Saint Mary’s College School of Liberal Arts
Department of Performing Arts
Dance in Performance Perfa 184-01
Spring 2015
PROFESSOR: CatherineMarie Davalos PHONE: (925) 631-4824
OFFICE: LeFevre Theatre 5 EMAIL:
HOURS M W 1-2, or by appt.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course examines dance from a critical and intersectional perspective through the lenses of power and privilege to use the medium to explore race, ethnicity, gender, class, sexuality, ability, age, etc. We will begin with a discussion of the art form by asking “What is dance?” and this will lead us to the questions: How do we view/experience dance? How do we talk about dance? How do we write about dance? How is dance related to our culture? As we proceed, topics of discussion may include but are not limited to: 1) the emerging choreographer, 2) women and dance, the feminist perspective, 3) dance and theatre,4) collaboration, 5) the production at a small studio vs. the large theatre, 6) dance and technology, 7) dance and culture. The class will attend dance concerts in the Bay Area followed by discussion and critique of the work in seminar format and daily written reflections. These concerts were chosen so that we can see and talk about a variety of styles, venues, and ideas. Our dialogue about them is the subject matter of this course. This course is writing intensive and your writing about the work will deepen your understanding of dance criticism. Your lab fee of $200 will cover the cost of concert tickets. This class is a requirement for all Dance majors and minors. Prerequisites: Perfa 1, Perceiving the Performing Arts and English 5. This course has been approved for American Diversity.
Learning Outcomes: At the completion of this course students will be able to:
1) write and discuss live performance in an informed and thoughtful way, using the norms of artistic appreciation/criticism (rather than personal taste as the basis for critique) and using the process of writing to enhance intellectual discovery.
2) Analyze arguments so as to construct ones that are well supported, are well reasoned, and are controlled by a thesis or exploratory question.
3) distinguish basic technical terms used in an art form and specific elements of the aesthetic (formalism, expressionism, etc.) and employ them appropriately when discussing and writing about specific works.
4) Recognize and compose readable prose, as characterized by clear and careful organization, coherent paragraphs and well-constructed sentences that employ the conventions of Standard Written English and appropriate diction.
5) Develop search strategies and use library catalogs and databases to find relevant material, critically evaluate sources, integrate and cite evidence appropriately, understand the concept of intellectual property and practice academic honesty.
6) identify the cultural context of a work of art and frame specific creative challenges within larger historical/theoretical questions implicit in a choreographer's, playwright's, and/or composer's work and incorporate a deep understanding of the ways performing artists draw inspiration from the worlds of history, nature, culture, and ideas.
7) recognize similarities in structure (such as elements of phrasing) shared by all three performing arts and be able to articulate the significance of structural elements in the analysis of a work's form and meaning.
8) acknowledge and build on the insights of other students during discussion to emphasize dialogue rather than debate, and build on perspectives different from one’s own and reflecting the student's cross-disciplinary perspective and familiarity with Collegiate Seminar and building on the strategies for research and writing learned in English 5.
9) formulate an intersectional perspective through the lenses of race, ethnicity, gender, class, sexuality, ability, age, etc.
10) analyze aspects of social diversity and demonstrate how these aspects of social diversity affect dance in the United States of America;
11) explain how social categories and structures of power affect the human person.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
10 Mandatory Concert dates: TBA
Making up a concert due to ACTF, ACDF, or other SMC performance. All make-up concerts must be approved by your professor in advance. You will follow a similar structure for journal entries and the same readings and as required by the missed performance.
Mandatory Text:
Writing Research Papers Across the Curriculum / Susan M. Hubbuch
DanceBeat-Arts Journal, blog by Deborah Jowitt
Books on reserve in the Library (eres, ebook, ebrary and/or hardcopy):
Before, Between, and Beyond: Three Decades of Dance Writing / Sally Banes
Dancing Women: Female Bodies on Stage / Sally Banes
Meaning in Motion, Jane C. Desmond, editor
Moving history / dancing cultures : a dance history reader/Ann Dils & Ann Cooper Albright, editors
What is Dance? / Roger Copeland, Marshall Cohen, editors
The Shapes of Change : Images of American Dance / Marcia B. Siegel
DAILY CLASS WORK:
· JOURNAL
1. Keep a folder and journal containing only your work in this class. Include the syllabus, all handouts, concert programs, notes on lectures, videos and performances. I will collect assignments daily.
