Dance Commons^™

Why So Touchy? Navigating Physical Touch In The Performing Arts, Joseph Skillen, Gretchen Alterowitz, Michelle Reinken

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Physical touch is endemic to instruction in the Performing Arts. Two Performing Arts Chairs and the University’s Title IX Coordinator share approaches and solutions to navigating challenges resulting from the use of touch in student-instructor interactions.

Goodbye? Reflections And Stream Of Consciousness On, Underneath And Around The Creation Of “Hello?”, Leonard Shevel Gurevich

Senior Projects Spring 2023

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College.

Masculinity In American Movie-Musical Films, Christopher Sparks

Spring Showcase for Research and Creative Inquiry

My presentation explores the relation between American masculinity and film musicals. I demonstrate how the dominance of the musical at the box office in the middle of the 20^th century reflects historical events and technological change. Drawing on both scholarly and popular criticism, I show how the images of masculinity that Americans once encountered on the silver screen have transformed as musicals became marginal to popular culture in the United States. My research considers both classic 20^th century musicals, such as Wizard of Oz (1939) and 42^nd Street (1933), and more recent experiments with the genre, including …

Student Voice And Choice: Factors Influencing Student Participation In Secondary Arts Classes In An Urban Public School District, Alan D. Lambert Ed. D.

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

The purpose of this study was to capture the student voice regarding the value, importance, and relevance of visual and performing arts education in public schools. The host institution for the study was an urban school district in the southern central United States serving 75,000 students, with 55% students identified as Hispanic, and 52% of students experiencing poverty. Graduating seniors responded via questionnaires with forced choice and open-ended items regarding several topics, including what they do in their free time, how they perceive the value of arts classes at school, access to arts classes and the match of their interests …

American Indian Law Students Association (Ailsa) Sponsors A Drum Circle, Roger Williams University School Of Law

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Dance: Music, Movement, And Performance, Elise Beal

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Dance is an art form that incorporates many different mediums. Music is selected to determine the quality of movement that is visualized. Movement becomes realized through repetition of listening to music and outside influences. All dances require collaboration between choreographer and dancers to construct the piece and prepare for performance. The process of development, refinement, and completion is known as the choreographic process. The methods for the process include determining the style of movement and choosing music to satisfy the inspiration. Once music is selected, movement and steps can be determined with influences from previous pieces or other choreographers. The …

Year Of Cuba 2019-2020, Nashieli Marcano, Leslie Drost

Research Guides & Subject Bibliographies

No abstract provided.

The Interaction Between Postminimalist Music And Contemporary Dance, Azariah Felton

Theses : Honours

This dissertation examines the manner in which postminimalist compositional techniques such as phasing, polymeter, etc., can be used to aid the creation of music for dance. Music presented with dance generally serves at least two crucial roles: providing the dancers with a framework and impetus to aid movement; and reflecting the concept and meaning, where applicable, of the choreography. Many composers writing for dance must find ways to unite these goals in a way that best suits the total work, and find a balance between supporting the concept and assisting the dancers. This dissertation discusses the relationship between choreography and …

School Tour Of James And The Giant Peach, The University Of Maine College Of Liberal Arts And Sciences

Cultural Affairs Distinguished Lecture Series

The musical touring version of James and the Giant Peach is adapted directly from Roald Dahl's classic children's book. This project blends two areas that hold much interest for our current students, musical theater, and children centered theater. This show will incorporate song, dance, puppetry, and intricate costumes.

Encountering Greek American Soundscapes, Anthony Shay

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

For this chapter I will look at Greek American music making through the eyes of a non-Greek, my younger self, who enjoyed and sought out this musical tradition for over fifty years, primarily as a folk dance enthusiast. For the international recreational dancer of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, Greek music has rich melodic lines and many different rhythmic patterns (5/8; 7/8; 9/8, etc.) that attracted many individuals of Anglo American background like me to learn these dances, especially in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s when recreational and performance folk dance constituted a major leisure-time activity for hundreds of thousands …

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Taylor Theatre Playbills

Taylor Theatre presents William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Performed April 29-30 and May 6-7, 2016 at the Mitchell Theatre. Mischief meets merriment in this fresh re-imagining of Shakespeare's most popular romantic comedy.

In just one night, four magical stories are cleverly woven together: the marriage of the Athenian duke to the Amazon queen; the battle of the king and queen of the fairies; the follies of four lovers in a forest; and the hilarious antics of amateur actors staging a play. Enter a vibrant world where fairies fly overhead, a donkey bursts into song, and love potion makes your …

The Wishing Well: A Children's Ballet (A Composer's Perspective), Lydia Dempsey

Honors Projects

As a composer, I am passionate about introducing audiences to contemporary classical music. I chose to compose a twenty-five-minute children's ballet titled The Wishing Well based on the fairytale Diamonds and Toads. It premiered on April 2, 2016 at the Bowling Green Performing Arts Center in collaboration with choreographer Sophia Schmitz and conductor Robert Ragoonanan. Other elements of the project included set design, costuming, lighting, audio and video recording, and marketing. The mission was to provide the local community with a free arts event, introduce young audiences to music and ballet, enrich people’s lives through music and dance, provide …

Movement And Music: Exploring The Relationship Between Movement And Dance, Savannah Dunn

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

This thesis will examine the goals of dance performance, the craft behind choreographic art, and their respective relationships to music. As it would be impossible to rewrite the discourse and philosophy of dance or reach any concrete conclusions in that regard, I merely aim to present some of the primary theories surrounding this topic and discuss the roles they took on in the dance I created as part of this project, titled Ash Fighting Balance. I worked with a composer, Harriet Steinke, over the course of the 2015-2016 school year to choreograph a dance in three parts. I conscientiously pursued …

The Marriage Of Figaro

Taylor Theatre Playbills

Taylor Theatre presents an original translation of Mozart's comic-opera, "The Marriage of Figaro."

Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro" whisks us through the events of one crazy day as Figaro, the Lord's valet, tries to wed Susanna, the Lady's maid, before their philandering master can get to her first. Filled with Mozart's glorious music, The Marriage of Figaro is widely regarded to be one of the greatest comic operas ever written. Our production will see its plot of intrigue, mistaken identities, and unexpected revelations unravel in early 20th Century England in which the servants who live downstairs are perfectly capable of …

Urinetown: The Musical, The University Of Maine School Of Performing Arts

Cultural Affairs Distinguished Lecture Series

Urinetown is a satirical comedy musical that pokes fun at politics, greed, musical theater, and even its own name. It takes place in a world where water is so scarce that you have to pay to pee, and the rates keep going up. It opened on Broadway in 2001 and was nominated for 10 Tony awards and won three. UMaine's production of Urinetown will feature over 60 students, faculty, staff, and guest artists, and will take place in Hauck auditorium for seven performances.

The Effects Of Minimalism/Indeterminacy On The Merce Cunningham And John Cage Collaboration, Janelle M. Morrison

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Minimalism is movement in both the visual and performing arts that strive to focus attention on the subject as an object, reducing its historical and expressive content to a bare minimum or art without meaning. John Cage’s music stems from the idea of minimalism and expands itself into what he calls “indeterminacy.” Indeterminacy means that chance operations will produce the score and performer’s choices. Through Cage’s study of Zen he learned about The Book of Change, I Ching. Using his charts, based on this book and the toss of three coins, Cage could layout the format of his compositions. Merce …

Red Detachment Of Women And The Enterprise Of Making ‘Model’ Music During The Chinese Cultural Revolution, Clare Sher Ling Eng

Faculty Scholarship

Artworks produced with official sanction during periods marked by turmoil and human suffering are challenging subjects for scholars who would like to discuss them in a fair and responsible manner. If they aestheticize the works’ form and political affiliation, how would they be doing justice to these works whose creation and content are so meshed with the politics of their time? On the other hand, can an approach that takes ideology into account be developed that does not appear to ignore, condone or support the odious acts of violence associated with those periods? This article explores the latter question with …

Danse Du Ventre, Anthony Shay

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

Danse du ventre (also called belly dance or danse orientale) most probably derived its name from one or both of two sources: (1) a corruption of the Arabic raqs al-baladi, meaning "dance from the countryside," and (2) a reference to the highly developed movement articulations of the torso and abdomen, which are the most characteristic movement practices of this widespread dance genre. Arabs outside Egypt often call it raqs al-sharq ("Oriental dance") or raqs al-misri ("Egyptian dance"), underscoring the widespread notion that this dance tradition originated in ancient Egypt. No historical documentation exists for the origins of …

Amadeus

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Spring 1988 performance of Amadeus by Peter Shaffer.

Amadeus is a fictionalized account of the lives of the composers Antonio Salieri and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

A Midsummer Night’S Dream

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Spring 1986 performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare.

In just one night, four magical stories are cleverly woven together: the marriage of the Athenian duke to the Amazon queen; the battle of the king and queen of the fairies; the follies of four lovers in a forest; and the hilarious antics of amateur actors staging a play. Enter a vibrant world where fairies fly overhead, a donkey bursts into song, and love potion makes your perspective turn on a dime. This production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is an immersive theatrical experience …

The Music Man

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Fall 1984 performance of The Music Man by Meredith Wilson.

The Music Man is a the story of con man Harold Hill who comes to a town in Indiana posing as a boy’s band conductor, and how an unexpected romance with the local librarian, Marian, changes his plans.

Jacques Brel Is Alive And Well And Living In Paris

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Fall 1977 performance of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, with songs assembled and translated by Eric Blau and Mort Shuman.

Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris is a musical revue of the life and music of Jacques Brel.

Alice In Wonderland

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Spring 1975 performance of Alice in Wonderland adapted by Chamber Theatre from Lewis Carroll’s work of the same name.

Alice in Wonderland follows the fantastical and sometimes absurd adventures of a girl named Alice, who follows a White Rabbit and tumbles into a magical world called Wonderland.

The Imaginary Invalid

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s October 1971 performance of The Imaginary Invalid arranged by Jean Baptiste Moliére.

The Imaginary Invalid is a satirical Comédie-ballet about the 17th century medical profession, following the story of a wealthy Frenchman named Argan who is a hypochondriac.

Amahl And The Night Visitors

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Fall 1969 performance of Amal and the Night Visitors by Gian-Carlo Menotti.

Amal and the Night Visitors is an opera about a young crippled boy name Amal who lives with his mother, and special night they are visited by the Magi, who are journeying in search of the Christ child.

The Mikado

Taylor Theatre Playbills

The playbill for Taylor University’s Spring 1967 performance of Mikado by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan.

The Mikado is the comic opera about the romance between Nanki-Poo, the son of Japan’s Mikado, and Yum-Yum, the ward of the High Executioner of Titipu.