Postcolonial agency, proactive archiving, and applied ethnochoreology: The National Dance Archive of Ireland

This paper examines the construction of archives and in particular dance archives with special focus on the National Dance Archive of Ireland. The paper provides a contextual background to the establishment and workings of the archive and explores issues relating to postcoloniality. It suggests that proactive archiving and applied ethnochoreology within the context of dance archives can potentially play an important role in contributing to postcolonial agency in the construction of social and cultural identities.