Studio Practice: Combined Contemporary Modern Dance Forms

Course Description

Summary

This course proposes a transrelational investigation of two distinct contemporary approaches to movement practice. Calliste:  Inspired and influenced by artist, choreographer Camille Brown, this course investigates various styles of the African diaspora, fusing and contrasting footwork and shaping of Afro-Caribbean dance and includes step dancing, body percussion, hip hop and street dance. Students in this course will be encouraged to investigate in and through movement the “possibilities of the imagination.”   Haworth:  This is a Contemporary Modern Technique class that has been influenced by Ideokinesis, Alexander and Klein techniques. The work dives into Personal-Genius, refining technique while maximizing artistic expression. Class begins with self-care and a somatic based warm up, lubricating joints and stretching muscles. Floor improvisation and Bartenieff Inspired Fundamentals instill skills and ready the body for open dancing. The middle section has a yoga stretch that has been influenced by somatic and alignment work. Center work focuses on: foot, back, and leg exercises before diving into handstands. The work emphasizes a fluid spine and grounded weight while highlighting specificity of initiation, alignment and releasing into space. The class builds dynamically from subtle exercises into large athletic phrases that move in and out of the floor, on the hands, and through space with easy exciting sequential momentum. Improvisation is used to deepen understanding of the material, and occasionally the class will drop into performance practice.