The Dancing Plague of 1518

In 1518, an entire town in France couldn't stop dancing. Seriously.

A woman named Frau Troffea started dancing in the streets of Strasbourg and within a week,

34 others joined her. Within a month, 400 people were dancing uncontrollably.

Authorities thought the cure was more dancing, so they built stages and hired musicians.

Big mistake. People danced until they collapsed from exhaustion, some even died from

strokes and heart attacks. Scientists still debate what caused it.

Some say moldy rye bread caused hallucinations, others believe it was mass hysteria from stress and

famine. Imagine living through that. You wake up, your neighbor is