By examining the development of modern dance in the USA in the inter-war period, Thomas develops a framework for analysing dance from a sociological perspective. She applies her approach to, among others, St Denis, Ted Shawn, and Martha Graham.

List of Illustrations, Acknowledgements, 1. Formulating a sociology of dance, 2. Theatrical dance in America from the eighteenth to the nineteenth century, 3. Transitions, 4. Beginnings: dance and the processes of cultural reproduction, 5. Iconoclasts from Denishawn, 6. Dance, modernity and culture, 7. Shifting horizons, 8. Conceptual Americanism, modernism and universalism in music and dance, 9. Appalachian Spring, 10. Conclusion, Appendix, Bibliography, Name index, Subject index