2. Read your syllabus every day for assignments, papers, etc. You are responsible for locating all course materials. The syllabus will note a reading or research assignment for a particular day to be completed before you come to class. How much time you invest in class preparation will determine how much you are involved, and therefore, what grade you will accomplish in the class.
3. Concert Reviews. Before we attend a concert it is your responsibility to look for articles previously written about the company/choreographer we are going to see. Find a review about a different concert, NOT the one we are about to see. Include this research in your journal. After we attend a concert you must find one review of the same performance we saw. This research will be part of our discussions and must also be included in your journal. These articles should show evidence that you have read them with notes, highlights and comments including noting the three aspects of dance criticism: description, comparative analysis, and evaluation, as well as any analysis of social categories and structures of power. Bring a hard copy of the assignment asked for a specific day. You will turn it in for credit and then add it to your journal.
4. After each concert type a journal entry reflecting on what you have seen, recording the most memorable moments, specific images, and posing interesting questions raised by the work. Keep in mind the three levels of dance criticism: description, comparative analysis, and evaluation; and the terminology of the form. Was it a mode of expressionism? Write 1-2 pages practicing your use of writing in the discipline. Discuss one dance and/or image that struck you as memorable. Note the learning outcomes above and formulate some dialogue around structures of power and social categories. These ideas will become the topics for your papers. You will begin the writing process with your journal writing. This will be turned in every Monday after we see a concert. It should be about a page. It is worth 3 points. Therefore, the two articles and your journal entry total five points for each concert we see.
5. The reading assignments listed in your syllabus can be copied and included in your journal, or you can take careful notes and include them in your journal. Discussions of the reading will be part of your participation grade. Therefore, you must have a copy of the article with you (electronic ok). You will also be asked to refer to these readings in your concert papers using the MLA format.
· DISCUSSION
1. Be open to discuss dance from a variety of perspectives.
2. Be willing to share your perceptions, questions, and insights with others.
3. Be respectful of your fellow classmates and professor.
4. Stay away from opinion, focus discussion on meaning, analysis, and interpretation.
ATTENDANCE / PARTICIPATION: one-third of your final grade is based on faithful attendance and the depth of your
involvement in class discussions. Attendance includes the dance concerts in the evenings and weekends. They are part of the
course and your class meeting dates. Each absence lowers your grade by 5 points. Two tardies will count as one absence. Missed
concerts count as two absences because you will also not be able to join in the class discussion. All missed concerts must be
made-up so that you can complete your journal and the course. You will not be given “back” your attendance points for the
discussion and absence. If you miss more than 2 concerts and 4 classes you will not be able to pass the class.
You cannot miss the final exam discussions and presentations at the end of the semester. These dates will count as 3 absences.
Shared Inquiry: Guidelines for Dialogue
The following behaviors contribute to effective participation in shared inquiry:
· Alert listening and focused attention throughout the session
· Voluntary contributions to the discussion
· Significant comments or questions that advance the discussion
· Willingness to take risks in raising issues ("lead with your doubt")
· Ability to articulate ideas clearly, even if tentatively
· Awareness of others in responding to the discussion (i.e. building on other’s remarks; not speaking twice before others have spoken once).
· References to the text when discussing specific points
· Demonstration that reading has been careful and complete
· Ability to differentiate between own view and author's
· Ability to investigate artistic intention and your own interpretations
An “A” student is rarely if ever absent from class and is likely to inform the instructor in advance; is always excellently prepared and demonstrates her/his preparedness by consistently offering text-related contributions throughout the discussion; is self-motivated, entering the discussion with pertinent and useful contributions as appropriate; is engaged and active in pursuing questions and in testing opinions; regularly forwards the discussion by drawing comparisons, analyzing problems and questions, offering opinions on interpretations, and responding critically and respectfully to the contributions of others; listens with active interest to the comments of others; questions others in an effort to understanding not only what they are saying but also reasons and implications of what they are saying.
