Reviews of the first edition:'The fascination of this book lies in the way in which the author is able to locate the male dancer in the broader socio-historic context of the times. a vital contribution to the placing of dance and its literature within contemporary cultural debate.'Dr Alexander Carter, Middlesex University'A complex summary of the numerous biases and windows through which we have veiwed and continue to view male dancers. Burt's work argues persuasively that theatrical dance is a vital and threatening site for defining masculinity in relation to the culture at large.'David J. Popalisky,Dance Research JournalThe Male Dancer 2nd Edition updates and enlarges a classic Routledge title that has established itself as the definitive study of the role of men in ballet, modern and postmodern dance.In this challenging and lively book, Burt examines the representation of masculinity in twentieth and twenty-first century dance. Taking issue with formalist and modernist accounts of dance, which dismiss gender and sexuality as irrelevant, he argues that prejudices against male dancers are rooted in our ideas about the male body and male behaviour.

Drawing on recent developments in dance and performance theory, Burt provides a provocative theory of spectatorship in dance. He examines the work of choreographers such as Nijinksy, Graham, Bausch and Bill T Jones, relating performances of masculinity in their dances to the social, political and artistic contexts in which these were produced.The Male Dancer has proven to be essential reading for anyone interested in dance and the cultural construction of gender. Ramsay Burt has thoroughly updated this important work to include dance works from the last ten years. Reflecting on the latest studies in theory, performance and practice, he has renewed its timeliness for the new century.Ramsay Burt is Professor of Dance History at De Montfort University, Leicester.Ramsay Burt is Professor of Dance History at De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom. His publications include The Male Dancer.

This was followed by Alien Bodies and Judson Dance Theater. In 1999 he was Visiting Professor at the Department of Performance Studies, New York University. With Prof. Susan Foster, he is founder editor of Discourses in Dance.Dance Studies / Gender Studies.