Course Catalog 2007-2008

Associate Professor Gill Wright Miller, Chair

Associate Professors Sandra Mathern-Smith, Gill Wright Miller; Assistant Professors Mishele Mennett; (half-time,) Melissa Obenauf (part-time, 2nd semester); Assistant Professor, part-time Maria Voutsina; Resident Musician Brian Casey; Academic Secretary Susan Kosling

The Department of Dance is committed to the liberal arts study of "dance as an art form" and the belief that such a study necessitates an integration of the kinesthetic (body), the intellectual (mind), and the emotional/internal (spirit). We see this as the core concern of the discourse, the discipline and the faculty as we explore physical and metaphysical material both academically and artistically, exposing students to the principles of dance through movement and through theoretical inquiry. Our aim is to expose students to a wide variety of approaches by utilizing primary and secondary sources. The opportunity for application in research and concert performance is available early in the student's career, enabling her/him to become independently productive in the application of these principles.

Requirements for the B.A. degree in Dance: 42-44 credits minimum. The Bachelor of Arts degree in dance reflects a philosophy that integrates principles of theory and technique resulting in the informed viewing of and practical participation in performance. Studio course work includes technique classes, performance repertory, improvisation and composition, and the reconstruction of modern, post-modern, ballet and a variety of world dances from this and previous centuries. Theoretical course work includes reading, writing, and moving with an emphasis on creating and exposing theory. The boundaries between technique and theory are purposefully blurred, indicating our commitment to a liberal arts curriculum rather than a conservatory curriculum.

All dance majors must take four theoretical core courses: Dance 284 Dance Improvisation and Composition, Dance 374 Experiential Anatomy/Kinesiology, and Dance 384 Movement Analysis and a course in cultural studies (Dance 274 Cultural Studies and Dance History, Dance 222 Dance and Ethnicity or Dance/WMST 302 Women and the Arts). Students are advised, but not required, to complete theory courses by the end of their junior year.

Dance majors must also enroll in a minimum of 16 credit hours (8 courses) of technique in any configuration of genres. However, all majors must reach or achieve the highest level of both Contemporary and Ballet.

Dance Majors are required to produce a senior research project representing their culminating experience in the discipline. There are two paths from which to choose: theoretical research or choreographic research. Students must complete a 2-credit seminar in their junior year reflecting their intention in one of these areas. These seminars, Junior Seminar in Research and Methodology Seminar and Seminar in Choreography, concentrate on preparing the student for research by either written or choreographic means. A student wishing to choreograph must also complete a 2-credit seminar in concert production. All students must enroll in a 4-credit Senior Research course in which the completion of their research, either written or choreographic, is the focus.

Additionally, all majors must receive 4 repertory credits by auditioning, being cast in and performing a work by a faculty or guest artist (repertory credit is awarded proportionate to the number of contact hours).

Dance Major Requirements:

TECHNIQUE 16 credits (2 credits per course)

Majors must reach level III in both Contempory (Dance 332) and Ballet (Dance 342).

THEORY 16 credits (4 credits per course)

Each of these:

And one of these:

INTEGRATING EXPERIENCES 10-12 credits

*Repertory credit is awarded one credit per 50 rehearsal hours – typically one credit per work performed – for works created by faculty or guest artists.

The minor in dance consists of a minimum of 24 credit hours. Minors must complete 12 credit hours, or three courses, in theory, and one from each of two core areas, cultural studies/ history and embodied practices. Cultural studies courses include: Dance 274 Cultural Studies in Dance, Dance 322 Dance and Ethnicity, and Women's Studies 302 Women and the Arts. Embodied Practices include: Dance 274 Improvisation and Composition, Dance 374 Experiential Anatomy/ Kinesiology, Dance 384 Movement Analysis.

The minor must also take a minimum of 12 credit hours in studio courses, technique or repertory, which must include Level III in either Contemporary (Dance 332) or Ballet (Dance 342) or an equivalent program of study in World Dance forms at Level II (Dance 222), as approved by the Department.

