Western contemporary performers and choreographers are encouraged to maintain a critical awareness of the historical, sociocultural, and political context in which performance choices are developed. Among the community of contemporary dance, there has always been discussion about the opportunity that this dance form provides to challenge conceptions of race, gender, sexuality and politics, and to move past an entertainment-based model of dance programming.
Western contemporary dance does offer a platform for expression of social, political, and cultural contexts; however, it can be challenging to do so when there is such an extreme lack of diversity among contemporary performers. In western contemporary dance companies, it is prevalent and often expected that dancers conform to western beauty ideals (i.e. young, white, thin, and able-bodied). This poses the question to the extent to which contemporary dance pieces with a focus on social, political, and cultural contexts can portray a message of significance and/or make a lasting impression on their audiences. The presentation of those bodies will always carry meaning regardless of the narrative or conceptual theme of the dance. Perhaps for social, political, and culturally driven western contemporary dance to highlight their messages, they must examine their performance choices with a critical eye. And also recognise the way certain performers are represented in or even excluded from contemporary dance spaces. It has become apparent that performers, choreographers and curators of contemporary dance must go beyond looking to “include” diverse bodies and identities in their performance and instead re-examine and reject the racist, sexist ideologies that justified the exclusion of minorities in the first place. In doing so, this will ensure the engagement of contemporary performances in the socially, politically and culturally aware spheres, and critically engage audiences.