Domain One - Dance Flashcards
Element of Dance: Space
Locomotor: (traveling through space)
Eight Basic Steps: walking, running, leaping, jumping, hopping, galloping, skipping, sliding
Nonlocomotor: (staying in one place “on spot”)
stretching, pushing, twisting, bending, kicking, sinking, curling
Combined Locomotor: (often traditional folk steps)
two-step, paddle, grapevine, step-hop, chug, spinning
**teachers should be aware of the space between dancers
individual, group, or class (solo, duet, ensemble)
space between dancers (side-by-side, supported, far, near)
interactions between dancers (leader, follower, mirror, unison, parting)
Element of Dance: Time
Rhythm - countable patterns
Tempo - fast or slow speed
Beat - even or uneven
Meter - 2/4 time, 3/4 time etc.
Syncopation - a rhythmic pattern produced when a deliberate pattern is upset
Rhapsodic Rhythms - non-metric (breath, water, wind)
Element of Dance: Levels
Direction - forward, backward, up, down, sideways (horizontal, vertical), diagonal, straight, circle, out, in, zigzag, spiral
Form/Shape - angular, rounded, twisted, bent, crooked, symmetrical, asymmetrical
Level - high, medium, low
Range - wide, narrow, big, little
Pathway - floor, elevated, air patterns
Focus - gaze, floor, away
Element of Dance: Force
Quality of Energy - sustained (smooth), suspended (light), swing (under-curve), sway (over-curve), collapsed (loose), percussive (sharp), vibrate (shudder)
Degree of Energy - strong, weak, heavy, light, dynamic, static, flowing, tense
Dance Activity Instruction
- determine age-appropriate expectations for safety
- determine physical abilities, taking into account gender-specific and special needs
- begin with a warm-up and end with a cool down
- separate into steps, start slowly, use counts, and work up to proper tempo
- teach one part of basic step pattern at a time, when two have been learned, combine
- explain floor pattern and use key words
- provide opportunity for multiple dance experiences
Cultural Dances
Carry important historical significance from ancient civilizations
Examples: Chinese ribbon dance, Polish polonaise, India’s Kathakali or Bharatanatyam dance, clogging, Irish dancing, pavane/galliard, the minuet, Charleston, twist, disco, nip-hop, lambada
Religious/Ceremonial Dance
Choreography played a significant role in many cultural events; dance was created and performed in celebrations, rituals, and rites of passages
Example: Native Americans use dance in mourning, preparation for battles, or for joy
Folk Dance
- form of cultural dance that originated in medieval times when they danced to celebrate (medieval carolers were the first folk dances found in England and parts of Europe)
Authentic:
- Movements must predate the nineteenth century
- performed by peasants or royalty
- The choreography is derived from tradition
- There is no teacher
Variations of folk dance found today: square and barn dancing
Play and sing with movement: sing-along dances - London Bridge, Hokey Pokey, Ring Around the Rosie, The Farmer in the Deli, BINGO, Pop Goes The Weasel, Skip to My Lou
Maypole Dance: often danced on May Day in European nations (such as Germany and Sweden), taught in American schools today; ribbons are attached to a pole so that children can hold a ribbon as they dance
Modern Dance
Born in the 20th century; created as a resistance to rigidity of classical ballet
Based on subjective interpretation of internalized feelings, emotions, and moods; often unstructured and makes deliberate use of gravity and body weight to enhance movement; encourages free-style dance, should be utilized to provide dance opportunities for all ability levels; encourages expression of feelings and emotions through movement
Theatrical Dance
Based on music, songs, dialogue, dance
Often experienced in the form of musical theatre productions; well known productions - ballet, jazz, tap; other - ethno-cultural, kabuki, Russian, Celtic dance
Social Dance
Refers to dances in which socializing is the main focus; dance partners are essential
Popularity of competitive social dancing has helped many of these styles become household names
Includes: hip-hop, line dance, ballroom, waltz, foxtrot, tango, rumba, jive, swing
Dance Historical Timeline: Prehistory to Beginning of Middle Ages (A.D. 400)
Characteristics: circle form (rhythmic motion within a circle); use of imagery
Gender Roles: men = war/hunting, women = seasons/planting; early accompaniment came from drums, harps, flutes, and chants