ASSIGNMENTS: one-third of your grade is based on two papers and your journal. Two dance concert papers approximately 6 pages long; due dates and times are included in your syllabus. Please see guidelines. You are expected to deliver a hard copy to my office. If you are not on campus the day a paper is due, email the paper on the due date and bring the hardcopy to the next class. Journals will be collected regularly and given a grade at the midterm and final.
PROJECTS: one third of your grade is based on the group project, mid-term and final. Please see guidelines for each.
Group project – choose your own choreographer presentation, due dates TBA
Midterm – Artist Statement
Final –Presentations due the last week of classes and the final exam date.
GRADING OVERVIEW:
· Attendance/Participation: 100
· Dance Concert papers 25 points each: 50
· Journal: 50
· Midterm: 30
· Final: 30
· Group Project: 40
·
TOTAL: 300 (Grades are based on a traditional scale, 90% = A’s, 80%=B’s, etc.)
GROUP PROJECT
Group projects are designed to provide in-depth research and analysis of one choreographer from the concert menu. Topics may be chosen from the list below or created by the group in conjunction with your professor. The 25 minute presentation will include a brief biography of the choreographer, a movement demonstration either live or recorded, an analysis of the dance and of the choreographer, and a short essay (3 pages each person) to support your area of the research. Groups of 4-5 students will be presented in concert order. A research proposal must be turned in at least one week before the project. Projects must formulate an intersectional perspective through the lenses of race, ethnicity, gender, class, sexuality, ability, age, etc. Analyze aspects of social diversity and demonstrate how these aspects of social diversity affect dance in the United States of America; and explain how social categories and structures of power affect the human person.
Possible topics and some supporting materials:
· Music and Dance: Mark Morris and Stravinsky
“Predictability and inevitability in dance-music Relationships in Mark Morris’s Falling Down Stairs.”
· Alvin Ailey’s “Revelations” and African American culture
“Composite Bodies of Dance: The Repertory of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater” or “Dancing Revelations: Alvin Ailey's Embodiment of African American Culture.”
· Women and Formalism: the uncanny connection and Trisha Brown
· Gender and dance: an examination of the masculine and the feminine
· Ability and Disability in Dance: AXIS Dance Company and the body aesthetic
· East meets West and Shen Wei Dance
DANCE CONCERT PAPER GUIDELINES
Writing the dance concert paper is a scaffolded assignment.
1. Students are required to create a thesis and a research proposal as the first step. This will be turned in for review two weeks before the paper is due. Students will include the thesis statement and the readings to support the paper. State your thesis and how you plan to support it. A minimum of 10 quotes will be included in this first step. Generate your ideas by brainstorming a topic first, e.g., the duet as seen in African-American choreographers. Choose two different choreographers in relationship to the reading assignments. Then begin to narrow your topic to a specific idea to research and discuss. If you need assistance, please see me and/or make some time to visit the CWAC. Once step one has approval, you may move onto step two.
2. Write a minimum 6 page paper. Discuss the work in relationship to the elements of dance criticism: description, comparative analysis, and evaluation. Do not be surprised that each section will include a description of the dance to support your work; a movement example is akin to quoting the text. You must save evaluation for the last part of the paper. Your conclusion will be a new take on your thesis. Please do not simply restate your introduction. Instead, offer new perspectives and insights. You will also be graded on the technical aspects of your paper. Please pay attention to grammar and spelling. The “A” paper has less than three errors or mistakes. If you do not cite your sources using MLA, you will automatically fail. Step 2 is not a rough draft, but a complete and sincere effort when writing the paper. Incomplete work will not be accepted. This is due 7 days after step one has been approved.