Minors have an option of completing a senior research project in lieu of a third theory course. In this instance, a student would need to enroll in the Junior Seminar in Research and Methodology Seminar or the Choreographic and Production Seminars, prior to completing their Senior Research project.

Dance Minor Requirements:

TECHNIQUE/REPERTORY 12 credits (1-2 credits per course)

8 in one area (the chosen area of focus) AND any combination of 4 in any combination of the other two areas. All minors must take level III in their chosen focus area if it is Contemporary dance or Ballet or an equivalent program of study in World Dance forms as approved by the department.

	Level 1	Level II	Level III	Repertory*
Ballet	142	242	342	440
Contemporay	132	232	332	430
World Dance	122	222		420

*All technique courses are 2 credits.

*Repertory credit is awarded one credit per 50 rehearsal hours – typically one credit per work performed – for works created by faculty or guest artists.

THEORY 12 credits (4 credits per course)

At least one from each sub-group:

The General Education requirements include two courses in the fine arts division. Dance technique courses, however, are awarded two credit hours. Consequently, any combination of two technique classes fulfills one General Education requirement.

Technique classes may be repeated a second time for full credit. Many students are, in fact, encouraged to enroll at the same level for a whole year. However, only students who are declared majors or minors may enroll in the same technique class for more than two semesters. The department believes this policy supports the liberal arts experience of dance.

All 100-level courses assume no previous experience with dance movement. Students with previous dance training in Contemporary or Ballet should enroll in level 200 technique courses.

World Dance technique students must enroll in World Dance I if they have no previous dance experience; or World Dance II if they have previous and significant dance experience, even if not in the form/technique being offered.

Instructors will be watching students in the first week of classes in order to adjust placement where appropriate and students may be asked to move into a more or less advanced course.

World Dance I - Greek (Fall), Southern Slavic Nations (Spring) (DANC-122).  This course, open to all students regardless of previous dance training, offers dance experiences with non-Western forms. Course work includes instruction in technique, outside readings, and performance observation. Content varies with respect to dance material presented, depending on the interests of teaching faculty and students, and on the components of artists who take part in teaching the course from semester to semester. Courses offered tend to be thematic over the course of a year. A variety of forms have been offered including Japanese (Butoh and Traditional), Balinese, Indian Classical forms (e.g., Bharata Natyam and Odissi) African forms (e.g., Ghanaian, West African), South American forms (e.g., Capoeira). Voutsina (Fall), Obenauf (Spring). 2

Contemporary Dance I (DANC-132).  This course offers students a basic movement experience that strives to promote greater integration of mental and physical knowledge and kinetic awareness. Exercises emphasizing placement, flexibility and strength will be taught. The basic elements of dance - space, time and force - are introduced and explored with the larger purpose of providing a deeper appreciation of dance as an art form. An introduction to the history of modern dance in the U.S. is included through the use of video viewings and readings. Attendance at performances and a limited number of reaction papers are required. Mathern-Smith. 2

Ballet I (DANC-142).  This course serves the student with no previous training, and those who have had little training or none recently. Basic body placement, the positions of the feet, simple port de bras, and other simple movements are taught. The proper carriage of the body in classic ballet technique is explored through elementary barre and centre exercises. Second semester offers an accelerated introduction to accommodate newcomers yet sustain the development of returning students. A brief introduction to the history of ballet dance in the U.S. is included through video viewings and readings. Attendance at a certain number of performances is required. Mennett. 2

Understanding Dance as an Art Form (DANC-174).  Throughout all times, people of all cultures have created stylized movement that they label as "dance." Open to the general university student, this course will expose dance as a socio-cultural mode of expression within a fine arts agenda. Students will actually experience a few classes in each of three different kinds of moving (a non-Western World Dance form, the Western form of ballet, and the contemporary concert form), and utilize the various lenses dance theorists employ to evaluate and comment on movement. Finally field trips to live concerts of works offered by professional dancers will be included as part of the 'texts' for this course. No dance experience is expected or necessary. Miller. 4

