What is "danse macabre"

n. (context arts English) Also known as Dance of Death, a conventional subject in art, literature and drama, or a particular work in that style, in which death (in the form of a putrid corpse, skeleton, the Grim Reaper, etc) is shown leading people to the grave.

n. a medieval dance in which a skeleton representing death leads a procession of others to the grave [syn: dance of death]

Dance of Death, also called Danse Macabre (from the French language), is an artistic genre of late-medieval allegory on the universality of death: no matter one's station in life, the Dance of Death unites all. The Danse Macabre consists of the dead or personified Death summoning representatives from all walks of life to dance along to the grave, typically with a pope, emperor, king, child, and labourer. They were produced to remind people of the fragility of their lives and how vain were the glories of earthly life. Its origins are postulated from illustrated sermon texts; the earliest recorded visual scheme was a now-lost mural in the Saints Innocents Cemetery in Paris dating from 1424 to 1425.

Danse Macabre is a 1981 non-fiction book by Stephen King, about horror fiction in print, radio, film and comics, and the influence of contemporary societal fears and anxieties on the genre. It was republished on February 23, 2010 with an additional new essay entitled "What's Scary".

Danse Macabre examines the various influences on King's own writing, and important genre texts of the 19th and 20th centuries. Danse Macabre explores the history of the genre as far back as the Victorian era, but primarily focuses on the 1950s to the 1970s (roughly the era covering King's own life at the time of publication). King peppers his book with informal academic insight, discussing archetypes, important authors, common narrative devices, "the psychology of terror", and his key theory of " Dionysian horror".

Stephen King's novel The Stand was translated to Spanish language as La Danza de la Muerte (which means "Dance of Death"), generating confusion between the two books. Similarly, his 1978 collection of short stories Night Shift was released in France as Danse Macabre back in 1980. To avoid confusion, the actual "Danse Macabre" essay was given the title "Anatomie de l'Horreur" ("An Anatomy of Horror") when it was released in France 14 years later, in 1995.

Danse Macabre is a late-medieval allegory of the universality of death.

Danse Macabre may also refer to:

• Danse Macabre (book), a nonfiction book by Stephen King
• Danse Macabre (novel), a novel by Laurell K. Hamilton
• Danse Macabre (album), an album by The Faint
• Danse macabre (Saint-Saëns), a tone poem for orchestra composed by Camille Saint-Saëns
• Danse Macabre Records, a German record label
• "Danse Macabre", a song by Celtic Frost from Morbid Tales
• "Danse Macabre", an episode of the TV series Jonathan Creek
• Cortège & Danse Macabre, a symphonic poem from Frederik Magle's Cantabile suite
• " Danse Macabre", an episode of the US television series Grimm
• "Danse Macabre", a song by The Agonist from Eye of Providence
• Danse Macabre (Notke) is a painting by Bernt Notke, from the 15th century.

Danse Macabre is the third studio album by the Omaha-based new wave band The Faint. It was released on August 21, 2001 in the U.S. and roughly a year later in the UK, where it has enjoyed similar popularity.

This album is the 37th release of Saddle Creek Records.

The first pressing of Danse Macabre on vinyl and CD included a different, unauthorized photo that led to them being pulled and having the covers re-printed with an image of The Faint member Dapose.

The album was followed in 2003 by the Danse Macabre Remixes. The remix album includes mixes by Photek, Junior Sanchez and Paul Oakenfold, among others.

Danse Macabre is the fourteenth book in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series of horror/mystery/erotica novels by Laurell K. Hamilton.

"Danse Macabre" is the 5th episode of the supernatural drama television series Grimm of season 1, which premiered on December 8, 2011, on NBC. The episode was written by series creators David Greenwalt and Jim Kouf, and was directed by David Solomon.

Danse Macabre is a painting by Bernt Notke. The initial fragment of the original 30 metres (98.4 ft) wide painting (executed at the end of the 15th century) has been preserved and is currently displayed in St. Nicholas' Church, Tallinn.