includes reconstructions of
Safavid
Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...
and
Qajar
Qajar Iran (), also referred to as Qajar Persia, the Qajar Empire, '. Sublime State of Persia, officially the Sublime State of Iran ( fa, دولت علیّه ایران ') and also known then as the Guarded Domains of Iran ( fa, ممالک م ...
Court Dance. These often are improvisational dances and utilize delicate, graceful movements of the hands and arms, such as wrist circles.
* War or Combat dances imitate combat, or help train the warrior. It could be argued that men from the
zurkhaneh
Pahlevani and zourkhaneh rituals is the name inscribed by UNESCO for varzesh-e pahlavāni ( fa, آیین پهلوانی و زورخانهای, "heroic sport") or varzesh-e bāstāni (; , "ancient sport"), a traditional system of athletics a ...
(lit. "house of strength", a traditional Persian gymnasium) and their ritualized, wrestling-training movements are known as a type of dance called Raghs-e-Pa but could also been seen as a
martial art
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...
.
* Ritual or spiritual dances, are often
Sufi
Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...
are known as sama and also a type of zikr (religious chant).
There are various types of dancing in a trance for healing practices in Iran and surrounding areas. One healing ritual that involves trance, music, and movement is called le’b guati of the Baluchis of Eastern Iran, which is performed to rid a possessed person of the possessing spirit and appears to be in a similar state as an exorcism.
There is a term in Balochi, ''gowati'', for psychologically ill patients (possessed by wind) who have recovered through music healing, music as medicine. The southern coastal regions of Iran such as
Qeshm Island have a similar possession by wind ceremony and it is thought that it may be influenced or originated in Africa, particularly the
Abyssinian or
Ethiopian
Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...
region.
The word ''sama'', from the Arabic root meaning "to listen," refers to the spiritual practice of listening to music and achieving unity with the Divine.
Dancing mystics (regardless of their specific religious identifications) are called
Dervish
Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh (from fa, درویش, ''Darvīsh'') in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity
A fraternity (from Latin language, Latin ''wiktionary:frater, frater'': "brother (Christian), brother"; whence, ...
.
Contemporary social dances and urban dance performed at festive occasions like weddings and
Noruz
Nowruz ( fa, نوروز, ; ), zh, 诺鲁孜节, ug, نەۋروز, ka, ნოვრუზ, ku, Newroz, he, נורוז, kk, Наурыз, ky, Нооруз, mn, Наурыз, ur, نوروز, tg, Наврӯз, tr, Nevruz, tk, Nowruz, ...
celebrations focus less on communal line or circle dances and more on solo improvisational forms, with each dancer interpreting the music in her own special way but within a specific range of dance vocabulary sometimes blending other dance styles or elements.
Iranian dance styles
220px, Basseri dance
This is a list of some of the ancient and contemporary Iranian dances, from various ethnic groups within Iran.
* Baba Karam, a chain dance, derived from a Sufi story whereby a servant at the court of the king falls in love with one of the harem girls and sings this song out of grief from not being able to be with her, traditionally featured male dancers but nowadays also performed by women. Baba Karam sometimes refers to contemporary Persian Hip-Hop dancing.
* Bandari dance, a chain dance, is often referred to as Persian bellydance.
Bandari dance is a chain dance that often involves multiple people dancing
and often perform this at parties, traveling around in a circle and sometimes stepping into the centre for a solo with encouragement from other dancers, the only variations are in the arm movements.
It is a Persian dance that prevails in the South of Iran next to the Persian Gulf and has been influenced by the African and Arabic music and dance. It is a combination of rhythmic movements in various directions according to the beat of the song. The distinct feature of this dance is the way performers wave their hands in a unique manner that resembles the cooperation of a group of fishermen at the sea.
The word ''bandari'' means "of the port" and is a derivation of the
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
word
bandar, meaning
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
.
* Basseri dance is a traditional dance performed by the
Basseri
The Basseri ( fa, باسری or باصری) are a Persian nomadic and pastoral tribe of the Fars Province in Iran. Their migratory area is around Shiraz. They are one of the five tribes of the larger Khamseh confederation. The "tent" is the bas ...
tribe who live in the
Fars province. The dancers wear their traditional and colorful clothes.
