The Esbart Dansaire de l'Orfeó Gracienc was originally called Esbart Barcelona and was founded in 1942. Seven years later they joined the Gràcia choral society, the Orfeó Gracienc, and changed their name.

They perform a repertoire of traditional dances, dances they have discovered through historical research and others based on Catalan folklore that they or other directors and choreographers have created, with the aim of popularising Catalan dance.

The Esbart Dansaire has three age groups. The children's group focuses on body training and learning the first steps. Its members, who are all under 12, are divided into two groups: aged 3-5 and 6-11. The youth group, aged 12-16, concentrates on further physical training and bringing the members together with more elaborate dances that enable them to move up to the main dance corps when they are 16 years old.

The Esbart has taken part in numerous folk events around Catalonia, such as the first Cicle Cobla, Cor i Dansa at the Palau de la Música Catalana, for bands, choirs and dance groups; a traditional dance festival in Manresa, the Fira d'Espectacles d'Arrel Tradicional; the Diada de la Puntaire, for lacemakers, in Barcelona, and the Festival Internacional de Cantonigròs. They have also performed abroad in cities including Istanbul (Turkey), Karlsruhe (Germany), Cavalesa (Italy), Fregenal de la Sierra (Spain) and Marseilles (France).

Since 2001, they have organised an annual dance programme and they are also in charge of the traditional dance activities on International Dance Day. Apart from this, as a member of the Coordinating Committee for Gràcia's Popular Culture Groups, they are involved in the annual neighbourhood festival. Along with the Festa Major de Gràcia Federation, they organise the Catalan Dance Workshops for children and coordinate the dance area, the Espai de la Dansa.