A study of anatomical and mechanical principles affecting the structure and function of the musculoskeletal system. Basic concepts of neuromuscular education for the dancer through the use of ideokinesis. This class will focus on application of the work of Mabel Todd, Lulu Sweigard, and Irmgard Bartenieff. Emphasis will be on the neuromuscular and skeletal systems, dynamic alignment, body connectedness, prevention of injury, and maximum realization of movement potential. Methods and materials for teaching creative dance and the fundamentals of dance technique to children.
Lessons are prepared and tested in the classroom and then presented to elementary school children.
Designing dances for non-traditional performing spaces both indoors and outdoors. Students analyze how different natural and built environments can affect the gesture, space, time, and overall structure of a dance composition as well as the relationship between performers and spectators. Through research and reconstruction, students will examine major topics in dance history, such as the meaning and function of dance in pre-industrial societies, communal and court dance in Europe from the 14th to the 19th centuries, and the transformation and development of dance as a theatre art in the modern world. Investigation of a special topic or project in aesthetics, dance history, movement analysis, production, or a creative project. A maximum of six hours may be counted toward graduation.