Acquiring Rachel Winchester’s Dissertation on dance as a literary criticism, I noticed a lack of studies collaborating the field of Dance and Literature. Therefore, it is a desire of mine to find ballet and literature a connection they could embody which would ultimately benefit each other. Through an analysis of the text of Lola Basyang by Severino Reyes, A Critique of Ballet Manila’s production, and a study of the choreographic process, Hermeneutics, and Dance Theory; I aim to find a way for ballet to be elevated as well as for literature to extend its horizon and be able to come to life on stage. The intention of this study is to add onto Winchester’s study as she had intended her thesis to …show more content…
The theory of choreography is the set of ideas that contribute to the formation of a choreo-graphed dance. Improvisation is often associated to the very thought of Choreography. Improvi-sation is the process of spontaneously creating movement. It relies on feelings and interpretation while Choreography often comes from a series of planned movements. There are two main methods of choreography; Improvised Choreography which gives dancers guidelines, but allows them to execute the movements as they wish; and Planned Choreography which is when dancers are told what, when, where, and how to execute the moves.
It is appropriate to study the Choreographic process in my research because it is the tran-sition of interpretation of the reader in response towards the text. Choreography uses the human form. The art form that is connected to the human form will tell a human story. Audiences natu-rally read emotions and feelings when watching someone move on the stage. (Green) There are a number of steps in a choreographic process that may vary from choreographer to choreographer; however, one can use the Seven Basic Steps to a Choreographic Process as a mold to create their own process of
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Explore possibilities between the moves you want to highlight.
5. Refine and memorize the dance.
6. Add finishing touches (such as fingers, directed gaze, poses).
7. Perform the dance. There are certain aspects to Consider when choreographing. One would be the three Ele-ments of Dance- Time, space, and energy, which serves as the foundation of building a choreog-raphy.
Time deals with canon, rhythm, and pausing. The elements of Time and Timing are; Tempo and speed, Poses versus Movement, Beat Punctuation and Musicality. Space deals with Levels and Locomotion. Several levels include Low: Flat on the floor, Low Middle: Crawl-ing or keeling, Middle: Standing. Walking, Middle High: Sliding. Galloping. Skipping, and High: Jumping. Locomotion is categorized into Axial Movement and Locomotor Movement. Axial Movement: Movement that stays in one location and moves around the core of the body, like a spin or a pirouette or a piece of footwork like a tendu. Locomotor Movement: Movement that carries you through space from one location to another. Energy deals with Tension, release, and the seven qualities of movement.
Seven Qualities of Movement: Swing (Like a Pendulum) Sustain (Flow of
Unlike most of his contemporaries, Grossman’s dance movements vary from one production to another. In the 1975 production ‘Higher’ the dance movements were mainly using the whole body. The piece went for 15 minutes and was explicit in its design so that the audience could clearly see and understand the intended message/s. This piece received many awards and is what got Grossman noticed and brought into the dancing world.
Ballet has been an art form since the late fifteenth century, but society did not truly see the impact of ballet until the nineteenth century. Modern day thinkers possess the idea that ballet began with tutus and pointe shoes, but it wasn’t until the nineteenth century that this opinion was observed. Ballet has come a long way. It has survived the turmoil of many wars and has changed itself by accepting new ideas and impressing the audience with its unique stylistic views.
Theater, in our culture, have grown rapidly over the years that it has been occupied. In 17th and 18th centuries, dances were written as record. As our cultural evolved, in 19th and 20th century, dancing became a dance notation. Each era has a different type of dance that related to that period of time. In able for dancers to be organized and taught the moves, they needed some type of teacher, which in our modern we call them a choreographer. A choreographer have the role to design dances, which can also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who designs dances, which can also be called dance composition. Mats Ek is a ballet and Swedish choreographer that creates new elements of movement and expression of dances throughout his life
Dance is an ever evolving form of art; in much the same way that one can categorize and differentiate between eras and styles of architecture one can also do so with dance. These eras at times have sharp delineations separating them from their antecedents, other times the distinction is far more subtle. Traditional forms of dance were challenged by choreographers attempting to expand the breadth and increase the depth of performance; preeminent among such visionaries was Seattle born dancer and choreographer Mark Morris. Mark Morris' began as one of the millions of hopeful individuals attempting to simply make a career in dance; he not only succeeded but managed to have a lasting effect on the entire landscape of dance.
Throughout the years, America has pursued the performing arts in a large variety of ways. Theatre plays a dramatic and major role in the arts of our society today, and it takes great effort in all aspects. Musical Theatre, specifically, involves a concentration and strength in dance, acting, and singing. This is the base that Musical Theatre is built upon. For my Senior Project, I helped choreograph multiple scenes in a community musical “Thoroughly Modern Millie”. Choreography is a way of expressing oneself, but it has not always been thought of for that purpose. Agnes de Mille’s expressive talent has drastically affected how people see choreography today. Agnes de Mille’s influence in the world of dance has left a lasting impact in the Performing Arts Department, and her revolutionary works are still known today for their wit, lyricism, emotion, and charm.
Ramsay, B. (2000). Dance theory, sociology, and aesthetics. Dance Research Journal, 32(1), 125-131. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1478286
For the dancer, music and choreography are paramount. The music guides the dancer, and the moves express the music. However, the dance has to start from somewhere.
