An eclectic mix of voices, anecdotes and illuminations on dance. It deals with the many different dance forms that can be seen in the current Western repertoire and sets them in their historical context. It also looks at the work of famous choreographers, from Petipa to Balanchine and Mark Morris, and discusses the effects created by patterns and duplications, how dancers relate to each other on stage, the origin of steps and how they fit together and the power of improvisation.