I’m in the mood to dance this week, between the “Dancing With the Stars” finale, and the new video mashup of “Just Shut Up and Dance”, plus a new tap dance video from Christopher Rice debuting today, so I picked these Victorian trade (advertising) cards with a dance theme to share. The cards also reminded me of my favorite Regency romances, especially the ones from Georgette Heyer.

(Some of the most challenging scenes I’ve ever had to write were the dance scenes in Dancer of the Nile…)

To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love. Jane Austen

The dance can reveal everything mysterious that is hidden in music, and it has the additional merit of being human and palpable. Dancing is poetry with arms and legs.  Charles Baudelaire

One must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star. Friedrich Nietzsche

Common sense and a sense of humor are the same thing, moving at different speeds. A sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. William James

I have no desire to prove anything by dancing. I have never used it as an outlet or a means of expressing myself. I just dance. I just put my feet in the air and move them around. Fred Astaire (Not to argue with the guy but he did a LOT more than “just dance” IMHO.)

Dance is bigger than the physical body. When you extend your arm, it doesn’t stop at the end of your fingers, because you’re dancing bigger than that; you’re dancing spirit. Judith Jamison

All the ills of mankind, all the tragic misfortunes that fill the history books, all the political blunders, all the failures of the great leaders have arisen merely from a lack of skill at dancing.  Moliere

Part of the joy of dancing is conversation. Trouble is, some men can’t talk and dance at the same time. Ginger Rogers

I got started dancing because I knew it was one way to meet girls. Gene Kelly

The main thing is dancing, and before it withers away from my body, I will keep dancing till the last moment, the last drop. Rudolf Nureyev

Dancing is a perpendicular expression of a horizontal desire. George Bernard Shaw

Dancing is the poetry of the foot. John Dryden

Talking about music is like dancing about architecture. Steve Martin (I also found this quote attributed to Martin Mull.)

Dancing is my obsession. My life. Mikhail Baryshnikov

But in reality we are accompanied by the whole dancing universe. Ruth St. Denis

I’ve been known to have a good step or two. I’m half Samoan, you know, and part of our culture is singing and dancing daily. Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson (I’d like to waltz with him. Just sayin’.)

I’ve always been good at picking up certain things, like sports and dancing. Channing Tatum (Yeah, he’s a master of understatement!)

Custom has made dancing sometimes necessary for a young man; therefore mind it while you learn it, that you may learn to do it well, and not be ridiculous, though in a ridiculous act. Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield

I’m proud of my Irish heritage and culture and this show will feature a lot of Irish dancing. Michael Flatley

People listen to music with cavemen ears: Is it a bird song or the call of a lion? The audience at a musical is dancing in their hearts. Marsha Norman

I can never stand in one place on stage for more than a minute and am always singing, dancing and jumping. Sunidhi Chauhan

No one worries about genre when they’re dancing. They’re not asking themselves, ‘Is this song a dubstep song?’ Skrillex

And now, “Shut Up and Dance” (movie mashup):