Course Syllabus

DANC 1010 Introduction to Dance

Course Description

This is both a movement-based and a lecture-based course that introduces students to the art form of dance through active exploration of its many components including ritual, movement, movement composition and performance. Movement-based prompts and games, combined with classroom discussions, will facilitate the exploration of the current state of dance as both a form of creative expression and a social, religious, and cultural practice. Throughout classroom sessions we will be exploring elements of a wide variety of dance styles including social dance, folk dance, ballet, jazz, modern/contemporary technique and improvisation as a preparation for movement projects that are produced, choreographed and presented by students in the course.

Justification

This course invites students to examine dance as an embodied reflection and expression of our world. It fulfills a fine arts general education requirement and is taught at most four-year universities. Courses designated as FA GE provide students with an understanding of the basic conceptual frameworks and historical and cultural contexts of artistic works while also instilling them with a sensibility for the creative process. Students will also be assessed on their ability to critically evaluate creative works using the language and methodology appropriate to dance, music, theater, and other disciplines.

General Education Outcomes

1. A student who completes the GE curriculum has a fundamental knowledge of human cultures and the natural world. The goal of this class is to foster an appreciation of dance in general. After completing the course, students are prepared to recognize, enjoy and perform a dance in various settings, including stage, video, and outside spaces. Creative assignments, and discussions will invite students to consider dance a universal human activity that can be performed anywhere and by anyone. Dance around the world is a form of expression of humanity and its many cultures, taking numerous forms and styles. This class helps student begin the exploration of dances many uses, meanings, and expressions.
2. A student who completes the GE curriculum can read and research effectively within disciplines. Discussion questions, creative prompts, and dance review assignments are designed to elicit critical responses to some basic questions about movement (e.g., "How is space, time, shape and flow used in this particular dance?" "How does the aesthetic of ballet differ from the aesthetic of modern dance?" "What is cultural appropriation and how does it relate to dance?")
3. A student who completes the GE curriculum can draw from multiple disciplines to address complex problems. Throughout the duration of this course, students will be describing and critically evaluating dance as a social and aesthetic event. Students will also learn a deep connection between dance and theatre, dance and music, and dance and ritual. Through class activities, written and oral critiques, and exams, students will demonstrate their ability to communicate their ideas effectively.
4. A student who completes the GE curriculum can reason analytically, critically, and creatively. Students will be engaged through discussion prompts, critical evaluations of dance performances, and creative practice research as they explore and create their dances as part of both Midterm and Final Exams.

General Education Knowledge Area Outcomes

1. After being exposed to the deep connection between dance, music, and theatre, students will be encouraged to engage in their own movement research as part of the Midterm and Final exams. After being exposed to the deep connection between dance, music, and theatre, students will be encouraged to engage in their own movement research as part of the Midterm and Final exams.
2. Provide an informed synopsis of the performing and/or visual arts in the contexts of culture and history through reading and interpreting pertinent information using a variety of traditional and electronic media. Students will evaluate their movement research and review Snow College Dance Concert. Students will also be exposed to various creative movement works and be prompted to respond to phenomenological, political, and social issues related to dance.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual and elemental principles fundamental to the creation of various forms of artistic expression. Students will evaluate their movement research and review Snow College Dance Concert. Students will also be exposed to various creative movement works and be prompted to respond to phenomenological, political, and social issues related to dance.
4. Exhibit an ability to critically analyze artistic works using appropriate techniques, vocabulary, and methodologies. After being exposed to a wide range of dance techniques and styles, students will be encouraged to engage in their own movement research as part of the Midterm and Final exams.

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Through the hands on study of dance technique and performance coupled with written prompts, students will develop, implement and analyze at least two dance performance projects. They will thus learn the dynamics of the creative process of dance through the actual experience of dance training, dance production, dance performance and dance research study.
2. Through the practice of dance response writing (including dance description and dance evaluation), online research of the chosen modality of performance and video recording of the actual performance produced in the class, students will be able to better understand the relationship of dance to space, time and personal ontology of the performer.
3. Students in this class will self-select, teach and produce their own dance performance projects. Past projects included the following modalities: dance for camera, dance video, and flashmob performances.
4. Throughout the course students will be invited to respond to dance in a fashion that best suits it. Thus formal writing prompts will often be preceded by associative writing and/or visual art responses. Implicit in these writings are some of the fundamental question of dance: what do we see when we see dance and how can we express in words the experience of seeing a physical performance?

Course Content

Through a series of discussions, movement explorations, creative prompts, dance concert reviews as well as the production of at least two dance performances, students in this course will be examining the following concepts as they relate to the art form of dance: the nature of ritual and its role in dance genealogy, the nature of choreography as an event limited by space, time and moving body, the nature of performance on stage vs. performance in the street vs. performance on camera vs. performance in the dance studio, the nature of dance/movement training in folk, social, ballet, modern, contemporary, jazz and dance improvisation.

This course introduces students to a wide range of movement styles, from Western European classical ballet to world folk dances. Through this broad exposure to dance, students will be encouraged to appreciate all dance styles as they enrich our lives as spiritual, social and political beings.