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Brazil cultural analysis
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Brazil cultural analysis
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Dance Brazil
Dance Brazil performs with flexibility and power, which is evident throughout its entirety. Whether the company is lying on the floor or leaping through the air, they command their space. However, throughout the production they also incorporate one important factor, their culture.
In the introduction of the show, the dancers demonstrate their religious ways by presenting the sign of the cross to the people. Throughout the scene, the costumes that were being worn were all directly related to the colors of various gods.
Throughout one scene, the dancers become possessed, one man loses control of his emotions, and lands into another man’s arms. One could possible interpret that this man is landing into the arms of god.
The following scene featured a woman dressed in blue. I appreciated the way their movements resembled water that recedes after the tide; movements that matched the full and vibrant sound of the band. I also valued the bleak positioning, woman facing forward, man facing away, with their backs against each other. The man repeatedly placed his hand on the woman, only to have her definitively push him away. This control at the beginning contrasted with a kind of compliance at the end, as the woman was carried off on the back of the man. The music pulled their bodies. They were elegant yet powerful at the same time. They had a superior blend of a partnership ,they danced like a partnership without it being a partnership dance.
Overall, I took pleasure in the production “Dance Brazil”. My first thoughts were negative, I did not expect this dance to be as exciting and interesting as it truly was.
In Samba, Alma Guillermoprieto describes the Carnival celebrated every year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and explores the black cultural roots from which it takes its traditions as well as its social, economic, and political context in the 1980s. From her firsthand experience and investigation into favela life and the role of samba schools, specifically of Manguiera, Guillermoprieto illustrates a complex image of race relations in Brazil. The hegemonic character of samba culture in Brazil stands as a prevalent theme in numerous facets of favela life, samba schools, and racial interactions like the increasing involvement of white Brazilians in Carnival preparation and the popularity of mulatas with white Brazilians and tourists. Rio de Janeiro’s early development as a city was largely segregated after the practice of slavery ended. The centralization of Afro-Brazilians in favelas in the hills of the city strengthened their ties to black
The tradition still takes place today in many areas of Mexico. However, some parts of Mexico do the dance a little differently. The dance is more common in the central regi...
However, the most critical element that determined the specific style of each piece was solely dependent on the story he wanted to tell. Revelations was a magnificent showcase of storytelling that quickly became Alvin’s signature dance concert. He drew inspiration for this piece from his memories as a child growing up in the south. According to the Dance Heritage Coalition, the concert, which has been viewed by twenty-three million people worldwide, featured the sounds of negro spirituals and gospel music with depictions of common worship rituals including baptism in Wade in the Water, the sacred act of taking communion in I Wanna Be Ready, and prayer in I’ve Been Buked (1). Additionally, Alvin also focused a great deal of his energy into creating a dramatic atmosphere for his dancers to perform in.
Brazil was and still is a country where the wealthiest live side by side to the poorest of the poor, conservative traditions exist side by side with extreme liberals, extreme beauty with grotesque ugliness, In an attempt to join these elements together the tropicalistas adopted many musical genres such as samba, frevo, Jovem Guarda, choro, bolero, Anglo-American pop and rock, and avant-garde art music, molding them all together to a single unit. The process the tropicalistas went through to create their songs has been called “cultural cannibalism” (Perrone, Dunn
They would dance contemporary to Holiday’s slower jazz songs, which were also her songs with the most serious stories told in them. Performing this style of dance helped to tell the story of hers songs. The dance truly helped to accentuate the message of the song “Strange Fruit.” This song describes the horrific lynchings that took place in the Jim Crow South. The contemporary choreography to this song showed the sadness and confusion that many people felt towards the lynchings. The dancers would come onto the stage in small groups of two or three, and I noticed many of them would do a slow, controlled grand battement followed by dropping their torsos to their feet when they brought their legs back down. They would then proceed to exit the stage, and be followed by the next group of dancers. When I watched this, I felt as though the dancers were showing the pain and despair that people felt before lynchings, and how they next lynching would happen soon
All around the world, there are thousands of cultures. Although they are different, every culture partakes in dance. Dancing is something known worldwide. Every culture has traditional cultural dancing they partake in. Mexico has many cultural dances. La danza del venado is one traditional dance from Northern Mexico. La danza del venado, is known as the deer dance.
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.