Through dance and movement, the storyline were expanded with the assistance of choreographer, Garth Fagan. A well-renowned choreographer for his innovative choreography primarily for Garth Fagan dance, Fagan used his unique style of choreography to the Lion King by combining a variety of Ballet, Jazz, Modern Dance, African Dance and Balinese Dance to suggest representations of nature without making a replica itself and use dance to help tell the story (Exploring the Lion King, 2010). Taymor’s idea of expanding the film by adding in choreographic elements not only will set the overall concept, it would additionally guide the visual aesthetic by allowing dance as the main element that balances musical numbers in all categories: effects, music and so on into the choreography (Bluemental et al 210:1999). Both Fagan and Taymor gave major contributions to the different styles of dance and performance techniques from around the world creating the precision and versatility that is being portrayed in the musical. In order to create the ideal staging of the hunting lionesses, flying dancers in the aerial ballet to the takeover of the hyenas at Pridelands, the collaboration between Fagan and Taymor gave suggestions of how these movements being performed with grace and poise using different dance styles and are cultural based be the forefront of the production(Taymor 148:1997). By looking at three notable dances in the musical, this chapter will analyse the presence of dance and movement being portrayed in the musical and how are these dances create the drama, still giving the idea of moving in an African Savannah. Furthermore, this will give an insight to all challenges and pitfalls both Fagan and Taymor endured during the development of the...
The work ‘Ghost Dances’ by Christopher Bruce was viewed on 26th August, 2011 to the Year 12 Dance class. The individual interpretation of the social/political or world issue/ comment the piece is attempting to make. Using direct examples from the performance, the use the choreographer has made of the movement and the non-movement components have been identified. Also the effectiveness of this piece has been evaluated. After Christopher Bruce received a letter from a widow of a Chilean folk singer who had been murdered the very inspirational and symbolic ‘Ghost Dances’ work came about.
Pina Bausch was born in was born 1940 in Solingen Germany, during Pina’s life she became one of the most influential figures in dance theatre and physical theatre. Pina’s unique style and techniques have changed the way many practitioners now look at creating theatre. During Pina’s early years she received dance training at Folkwang School in Essen under Kurt Jooss. Whilst being taught at Folkwang Pina achieved extraordinary dancing technique. After leaving Folkwang Pina then went on to direct at Wuppertal’s Theatres. Not long after directing for Wuppertal’s Theatres the name was changed in 1973 to Tanztheater Wuppertal, once the name had been changed the Tanztheater it seemed to face a lot of controversy, but in time was credited recognition worldwide. She decided that she wanted her dancers to portray feelings rather than a storyline. Pina Bausch although has had many people that disagree with her style of dance theatre, many saying that it is was not dance, but for many it has inspired and overall has changed the way that physical theatre practitioners create theatre.
I had the pleasure of being in Western Kentucky University Dance Department’s concert, An Evening of Dance. The performance took place on April 29th through May 2nd in Russel Miller Theatre. It consisted of many works from faculty and guest artists. I felt like the concert was a success and that the choreography was all unique in its own way. I enjoyed the pieces that I performed, and the ones that my fellow company members were in. Through the analysis of “Petrichor”, I found that each production and chorographic element plays a large part in the successful outcome of a dance and emotional responses can be evoked by the simplest ideas.
Learning about Dance: Dance as an Art Form and Entertainment provides visions into the many features of dance and inspires scholars to keep an open mind and think critically about the stimulating, bold, ever-changing and active world of dance. Learning about Dance is particularly useful for those who do not have a wide and diverse dance contextual, such as students in a preliminary level or survey dance course. This book consists of twelve chapters. Chapter one dance as an art form focuses on the basic structures of dance. Dance is displayed through the human body, it has the control to communicate and induce reactions. Dance can be found in many different places, it enables the participants and seekers to touch and knowledge the joy of movement. Dance is discovered as being one of the oldest art forms worldwide. Dance existed in early cultures was recognized in a sequence of rock paintings portrayed dance. Since this discovery of rock paintings, several other forms of art have been found that depict dance. People used rituals in order to worship the gods and believed that the rituals held magical and spiritual powers. During the ancient period civilizations sentient decisions began to be made with regard to dance. Other periods that had an impact on dance were the medieval period, the renaissance period, and the contemporary period. Chapter two the choreographer, the choreographer is a person who comes up with the movements created into a dance routine. The choreographer expresses themselves through choreography because this is their way of communicating with the audience. In order to be a choreographer you must have a passion for dance. Each choreographer has their own approaches and ways of making up a routine. Choreographers ...
Every dance that is created by a choreographer has a meaning and or purpose behind it. The dance choreographed could be used to send a political, emotional, or a social message. Regardless of the message being sent, each dance created possesses a unique cultural and human significance. This essay will examine and analyze two dance works from history and give an insight into what each dance work provided to the society of its time.
[6] Cohen, Selma Jeanne. International Encyclopedia of Dance: A Project of Dance Perspectives Foundation, Inc. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.
After I began to learn to dance ballet, I found out that these elegant movements actually require a lot of strength, flexibility of the bodies and brain’s participation to make it looked elegant. The dancers’ movements in the performance were so fluent and elegant and it is not hard to imagine how hard they had practiced, stretched and use the strengths to do all the ballet poses with their bodies look longer and longer. Their expressions also impressed me a lot. By looking at their expressions, the audience can easily understand the scenes and blend into the story. The performers actually not only are required to have good dancing skills but also are required to have some talents to be actors. Moreover, they also have to be good at expressing their feelings on the