Seminar in Production (DANC-184).  This seminar focuses on all aspects of dance concert production. Topics covered are: budgeting, publicity, costume design/construction, lighting design for dance, box office and house management, video documentation, scheduling and backstage production. The student choreographers' concert, held in April, will be the focus of the practical experience for this seminar. When the department hosts a guest artist residency of which a concert is a part, the publicity and production of this concert will also be the responsibility of the students in this course. Students will be assigned responsibilities, collaborating on the production of the performance event, and are required to contribute to the seminar through these assigned practical projects, enhanced through readings and lecture. A portfolio of work completed is expected. Mathern-Smith, Miller. 2

Introductory Topics in Dance (DANC-199).  A general category used only in the evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4

World Dance II - Greek (DANC-222).  This course, open only to students with previous dance study (although not necessarily in techniques offered), focuses on the same forms as are brought into focus in World Dance I (above) in the same semester. In this more advanced class, the instructor will assume students will be able to assimilate physical information more quickly. Therefore, this course will cover these forms in greater detail and with greater depth in the same amount of time. Course work includes instruction in technique, outside readings, and performance observation. (Not offered 2007-2008) Staff. 2

Contemporary Dance II (DANC-232).  This course, for students who come with dance training, offers students a heightened movement experience with an emphasis on technical development and aspects of performance. Exercises emphasizing placement, flexibility and strength are taught, with specific attention given to gravity, transition, phrasing and movement of the torso and limbs in opposition and harmony. Concert attendance, journal writing, video journals and research on contemporary choreographers' work would be examples of the outside-the-studio experience. Mathern-Smith. 2

Ballet II (DANC-242).  A certain amount of review of the basic work precedes the study of a greater variety of steps. There is increased emphasis on epaulement, pirouettes, adagio and petiti and grand allegro in center work. The level of technique in the second semester expands to include longer, more controlled adagios, more variety of turns, effort to improve elevation and extension, and a development of port de bras in relationship to carriage and performance. Attendance at performances and a limited number of reaction papers are required. Mennett. 2

Cultural Studies in Dance History (DANC-274).  This course will frame Western concert dance as a complex political activity made public through various agendas of race, creed, national origin, sexuality, and gender. Students will simultaneously be exposed to poststructuralist epistemology and feminist theory while they are meeting a survey of historical works. In this way, the course is less about coming to know a canon of "masterworks" and more about learning how to interrogate dance in any culture from a western perspective. Miller. 4

Dance Improvisation and Composition (DANC-284).  This course will explore the methods and elements of dance composition through improvisational exercises and compositional studies. Through the manipulation of space, time, and dynamics in spontaneous movement exercises compositional elements will be discovered and explored, and a developing understanding of choreography will emerge. Students will explore solo, duet, and group improvisations. In addition to learning and practicing the art of moving in the moment, students will be required to create, analyze and critique original compositional studies. A portion of this course will be devoted to learning and understanding the principles of Contact Improvisation as a tool for comprehending the forces of the body in motion and further broadening choreographic possibilities. Mathern-Smith. 4

Intermediate Topics in Dance (DANC-299).  A general category used only in the evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4

Women and the Arts (DANC-302).  This course will consider how women artists have expressed what goes into the building of a home. We will think about different settings (during peacetime, wartime, in various cultures with or without partnes and/or families), in different individual needs and tastes, and different genres for the recording of that expression. This will entail four kinds of considerations: First, we will read sections from Timeless Way of Building, Language of Landscape and House Thinking; then we will deconstruct those readings to explore issues addressed by feminist theory, issues like comparable worth, coming to voice, single-parenting. All the while we will look at those issues expressed in artworks by and about women -- paintings, dances, music, novels, short-stories, and finally over the course of the semester, we will create a work ourselves around a physical dwelling -- whether that means dressing a window, painting a wall, or making something physical happen within it. No dancing involved. (Offered every other year) Miller. 4

