Marketing dance to boys and men: new, complex and dynamic practices of masculinities

Dance has traditionally been marketed to boys and men by aligning it with traditional masculinities. Within a culture of shifting gender relations and declining homophobia, new possibilities emerge for dance to be marketed to boys and men in different ways. This chapter examined such possibilities, analyzing the online marketing practices of dance organizations from Anglo-American cultures. The findings document how dance continues to be (re)positioned within orthodox discourses of (hetero)masculinity. At the same time, new marketing strategies promote the “all singing, all dancing boy” and the “(hetero)sexy male dancer.” Ultimately, these marketing strategies deploy various blends of old and new masculinities which consistently seek to safeguard dancers’ masculinities. The chapter raises concerns that this marketing approach is limited and short-sighted.