We have tried to move a lot in this class, making our knowledge not facts and dates, but embodied. How has putting movement in the body (whether you are doing it full out, just a bit, or observing) supported your learning of history and context? What has surprised you?
Many of the genres thus far have had some things in common, some things that are different. What is sticking with you from that?
All of the dances and steps we have "embodied" - Bharatha Natyam hand movement, Water dance, West African dance, the choreographed scene... have provided me a way to physically place myself in a time/place in history. I believe this enhanced my experience too, as it allowed me to realize some of the physical conditioning involved with the different dances as well as the conditions in which the dances were performed.
ReplyDeleteUp until now, one of the overarching themes I have noticed (and surprised me) is how much dance is a form of expressing or communicating. I had not thought of this until now - from transcending traditions, to maintaining a link between history and now - through dance.
Taniya- All of the dances and moves we've learned from all kind of different backgrounds have had me actually wanting to know more about the history, and when performing or practicing the dance I can actually imagine being there myself. After watching the videos of the dances in class, one of the themes I have noticed is how important it is to communicate with your dance partner, especially after watching the "White Lindy Hoppers".
Deleteive never been a dancer nor did i really know anything about dance before this class but learning about the dances from many different cultures gives me a better idea on much dance was used for people to express themselves back then, it was actually the only way sometimes. it takes a lot of creativity and natural talent to make a lot of these dances and it surprised me that in order for someone to get their point across or send out a message they had to create a lot of interesting dances. also surprised how much fun learning the dances can be.
ReplyDeleteReading about dance and actually doing the dances are two different things. Learning all those dances from all the different cultures in class made me feel like I am more connected to people outside of my culture it also made me think about all the struggles people had to go through through time. There are cultures that used dance as a form of resistance against tyrants others used it in a more religious way they prayed through dance and movements which is fascinating. The one thing that stood out for me the most is how people used to communicate through dance, this shows how powerful dance can be because communicating is never an easy thing to do so understanding each other by different sets of body movements makes me rethink all the amazing things we are capable of, it shows how great and important dance and dance history is. -Jasem
ReplyDeleteBefore I took this class barley knew dances and dance history, I almost knew nothing about dance. During the past couple of weeks I’ve learned various dances and gained some knowledge about the history of dance. I’ve learned that dance isn’t only a movement. Dance can be identified as a language, a gesture, an art, an exercise, a spiritual symbol, and much more. What mostly grabbed my attention and made me realise how powerful dance is and how dance it is embedded in the history of all cultures. Is how dance is a movement that connects people and help them communicate through it. I never thought about dance this way, but it is one of the most important things people can do.
ReplyDeleteBefore taking this class, I didn’t really think of dance as having history and how it shaped cultures so much. When we actually danced the different dances from across the world I felt a kind of connection to them. Even if I did not physically embody the dances, just learning about them made me appreciate their culture that much more. I was surprised at how some cultures vary so widely in their dance, something that wer are not used to. Some have things in common such as, most of the dances have some of sort of connection to higher power. Some cultures have different ideas of higher power, some might see it as a connection to the gods, some might see it as a connection to their roots and people.
ReplyDeleteI've never danced before this class, and I even have some prejudices about dance - I don't think dance is for boys. But when I tried French court dance, hand movements and West African jazz, I had the exact opposite idea. Dance is a way to share one's joy with others and a bridge to communicate with others. It's like the reason jazz was created at the time, anyone can dance and make friends through dancing.
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