A NUMBER of us have wondered for some time why dance, when it is a healthy exercise as well as being mentally stimulating, is so often overlooked and when compared to sports such as athletics, football and so on, appears to occupy the position of a poor relation.

When one purchases an item such as an electric kettle, iron and so on, a questionnaire is often included as to one's favourite hobby - dance is never listed among the 50 to 60 possibilities.

There are, of course, many forms of dance - ballet, modern, tap, jazz, to name a few and to say nothing of the popular forms that crop up from time to time. There are dances to suit all ages and abilities from the simple to the more complicated.

At this time, when people are looking to the past, I would like to suggest that some may like to turn their attention to the dances of previous centuries. I should be happy to pass on my knowledge of these to anyone interested.

LILLIAN PLEYDELL (Founder, Nelson Historical Dance Society), Railway Street, Nelson.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.