Performance Dances are dances in which an audience is watching but does not participate. By contrast, in Social dance (also known as Participation dance) there is no audience (as such) as all participants perform and watch at the same time.
Some Ceremonial dances, Baroque dances and Erotic dances are examples of dance forms that are a blend of Social and Concert dance. In this third category participants take on the roles of performer or audience at different times.

Contrary to popular belief Concert dance does not exclusively occur in the concert or theater setting. The category is only dependent on the presence of a non-participating audience.

It should be noted that Concert dance experienced the biggest exposure with development of mass culture during the second half of 20th Century. Prominent postmodern artist Michael Jackson for one choreographed and performed solo and group dance for over 17 million people, doing several world tours and visiting up to a hundred countries.

Usually, performances are danced to a set music and choreography, whereas social dances are danced to changing music and without choreography. Exceptions are found in many un-standardized social dances like Tango, Salsa or Swing.

This compares to other major dance categories based on purpose: Ceremonial dance - Competitive dance - Erotic dance - Participation dance - Social dance - Concert dance.

Almost any type of dance may be danced for the purpose of performance. However the following dance forms or styles are traditionally considered specific for this category: * Ballet * Ballroom Dance * Belly Dance * Bharatanatyam * Cabaret * Character dance * 20th Century concert dance * Hip hop * Historical dance * Jazz * Modern dance * Musical theatre * Pole dance & Striptease * Ukrainian dance * Multi Disciplinary Dance.

Free dance is a 20th century dance form that preceded Modern dance. Rebelling against the rigid constraints of Classical ballet, Loie Fuller, Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis developed their own styles of free dance and laid the foundations of American modern dance with their choreography and teaching. In Europe Rudolf Laban, Emile Jaques-Dalcroze and Francois Delsarte developed their own theories of human movement and methods of instruction that led to the development of European modern and Expressionist dance.

References: Adams, D.(1999) Making the Connection: A Comparison of Dance in the Concert Versus Worship Setting. Sharing NYC. ISBN 0-941500-51-9 * Carter, A. (1998) The Routledge Dance Studies Reader. ISBN 0-415-16447-8