* Bojnordi dance:
Bojnord
Bojnord ( fa, ; also romanized Bojnūrd, Bujnūrd, Bojnoord, Bojnord or Bujnurd), known in the Middle Ages as Buzanjird, is the capital city of North Khorasan Province, Iran. It is about from Tehran. and It is located 237 km away from Mashhad, ...
is a village in the northeast section of Iran inhabited by a Turkic people. Men and women dance separately or together in Bojnordi dance, snapping their fingers in the method known as peshkan. Dancing in a circle with running and step hop steps, the dancers may turn alternate directions facing first one side then the next, dancers sometimes facing one another. Men or women may dance and wave small colorful scarves, called dastmal.
* Choob bazi, also known as chob bazi, chub-bazi, çûb-bâzî or raghs-e choob, is a chain dance found all over Iran, performed by men with sticks, the name translates to English as 'stick play'. There are two types of Choob bazi dance styles, the first one being more combative in style, only performed by men (normally only two men, assuming the roles as the attacker and the defender) and does not appear to have a rhythmic pattern; this style is more frequently found in Southwestern Iran. The second style Choob bazi is a circle or line dance with pattern, performed by both sexes and is more of a social dance.
* Classical Persian court dances, solo dances, improvisational, often utilize delicate, graceful movements of the hands and arms with animated facial expressions are central to the concept of that difficult-to-define flirtatiousness. Persian classical dance has not been organized and codified. Thus each dancer creates her own style and improvises within a recognizably Persian framework of movements.
Costumes for these types of dance feature rich silks, brocades and flowing long skirts.
* Haj Naranji dance: an upper body motion is emphasized, with hand motions, trunk undulations and facial expressions being points of attention.
* Jâheli is a dance popularized in the 1960s and 1970s by the Persian dancer
Jamileh
Jamileh ( fa, جمیله) is a female given name.Babynamefacts.com - http://www.babynamefacts.com/babynames/summary.php?name=Jamileh It means "beautiful". Notable people with the given name include:
* Jamileh, Iranian dancer
* Jamileh Kadivar, ...
. It is part of an Iranian sub-culture that has its origins in the 9th and 10th centuries, a period when Turkic and Mongol tribes seeking pasturage and pillage formed an incursion in eastern Iran. Local, informal constabularies were formed to protect each town or village and the men of these groups, called ''jâhel'' (meaning “ignorant” in Farsi), along with women, developed a culture and dance with a mixture of street smarts and spirituality.
* Khaliji dance: a contemporary dance done in largely improvisational, performed by pairs or groups of women for their own entertainment at special celebrations, such as weddings. There is also a type of
Khaliji music from the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...
region.
* Kereshmeh dance: solo, 19th Century Iranian royal court dance
* Kharman dance
* Khorasani dance
* Latar dance
* Le’b Guati: a spiritual dance by the Baluchis of Eastern Iran to rid a person of a possessing spirit
*
Lezgi dance:
Azerbaijani and
Caucasian
Caucasian may refer to:
Anthropology
*Anything from the Caucasus region
**
**
** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus region
*
*
*
Languages
* Northwest Caucasian l ...
folk dance; comes in variations of styles based on region
* Luri dance
* Matmati
* Mazandarani dance
** Lak Sema
** Dasmal Sema
** Majme Sema
** Lampa Sema
** Derum Bakordan
** Tesh Sema
** Chakka Sema
** Saz Sema
** Sema Hal
* Motrebi dance: professional public dancers from the Qatar period, sometimes also prostitutes or party entertainment. In contemporary Iran this is a dance associated with low-class nightclub performers.
* Qasemabadi, also known as Ghasem Abadi, is a chain genre, rice-harvesting dance of the
Gilaki people
Gilaks (Gileki: گیلک) are an Iranian ethnic group native to the south of Caspian sea. They form one of the main ethnic groups residing in the northern parts of Iran. Gilak people, along with the closely related Mazandarani people, comprise ...
from the Gilan province of Iran near the Caspian Sea.