Dance and Ethnicity (DANC-322).  This course investigates the historical aesthetic practices of a human society outside of the West along its religious, political, economic and ecological foundations and accomplishments. The course will include emergence of other dance forms from the neighboring regions, focusing on their emergence as an expression of devotion, ethnicity and a means for intercultural communications. In Spring 2008, this course will center on the Southern Slavic region, including Slovenia, Serbia, Croutia, Macedonia, Bosnia, and Herzegevina. (Spring) Obenauf. 4

Contemporary Dance III (DANC-332).  Contemporary III is designed for students with significant experience in modern dance training. This course provides the student with the rigorous training required for performance and requires an attitude that anticipates professionalism. Students will be challenged to integrate both technical and qualitative skills while continuing to develop strength, flexibility, endurance, and a sensitivity to gravity, momentum and phrasing. Advanced classes meet for two hours three times a week. No outside work is required. Mathern-Smith. 2

Ballet III (DANC-342).  Like Contemporary III, this course is designed for the most advanced dancers in the department and requires an attitude of dedication that anticipates professionalism. The level of the class in general determines the material presented. Advanced classes meet for two hours three times a week. The opportunity to work on pointe at the student's individual level is available. No outside work is required. Mennett. 2

Junior Seminar in Research and Methodology (DANC-352).  This course will explore basic research and methods skills in critical dance research and writing. It is required of all junior majors and all minors who intend to engage in practical/theoretical (and therefore written) research projects. Miller. 2

Directed Study (DANC-361).  Individual pursuits in (1) composition/improvisation/choreography, (2) history/cultural studies/criticism, (3) experiential anatomy/kinesiology/systems of movement re-education, or (4) movement analysis/reconstruction, under the supervision of a faculty member. Only those students who have had the initial coursework in that pursuit may apply. Staff. 1-4

Directed Study (DANC-362).  Individual pursuits in (1) composition/improvisation/choreography, (2) history/cultural studies/criticism, (3) experiential anatomy/kinesiology/systems of movement re-education, or (4) movement analysis/reconstruction, under the supervision of a faculty member. Only those students who have had the initial coursework in that pursuit may apply. Staff. 1-4

Independent Study (DANC-363).  Staff. 1-4

Independent Study (DANC-364).  Staff. 1-4

Experiential Anatomy/Kinesiology (DANC-374).  Through various approaches to learning (memorizing factual information, sharing personal body-centered stories, drawing evocative and descriptive images, and moving through guided developmental movement explorations), students will be introduced to anatomy and kinesiology in their own bodies. The course materials approach the body primarily through skeletal, muscular, and neurological systems, but also through consideration of other systems (e.g., digestive, respiratory), and attitudes about sexuality and emotions, body image and concepts - each from the anatomical and kinesiological perspective. All students are required to keep weekly journals and create a series of personal bodywork sessions for themselves to illustrate their command of anatomical and kinesiological terminology and reasoning. (Spring) Miller. 4

Movement Analysis (DANC-384).  Through two specific systems of movement analysis (Labanotation and Laban Movement Analysis), the student will be exposed to both quantitative and qualitative methods for close textual analysis of movement. The course will consider elements of support and gesture, direction, level, timing, part of the body moving, as well as effort dynamics, relationship to the environment, and kinespheric crystallizations, and neurological ways of initiating and organizing the movement in the body. These methods of analysis are then applied to concrete movement situations selected and designed by the students ranging from sports situations to therapeutic situations to historical dances for reconstruction and performance. Miller. 4

Special Topics in Dance (DANC-394).  From time to time, according to the expertise of the faculty and the interest of the students, special courses that can address intensive study will be arranged and offered. This course can be taken more than once for credit. Courses recently offered are Contact Improvisation, Music for Dance and Creative Collaboration in the Arts. Staff. 2-4

