27 Sep
2013
27 Sep
'13
9:18 a.m.
On Fri, Sep 13, 2013 at 2:43 PM, Dave Casserly
<david.j.casserly(a)gmail.com> wrote:
I do not think Dan is correct that dance choreography
is not copyrightable.
Dan, I don't know where you got that information, but nothing I know about
copyright law gives me that impression. I guess you could argue that
contra dances are not sufficiently "original," but the standard for
originality is so low in copyright law that I don't think that would be a
winning argument, or even close to it.
I read more about this, and it looks like a social dance might not
qualify as a "dramatic work".
On the other hand, if your dance is not a “dramatic work” because it
is not a choreographic show, does not tell a story or is not part of a
dramatic performance, it is not protected.
-- http://www.copyright.org.au/admin/cms-acc1/_images/15356429875239252b8737e.…
They conclude "In our view, it is unlikely that social dances will be
protected by copyright."
I wrote a blog post: http://www.jefftk.com/p/can-you-copyright-a-contra-dance