Dance Workshop  620  

Dance for Athletes  621 

This course is designed to introduce students to the basics of dance. We emphasize the fundamentals of ballet and modern dance, and include other styles such as jazz, folk, and African dance. This is a technique class, and we concentrate on physical development and creative exploration of the body’s movement capabilities.

This course is a variation of Dance Workshop 620 and has been custom designed especially for young men and women involved in sport. Using basic modern and ballet movements, students experience total body awareness and alignment for the purpose of improving muscle control, balance, and flexibility. Proper stretching techniques and injury prevention are sport-specific highlights.

Dance Workshop  630

Students with previous dance experience meet in this class for more in-depth study of the dance curriculum. We explore ballet and modern dance techniques more thoroughly, and styles such as jazz, folk and African dance, dance composition, improvisation, dance history, kinesiology as applied to dance, and an investigation of a variety of choreographic styles. We may incorporate pointe work into the ballet curriculum, depending on the students’ skill and developmental level. Students examine the theoretical origins of the techniques and the styles they study.

Dance History and Composition  634

Dance History and Composition provides a strong historical and theoretical foundation for serious dance students. The course examines general trends in dance, and the development of dance history as it relates to the culture and civilization of the times. It explores historical roots and aesthetic philosophies through the styles of various contemporary choreographers. Class time involves lecture and discussion, video presentations, and an emphasis on reflective involvement in dance and the creation of compositional movement studies. This course is a requirement for any student pursuing Honors in Dance.