* Raghs-e-Pa, also known as Raqs-e Pa or Pay-Bazi, is the traditional gymnasium footwork dance found at zurkhaneh (a traditional Iranian gym). The name translates to English as "foot dance".
* Raghs-e-Pari: Persian fairy dance
* Raghs-e Parcheh: Persian veil dance
* Raghs-e Sharqi:
belly dancing
Belly dance (Egyptian Arabic: رقص بلدي, translated: Dance of the Country/Folk Dance, romanized: Raks/Raas Baladi) is a dance that originates in Egypt. It features movements of the hips and torso. It has evolved to take many different f ...
* Ru-Howzi: a comic theatre performance on domestic life that includes some dancing
* Sama-o-raghs: a spiritual Sufi dance of joy that involves chanting. Dancers move to the rhythm of the music, often continuing until they fall into a trance or collapse from exhaustion.
* Shamshir dance: war dance involving a sword, also known as Shamshir-bazi; usually performed in
Sistan and Baluchestan province
* Shateri dance: classical Persian dance often compared to Arabic dance but without any hip movements
* Tehrani dance: also known as Tehrooni,
Tehran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
-style nightclub dancing
* Vahishta: a Sufi, spiritual dance
*
Yalli
Halay is the national dance of Turkey and a regional category of folk dance styles in central, southern, eastern, and southeastern regions of the country. It is mainly performed by Turks, Arabs, and Kurds in Turkey. Halay and similar dances are ...
, also known as Yally or Halay, an Azerbaijani chain folk dance, starts slowly and finishes fast at almost running speed. Traditionally it was a celebration of fire, which was a source of heat, light, and warm food. In ancient times dancers worshiped fire as a goddess.
* Zaboli dance: a folk, chain dance, from the
Sistan and Baluchestan Province in Southeastern Iran
* Zār: a spiritual dance, from Southern coastal regions of Iran. People believe in the existence of winds that can be either vicious or peaceful and possess people. They are healed through a specific ceremony and dance.
[)]
* Zargari dance: a chain dance, from the Zargari people, a
Romani
Romani may refer to:
Ethnicities
* Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia
** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule
* Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
-related ethnic group deriving from the Zargar, Iran area
Notable Iranian dancers
Contemporary and historical Persian and/or Iranian dancers
This list of contemporary and historical Persian dancers or choreographers (in alphabetical order, of various dance styles) includes:
* Aram Bayat, choreographer and Founder of Khorshid Khanoom Dance Group in Montreal, is an alumnus of the National Dance and Folklore Organisation of Iran, who graduated before Iranian revolution of 1979.
* Sahar Azari
* Mina Vajik (she put a creative twist in pop dance culture of Iran)
* Farima Berenji
* Haydeh Changizian
* Foroozan
*
Jamileh
Jamileh ( fa, جمیله) is a female given name.Babynamefacts.com - http://www.babynamefacts.com/babynames/summary.php?name=Jamileh It means "beautiful". Notable people with the given name include:
* Jamileh, Iranian dancer
* Jamileh Kadivar, ...
, Los Angeles-based, belly dancer
*
Farzaneh Kaboli
Farzaneh Kaboli ( fa, فرزانه کابلی, Farzâneh Kâboli; born in Tehran) is an Iranian dancer, choreographer, and actress. She is a leader in the Iranian Folkloric and National Dance Art, and a master of choreography in Iranian theaters. ...
, Iranian actress and dancer
*
Mohammad Khordadian
Mohammad Khordadian ( fa, محمد خردادیان ''Mohammad Khordādiyān''; born 22 February 1957) is an Iranian-American choreographer, dancer and entertainer. His dance instruction tapes of Persian and Arabic dance have become popular insi ...
, Iranian-American dancer
* Shirin Kiani (Santa Barbara Ballet)
* Maryam Mahdaviani (New York City Ballet)
* Ana Janbazian
* Cigana MahMah (of Sigana Choreographer, Dayereh Crew)
*
Mahvash, popular dancer and singer of the 1950s and 1960s
* Masa (Los Angeles based dancer)
* Medea Mahdavi (UK-based dancer and choreographer)
* Afshin Mofid (
New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company' ...