Advanced Topics in Dance (DANC-399).  A general category used only in the evaluation of transfer credit. Staff. 1-4

Performance Workshop (DANC-410).  The technical aspects of producing a concert are applied through practical experience. Performance space preparation (the hanging of lights, laying of the floor, and the building of audience space) and the designing of lighting, costumes, and publicity are taught by means of application. Students are awarded credit based on the number of hours of involvement. Staff. .5-2

Repertory: World Dance (DANC-420).  New and reconstructed works choreographed by faculty and guest artists are learned by students and rehearsed fo public performance. Credit is awarded at a rate of 1 per dance. Differences in course number refer to genres of performance work. Offered fall only. Open to students with previous movement experience. Staff. 1-2

Repertory: Contemporary (DANC-430).  New and reconstructed works choreographed by faculty and guest artists are learned by students and rehearsed for public performance. Credit is awarded at a rate proportionate to the number of contact hours. Differences in course number refer to genres of performance work. By audition only. (Auditions held during the first two weeks of each semester or immediately preceding a short residency by a guest artist) Mathern-Smith, Miller. .5-2

Repertory: Ballet (DANC-440).  New and reconstructed works choreographed by faculty and guest artists are learned by students and rehearsed for public performance. Credit is awarded at a rate of 1 per dance. Differences in course number refer to genres of performance work. By auditions only. (Auditions held during the first two weeks of each semester or immediately preceding a short residency by a guest artist) Mennett. .5-2

Repertory: Jazz (DANC-450).  New and reconstructed works choreographed by faculty and guest artists are learned by students and rehearsed for public performance. Credit is awarded based on the number of hours of involvement. Differences in course number refer to genres of performance work. By audition only. (Auditions held early each semester.) Available every semester. Staff. .5-2

Senior Research (DANC-451).  This course consists of an integration of creative and critical course work through the intensive examination of Western dance philosophy as the foundation for the student's own dance experience. It represents a culminating experience in areas identified by each individual student. During the course of the semester's work, each student will prepare a significant research document, the undertaking of several works for concert production, the reconstruction of a significant historical work, or the like. The resultant document/performance will be presented publicly for an identified audience in partial fulfillment of the degree requirements. Course offered fall semester only. Mathern-Smith, Miller. 4

Senior Research (DANC-452).  This course consists of an integration of theoretical and technical course work through the intensive examination of Western dance philosophy as the foundation for the student's own dance experience. It represents a culminating experience in areas identified by each individual student. During the course of the semester's work, each student will prepare a significant research document, the undertaking of several works for concert production, the reconstruction of a significant historical work, or the like. The resultant document/performance will be presented publicly for an identified audience in partial fulfillment of the degree requirements. Course offered fall semester only. Work continues into the spring semester with or without additional credit hours. This course is for continuation of senior research for honors students only. Mathern-Smith, Miller. 4

Honors Project (DANC-461).  Individual work for honors. Staff. 4

Honors Project (DANC-462).  Individual work for honors. Staff. 4

Seminar in Choreography (DANC-484).  This seminar focuses on the creation and production of an original choreographic work to be presented and produced by the Department of Dance in late April. Students will also be responsible for all aspects of production of their work; lighting, costuming, music/sound, and set designs. While students may not fully design each of these aspects, they will be expected to understand how each impacts their work and to make decisions about each in support of their creative ideas. Students will be working within a specified budget provided by the department. While the major focus and goal of this seminar is the successful creation and production of a choreographic piece, many areas of composition and choreography will be covered. The first half of this seminar will incorporate reading from various texts to helping to reveal processes and methodologies. The second half will focus on completing the choreography and producing the concert. Students are required to attend all regular class meetings, participate in discussion, act as peer evaluators and share the progress of their work in research and rehearsal with the class. Mathern-Smith. 2