A dança começa agora.

A is the feminine singular definite article, meaning the.

• dança = dance / dancing in a general sense
• a dança = the dance

In this sentence, a dança is a specific thing that is starting, so Portuguese uses the.

In Portuguese, every noun has grammatical gender. Dança is a feminine noun, so it takes:

• a dança = the dance
• uma dança = a dance

There is not always a perfect logical reason a noun is masculine or feminine, so this is something you usually learn with the word.

Começa is the third-person singular form of the verb começar, which means to begin or to start.

Conjugation in the present tense:

• eu começo = I begin
• você/ele/ela começa = you/he/she begin(s)
• a dança começa = the dance begins

Because a dança is singular, the verb also appears in the singular form: começa.

The ç is called cedilha.

It appears here to keep the s sound before a:

• começa sounds roughly like ko-MEH-sa

Without the cedilla, c before a would sound like k:

• comeca would be read incorrectly

So ç helps preserve the correct pronunciation.

In Brazilian Portuguese, dança is roughly pronounced like:

DAHN-sa

A few notes:

• dan has a nasal sound, not a fully pronounced English n
• ç sounds like s
• stress is on the first syllable: DAN-ça

It will not sound exactly like English, but DAHN-sa is a useful approximation.

A natural Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation is approximately:

ah DAHN-sa ko-MEH-sa a-GOH-ra

A few details:

• A = ah
• dança = DAHN-sa
• começa = ko-MEH-sa
• agora = a-GOH-ra in careful speech

In connected speech, native speakers may reduce sounds a bit, but this is a good clear version.

Agora means now, and putting it at the end is completely natural in Portuguese.

• A dança começa agora. = The dance starts now.
• Agora a dança começa. = Now the dance starts.

Both are possible, but the first version is very natural and neutral. Portuguese often allows more flexibility with adverb placement than English.

Yes, often it can, depending on context.

In Portuguese, the simple present can express:

• a general truth
• a scheduled event
• something happening now, depending on situation

So A dança começa agora can be understood as:

• The dance starts now
• The dance is starting now

English often prefers different forms, but Portuguese commonly uses the simple present here.

Yes. A dança vai começar agora means The dance is going to start now or The dance is about to start now.

Compare:

• A dança começa agora = the dance starts now
• A dança vai começar agora = the dance is going to start now

Both are correct, but começa agora sounds a bit more direct and immediate.

Usually yes, but its exact feel depends on context.

Agora can mean:

• now
• right now
• at this moment

In conversation, it can also sometimes mean so, well then, or from now on, depending on context. But in this sentence, it simply means now.

Because a dança is already the subject.

The structure is:

• A dança = subject
• começa = verb
• agora = adverb

You do not need ela because the dance is already explicitly named. Adding ela would be unnecessary here.

Possibly, depending on context.

Dança can refer to:

• dance as an event
• dance as an art form
• dancing in a more general sense

So if the situation is, for example, a class or performance, A dança começa agora could naturally refer to the dance or the dancing starting now. The exact meaning comes from context.