Rizz and Tim investigate one of history’s strangest outbreaks — a moment when hundreds of people danced uncontrollably for weeks, collapsed from exhaustion, and in some cases died, all without music.

Known as the Dancing Plague of 1518, this bizarre story unfolded in a Europe already strained by war, famine, disease, and religious upheaval. As dancers filled the streets of Strasbourg, authorities scrambled for explanations, blaming everything from divine punishment to demonic possession to bad medicine.

This episode explores the leading theories behind the phenomenon — including mass psychological stress, social contagion, and the same hallucinogenic fungus linked to other historical panics — while confronting a deeper question: what happens when fear, suffering, and belief collide in a society already on the brink?

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