Critical Dance Studies

DAN5413B.02, section 2
Course System Home Terms Summer 2026 Critical Dance Studies

Course Description

Summary

In this course, we explore theoretical terms that incite dancing=s possibilities. How does dance emerge? When or whom has its processes served? What theoretical  lines of inquiry have served those processes, and how have they fared over time? What tools do scholars bring to bear on the study of dance, and where are these  tools most effective? Required reading and film viewing will collude and collide with classroom discussion. Guest scholar, Dr. Thomas DeFrantz.

 

Learning Outcomes

  • Assert how “theory” serves those who construct it.
  • Identify key theories and themes within a wide range of artists, curators and scholars whose work instigates new ways of thinking about "making and doing" in the contemporary moment.
  • Question how dance is understood within a contemporary context of its own legacies of production and distribution.
  • Frame and connect new inquiry across disciplines of art making and into a "global community of exchange."
  • Examine the role of artists/dancers as thinkers and writers.

Prerequisites

Enrollment in MFA Low-Residency Dance program.

Please contact the faculty member : donnafayeburchfield@bennington.edu

Instructors

  • Donna Faye Burchfield
  • Thomas DeFrantz

Day and Time

TBA

Delivery Method

Fully in-person

Length of Course

Full Term

Academic Term

Summer 2026

Credits

3

Course Level

5000

Maximum Enrollment

12

Course Frequency

Once a year