There are many kinds of dances in China. From the perspective of social function, dance can be divided into two categories: self-entertainment dance and performance dance. Self-entertainment dance includes modern social dance, square group dance and various spontaneous folk dances. These dances are not limited by the venue, and people can participate freely. Its movements are simple, natural and regular, and it is easier for people without special training to learn. Dancing is different. It is a stage performance art work directly created or arranged by dancers. This kind of dance should have distinct theme and content, vivid artistic image, or convey feelings with objects, or reason with things, and its movements are more complicated and standardized. Through combination, we can express certain thoughts and feelings, which has certain internal meaning. The appreciation of dance art mentioned below refers to the appreciation of such works.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, dancers have gone deep into life and created a large number of outstanding dance works with distinctive characteristics of the times and ethnic characteristics, with various forms and styles. According to the styles and characteristics of these dances, we divide China's dances into three categories: court dances, folk dances and classical dances.