What is the purpose of a dance 'warm-up'?

The purpose of a dance 'warm-up' primarily involves preparing the body for physical activity. This process is essential as it helps to increase blood flow to the muscles, enhances flexibility, and improves overall physical readiness for the upcoming dance practice or performance. A proper warm-up elevates the heart rate and starts to loosen the muscles and joints, minimizing the risk of injury during more intense movements.

While entertaining the audience or developing performance skills are important aspects of dance, they occur after the body has been properly prepared through a warm-up. Learning new dance routines can also be part of a dance class, but it’s essential that the body is adequately warmed up first to ensure safety and effectiveness in learning and executing new movements. Thus, the primary focus of a warm-up is to ready the body for the demands of dancing.