Forms: social dance (births, special events, rites of passage); ritual dance (tradition, religious rituals - temple dances, hunting magic); fertility dance (marked the changing seasons - especially for planting and harvesting - and sought favor with the gods)
Historic evolution (use of dance movement):
Egypt - movement associated with gods/funerals
Greece - in theatre-chorus; festival of Dionysus
Rome - pantomime/ dance expression
India - formalized hand movements (example - Hindu dance: the oldest world dance
Java - elaborate costumes, balance and moderation, traditional dance
China - ceremonial dance with each character having specific hand movement, and martial (war) dancing
Japan - Kabuki: traced to primitive rituals; it involves stomping, elaborate costumes, is male only, is still current
Dance Historical Timeline: Middle Ages (500-1400)
- Church attempted to restrict pagan dance, often associated with fertility, but folk dances evolved from earlier ritual dance (ex/ Maypole dance; origins in primitive fertility rituals [dancing around a pole; associated with spring)
- Characteristics of folk dance: many regional differences; all had recreational aspects and basic steps such as running, walking, hopping, and skipping; all are linked to culture, music, and the history of a group; take form in a circle
- Current examples in the 20th century: polka, square dances, historic dances - Cossack dance of Russia, polonaise of Poland, Czardas Hungarian tavern dance, and Mexican El Jarabe Tapatio (“hat dance”)
Dance Historical Timeline: Renaissance (1400 - 1600)
- dancing evolved from pageants and processions of the period
- ballet developed in France (1500s) and moved to Italy —> development of court dancing in Europe (nobility in a palace setting); patronage of the Medicis; “dancing masters”; steps were slow (adagio) and fast (allegro); lack of spontaneity (defined steps)
- music to accompany specific, technical ballet steps; a theatrical art form developed - music, costumes, setting, plot, and themes such as Greek and Roman mythology and history (Julius Caesar); Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
- Minuet: a formal aristocratic court dance developed at the end of the period
Dance Historical Timeline: Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
- Formal dancing spread to the Continent; expansion of professional dancing masters; professional choreography at the Paris Opera (opera and dance); costuming; introduction of the waltz (1-2-3) rhythm; court dance
- Ballet developed throughout Europe —> virtuoso dancing; expressive capacity of the body; pointe footwork and the heel-less shoe
- Era of Romanticism (early 1800s); continued evolution of ballet; emphasis on emotions and fantasy; true pointe work; evolution of “lightness in flight”; this differed from other dance forms in placement and alignment of the body, as well as in training
- focus on the ballerina; male is secondary
Dance Historical Timeline: Early Twentieth Century
- Revolutionary aspects of Ballet Russes (Russia); stretched the boundaries of classical ballet; new movements (“turnout”)
- Revolutionary aspects of early modern dance; appreciated the qualities of the individual; primitive expression and emotion; “new freedom” of movement; choreography of Isadora Duncan and Martha Graham and their break from restrictive classical ballet and tutu; broadening the minds of the public; explosion of modern dance - ragtime jazz emerged, the flapper era influenced fast-moving dances like the Charleston
Dance Historical Timeline: Late Twentieth Century
- growth of contemporary dance, post modernism in the 1960s; movement toward simplicity and a less sophisticated technique; “no” manifesto, a frequent rejection of costumes and stories
- other directions post-1960s: more eclectic, ballet and ethnic used in the same performance, all-male groups, intense theatrical effects in lighting, costumes, and sets
- Martha Graham and psychodrama: intense movement often depicting pain, fear, and love; dance forms “sculptured” by human body positions; contraction and release of the torso, “fall and recover”; angular gestures; schools and dance companies
- George Balanchine (director of the NYC Ballet) and modern American ballet; Broadway and Hollywood shows; a new style of moving with emphasis on speed and mobility; lean body types; importance of the female dancer
- social dance and mass culture: rock ‘n’ roll; MTV; hip-hop; ballroom dancing (tango)
Abstract dance
Art of pure movement
Choreography does not show a narrative story
