A question that has pondered for a myriad of years: how does one develop the vision of choreography in the mind and transfer it to human bodies? Choreographers try to explain this question through the pieces that they develop over the years. Their pieces “must be part of an organic whole, supporting the story, characters, and the overall artistic intent” (AACT). The Encyclopedia of Britannica defines choreography as “an art of creating and arranging dances”. The word is derived from the Greek words to “dance” and “write”. Modern day choreographers were asked to define the choreography in one word like the ancient Greeks derived it from. The words that they described choreography as were: art, movement, creativity, planning, and expressions …show more content…
Kinesthetic space “surrounds the boy until the limits that our extremities can reach and travel with us across the scenic space” (Contemporary Dance). There are twenty-seven different ways in which a dancer can move in the kinesphere on an individual. A scenic space can simply be described as the space that the performance is taking parts in, such as a stage or a studio. Scenic spaces are divided into nine zones. The nine zones are center stage, the four corners of the stage, and the four centered remaining zones. According to the Contemporary Dance, to move from one zone to another choreographers create paths. These paths can be either straight, circular, or a combination of both. After the choreographer establishes the paths they are embellished with transitional movements. Another movement study that was conducted by Ivey Hale’s dance students dealt with kinesthetic energy and spacing on September 30th, 2015. In this dance study, the dancers had to write their first and last names with specific isolated body parts, such as butt, shoulders, head, and knees. The dancers were to use different tempos, levels, and sizes. They had to start on stage in one of the SCAT shapes and then exit using the movement with the body parts listed above or start off stage ad enter onstage using the body parts and end in a SCAT shape. They were allotted thirty-two counts to write out their names and performed it first as an …show more content…
Choreographers define dance as “telling a story without speaking”, “the language of the body”, “explaining your heart through movement”, and “is a unique passion that ca be fulfilling to its choreographers, dancers, and audience” (Senior Mastery Choreography Survey). The responses to the Senior Mastery Choreographer Survey proves that the stimulating and creating process of the choreography in the brain is the difficult aspect of this job, but when the visions are transferred to the dancers the results can be tremendous and sometimes breathtaking. The choreography can be created by the use of shapes, kinesthetic and scenic spacing, timing, and different tactics to leave a meaning to the audience. Choreography and dance have been a part of the arts for a myriad of years and will be for numerous more. It is an emotional entertainment that leaves the audience with a message and feelings towards a
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.
Theater, in our culture, have grown rapidly over the years that it has been occupied. In 17th and 18th centuries, dances were written as record. As our cultural evolved, in 19th and 20th century, dancing became a dance notation. Each era has a different type of dance that related to that period of time. In able for dancers to be organized and taught the moves, they needed some type of teacher, which in our modern we call them a choreographer. A choreographer have the role to design dances, which can also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who designs dances, which can also be called dance composition. Mats Ek is a ballet and Swedish choreographer that creates new elements of movement and expression of dances throughout his life
Every dance that is created by a choreographer has a meaning and or purpose behind it. The dance choreographed could be used to send a political, emotional, or a social message. Regardless of the message being sent, each dance created possesses a unique cultural and human significance. This essay will examine and analyze two dance works from history and give an insight into what each dance work provided to the society of its time.
Learning about Dance: Dance as an Art Form and Entertainment provides visions into the many features of dance and inspires scholars to keep an open mind and think critically about the stimulating, bold, ever-changing and active world of dance. Learning about Dance is particularly useful for those who do not have a wide and diverse dance contextual, such as students in a preliminary level or survey dance course. This book consists of twelve chapters. Chapter one dance as an art form focuses on the basic structures of dance. Dance is displayed through the human body, it has the control to communicate and induce reactions. Dance can be found in many different places, it enables the participants and seekers to touch and knowledge the joy of movement. Dance is discovered as being one of the oldest art forms worldwide. Dance existed in early cultures was recognized in a sequence of rock paintings portrayed dance. Since this discovery of rock paintings, several other forms of art have been found that depict dance. People used rituals in order to worship the gods and believed that the rituals held magical and spiritual powers. During the ancient period civilizations sentient decisions began to be made with regard to dance. Other periods that had an impact on dance were the medieval period, the renaissance period, and the contemporary period. Chapter two the choreographer, the choreographer is a person who comes up with the movements created into a dance routine. The choreographer expresses themselves through choreography because this is their way of communicating with the audience. In order to be a choreographer you must have a passion for dance. Each choreographer has their own approaches and ways of making up a routine. Choreographers ...