The piece was performed in very minimalist staging. There was the use of flashlights and the backdrop was unlit during this specific choreography. Maria I. Garcia did a brilliant job in informing the audience and, in my opinion, challenging the audience to be moved artistically. Garcia had a male dancer, Joshua Archibald, speak to the audience about how the purpose of art was to not only inspire its audience, but to also involve its audience as the choreography was in progress. Along with the staging and lighting for this choreography, the costuming was simplistic. The dancers wore plain white t-shirts and black briefs. Garcia’s choreography did not only stand out to me because she had one of her dancers reach out to the audience and pose a question, but because she used the unique medium of paint in her choreography. As the dancers got through the choreography, which was already ingenious, they proceeded to paint on the white t-shirts worn. Garcia truly did a commendable job in reaching out to her audience and posing a question.
Wisner, Heather. “With a Hop, A Kick, And A Turn, Cumbia Enters the Global Stage.” Dance Magazine 80.9 (2006): 64-68. Humanities Abstracts (H.W. Wilson). Web. 7 Dec. 2011
The Folklorico group presentation I was honored to observed was the “Grupo Folklorico Juventud” from North Salinas High School. I decided to attend to this presentation because I use to be part of this Folklorico group. I also enjoy watching the dances for the reason that I believe they are beyond beautiful. It is amazing how a simple dance could transmit so much information while representing a region from Mexico. From my observation experienced, I noticed every region has different movements and customs for a reason. While observing the presentation I noticed most women used long skirts to create different shapes. They usually create the eight shape, half a circle or an entire circle which is created when the dancer does an entire spin while holding and moving their skirt. The skirt is also moved in different levels, such as high, medium, and low. The two levels that are used in most of the dances is the high and the medium level. While dancing the men and women usually do the same steps and movements. All the dances include “zapateados” which are known as foot dances or stomps. The “zapateados” are usually done with different parts of the feet such as the toe, heel and the sole of the feet. The dances include “zapateados” with different sections of the feet because every part creates a different sound. Most of the dances also include jumps and turns. It is extremely important for the
Upon watching the movie Brazil for the first time, the first thought which comes to mind is ‘WHAT??’. However, once past the exterior of the movie, one is able to divine its true meanings. Written by Terry Gilliam, Charlie McKeown and Tom Stoppard, Brazil was a groundbreaking movie which brought to light many issues within society which were valid in 1985 and remain so today. This text is valued because of the issues it raises, such as technology, an unwieldy government and consumerism, which are timeless issues. Brazil is based around a futuristic bureaucracy, where everything and everyone is property, there is little or no communication, and with the right forms, you can legally do whatever you want. This movie shows the flaws of such a system, that whilst aiming for perfection, is merely digging itself deeper into confusion and destroying the very society it seeks to control. Brazil is a dark comedy which shows us the consequences of handing over our lives to a faceless bureaucracy.
Overall, I believe that STEPS Youth Dance company successfully delivered an entertaining piece that highlighted the moments of Fight and Flight in our lives using many different techniques such as props, colourful and dark lighting, symbolic costumes, choreography and entertaining music.
Whether it is the fire dances of the native Hawaiians, or the Tango from Spain, dance is a part of every culture. This event is not an event I would usually attend. I am not into art of any kind except music. At first, there were two reasons I went to this performance.
The music also fitted in with the environment, outdoor, plants and gorgeous decoration made of recycle glass, but the dancers did not fit in it; they were not following the beat of the music. Some dancers were going fast and others slow you could tell they were not following the pace. The choreography had many long and repetitive jumps, continuous stretches, in certain occasions they lay on the grass. The dancers made many high and low levels but none were professional. Men had no finesse to lift women and they transmitted insecurity. I consider that there was no theme atmosphere because even though there was a marked stage, the dancers were not there. Some dancers stood aside and others were way too far, there was no coordination. The dancers were scattered and I lost them quickly from view. I felt that the dancers were not able to transmit enough dynamics; they did not show all their potential. The dancer 's customs was a white pledge, nevertheless they were all different, some girls were wearing shorts, skirts and dress, while men were wearing pants; their clothes were accompanied by different tennis shoe
Also, the performers are constituted with same number of men and women. They imply the importance of equality through the performance. The female and male dancers use the same movements to show that they are equal. The message being conveyed here is important, on the grounds of its social influence and giving the whole performance a deeper meaning. The thing makes dancing different and odd to other occupations is the fact that most famous and well known dancers are mostly females, since on other social circumstances males tend to dominate more realms. Here, besides all the female masters, the male dancers appear as much as the female artists do and they also showcase what they are capable of. As I watched more of the performance, the interactions between dancers and the LED lights became more appealing to me. Dancers use their bodies to interpret the connections between human beings and technology. Moreover, the background music also plays a vital role in the production of this whole piece of art. The tempo of the music, the dance movements, as well as the frequency of the lights going on and off together appeared to the audience as a desirable combination. I love how the dancers do every movements according to the rhythm of the music and how they two fit perfectly. All of those things together made a great show to watch and