)
*
Shahrokh Moshkin-Ghalam (Paris based, modern dancer)
* Abdollah Nazemi, dance choreographer and educator and founder of Pars National Ballet Company
*
Azita Sahebjam
Azita Sahebjam is the director of Vancouver Pars National Ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and ...
, dancer and director of the Vancouver Pars National Ballet
* Kimiya Saleh (also known as Kimya Saleh), Japan-based, Iranian dancer specializing in Arabic style belly dancing
* Mina Saleh, Japan-based, Iranian dancer specializing in Arabic style belly dancing
* Shahrzad
*
Azar Shiva
Azar ( fa, آذر, ) is the ninth month of the Solar Hijri calendar, the official calendar of Iran and Afghanistan. Azar has thirty days. It begins in November and ends in December by the Gregorian calendar. Azar corresponds to the Tropical Astro ...
, Iranian actress and dancer
Notable Persian and/or Iranian dance ensembles
*
Ballet Afsaneh Ballet Afsaneh ( fa, گروه رقص افسانه) is a non-profit cultural organization devoted to the art, dance, music, and poetry of cultural heritage from Iran, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Mongolia, China, and Uzbekistan. Ballet Afsaneh ...
, a female dance troupe focused on Persian culture along the
Silk Road
The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and reli ...
, based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
* AVAZ International Dance Theatre, Iranian folkloric dance troupe with modernist influence, located in Los Angeles since 1977
* Khorshid Khanoom Dance, founded in 1988 in Montreal, Canada by Aram Bayat, in order to preserve and teach the Iranian traditional dance.
* Niosha Dance Academy (NDA), founded by Niosha Nafei and located in Northern California
*
Pars National Ballet Company
Pars may refer to:
* Fars Province of Iran, also known as Pars Province
* Pars (Sasanian province), a province roughly corresponding to the present-day Fars, 224–651
* ''Pars'', for ''Persia'' or ''Iran'', in the Persian language
* Pars News Age ...
, founded by Abdollah Nazemi in 1966, located in Los Angeles, California.
* Saba Dance Company, an Iranian folkloric dance troupe located in California.
* Shahrzad Dance Academy (SDA), located in the San Francisco Bay Area.
* Silk Road Dance Company (SRDC), Persian/Central Asian troupe located in the DC area since 1995
* Simorgh Dance Collective, founded by Farima Berenji in 2007, a dance collective headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area.
* Vancouver Pars National Ballet (also known as VPNB, in Farsi, Bale-ye Melli-ye Pars) founded by Azita Sahebjam (who studied under Abdollah Nazemi), located in Vancouver, Canada since 1989
See also
*
Persian theatre
Persian theater ( fa, تئاتر ایرانی) goes back to antiquity. The first initiation of theater and phenomena of acting can be traced in ceremonial theaters to glorify national heroes and legends and to humiliate the enemy, as in the class ...
*
Iranian music
The music of Iran encompasses music that is produced by Iranian artists. In addition to the traditional folk and classical genres, it also includes pop and internationally celebrated styles such as jazz, rock, and hip hop.
Iranian music influ ...
*
Azerbaijani dances
Azerbaijani dances ( az, Azərbaycan Rəqsləri) are traditional dances developed and performed in the Republic of Azerbaijan. These dances are known for their quick tempo and the dancers' traditional clothing.
Examples of dances in Azerbai ...
*
Farzaneh Kaboli
Farzaneh Kaboli ( fa, فرزانه کابلی, Farzâneh Kâboli; born in Tehran) is an Iranian dancer, choreographer, and actress. She is a leader in the Iranian Folkloric and National Dance Art, and a master of choreography in Iranian theaters. ...
References
External links
*
Folk Dances from Persia, 1970s(Video by National TV, Tehran)
A Brief About Persian Dance by Dr. Peyman NasehpourIran Dance & Ballet Resources*
ttp://www.iranchamber.com/cinema/articles/persian_dance_history01.php Iran Chamber Society, Persian Dance and its forgotten history
{{Dance
Dance
Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...
Dance
Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...
Folk dances