Dance is an ever evolving form of art; in much the same way that one can categorize and differentiate between eras and styles of architecture one can also do so with dance. These eras at times have sharp delineations separating them from their antecedents, other times the distinction is far more subtle. Traditional forms of dance were challenged by choreographers attempting to expand the breadth and increase the depth of performance; preeminent among such visionaries was Seattle born dancer and choreographer Mark Morris. Mark Morris' began as one of the millions of hopeful individuals attempting to simply make a career in dance; he not only succeeded but managed to have a lasting effect on the entire landscape of dance.
José Limón left more to the dance community than a collection of marvelous dances and the memory of his own powerful performance. He developed a technique, a specific style of dancing, that could be passed on to future generations of dancers and choreographers. Throughout his career, José touched hundreds of audiences with dances that expressed a profound understanding and respect for the joy and pain of the human experience. In his own words, he sought “demons, saints, martyrs, apostates, foods and other impassioned visions” to shape his choreography. To him, dance was more than a series of well-executed and ingeniously shaped movements; it was the inevitable expression of the human spirit. Limón’s dancers were taught to transcend their rigorous technical training in order to find their own dramatic and emotional motivations for
In the dance world a staggering number of choreographers have made a lasting impact on the way dance is seen to its audience. Alonzo King’s exceptional oeuvre of work includes him in this great history of significant choreographers. He not only created the link between modern and ballet in the twentieth century, but he bridged the ...
Throughout the years, America has pursued the performing arts in a large variety of ways. Theatre plays a dramatic and major role in the arts of our society today, and it takes great effort in all aspects. Musical Theatre, specifically, involves a concentration and strength in dance, acting, and singing. This is the base that Musical Theatre is built upon. For my Senior Project, I helped choreograph multiple scenes in a community musical “Thoroughly Modern Millie”. Choreography is a way of expressing oneself, but it has not always been thought of for that purpose. Agnes de Mille’s expressive talent has drastically affected how people see choreography today. Agnes de Mille’s influence in the world of dance has left a lasting impact in the Performing Arts Department, and her revolutionary works are still known today for their wit, lyricism, emotion, and charm.
Li’s passion for ballet shows on and off stage through his arabesques, flexibility, fouettés, grande jeté and pirouettes that were nothing less than perfection. I understood that becoming a dancer requires commitment, passion and having a great memory as there’s many moves, routines and ballet terms that you need to learn. When I was performing on stage, I felt free and that I could own the stage as it felt like it was my second home. I also felt complete within myself just as Li felt. To perform on stage, you need to be light and graceful along with connecting to the music using precise steps, poses and formal gestures. The film used dance, music, scenery, and costumes to portray a story characterised by Li’s dance. Classical ballet dancers require the utmost grace and I’ve found that you also need a tremendous level of concentration and memory. This portrays when his choreographer Ben Stevenson asked Li Cunxin to replace the main male role due to an injury on the day of the performance to memorise new dances and perform them in front of an enormous crowd. Many of my performances have been in a group where we all need to be in sync and work together. This film highlighted that in order to become a professional ballet dancer, you have to prepare to work extremely hard no matter how gruelling the schedule is in order to
For the dancer, music and choreography are paramount. The music guides the dancer, and the moves express the music. However, the dance has to start from somewhere.
[6] Cohen, Selma Jeanne. International Encyclopedia of Dance: A Project of Dance Perspectives Foundation, Inc. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.
Jonas, Gerald. Dancing: The Pleasure, Power, and Art of Movement. New York: Abrams, 1992. Print.
After I began to learn to dance ballet, I found out that these elegant movements actually require a lot of strength, flexibility of the bodies and brain’s participation to make it looked elegant. The dancers’ movements in the performance were so fluent and elegant and it is not hard to imagine how hard they had practiced, stretched and use the strengths to do all the ballet poses with their bodies look longer and longer. Their expressions also impressed me a lot. By looking at their expressions, the audience can easily understand the scenes and blend into the story. The performers actually not only are required to have good dancing skills but also are required to have some talents to be actors. Moreover, they also have to be good at expressing their feelings on the
Longstaff, J.S. 2011. Spatial Organisation of New choreography. [O]. Available: http://www.laban-analyses.org/jeffrey/2011-Rudolf-Laban-1926-Choreographie/chapter-07/07-04.jpg Accessed 1 May 2014
In dance, the tenets of embodied cognition may explain how choreographers invent ‘dancely’ movements. An example problem is to imagine what it is like to have an rope connected to your shoulder. The rope is pulled and released. To solve this problem a dancer works with a partner some distance away. That partner is notionally holding the rope and pulling it. The dancer then generates mental imagery associated with the movement of the rope. Most of this imagery will be about the somatic or kinesthetic feelings of being pulled and released. The pattern of somatic or kinesthetic priming of these images created serves to bias the next somatic or kinesthetic images in the dancer’s imagination. Batson and Wilson are of the opinion that “researching