Dance Partnering in Modern and Contemporary Dance 1

Subject is not scheduled Not scheduled

Code	Completion	Credits	Range	Language Instruction	Semester
107DPMC1	credit	1	2 exercise hours (45 min) of instruction per week, 7 to 12 hours of self-study	English	winter

Subject guarantor

Name of lecturer(s)

The content of the course Dance with a partner in Modern and Contemporary Dance 1 is focused on learning the principles of contact improvisation, which is based on the physical contact of two bodies, the perception of touch and body weight. It leads to the knowledge of the kinesthetic possibilities of body movement, the sequence of movement in the body, teaches to concentrate on individual parts of the body and their movement in several directions simultaneously. At the same time, the course clarifies the ways of non-verbal communication in pairs and groups.

The course is closely linked to the content of Dance Improvisation. It is taught in two semesters.

The aim of study is to develop authentic movement expression, self-acceptance, intuition, spontaneity and naturalness of movement.

Thematic areas

The centre of the body, the centres of the different parts of the body

Touch, impulse, manipulation (awareness of body boundaries, awareness of different qualities of touch, processing impulse into movement, manipulation of partner)

Use of changing points of body contact to generate movement (feeling movements through the skin x use of support in the skeletal structure)

Maintaining fluidity of movement and energy flow to create a new situation or change direction

Shifting the center of gravity in two-body contact

Theoretical topics:

Postmodernism and Contact Improvisation

The difference between a duet in classical dance and a democratic duet in contact improvisation.

Learning outcomes

Students acquire new movement skills. The exercises emphasize the social aspect of working together in pairs or groups, taking responsibility for oneself and learning to listen responsibly to others.

Prerequisites and other requirements

Dance improvisation 1, 2

Literature

Required reading:

CALAIS-GERMAIN, Blandine. Anatomy of Movement. Seattle: Eastland Press, 1991, ISBN 0-939616-17-3.

COHEN, Bonni. Bainbridge. Sensing, Feeling, and Action: the Experiential Anatomy of Body-Mind Centering. 2nd ed. Northampton, MA: Contact Edition, c2008. xi, 200 s. ISBN 978-0-937645-10-9.

NOVACK, Cynthia J. Sharing the dance: contact improvisation and American culture. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1990. ISBN 9780299124403.

Evaluation methods and criteria

Credit is awarded on the basis of oral and practical verification of understanding of the course content, demonstration of own practical exercises and presentation of a dance-movement phrase (created as a result of own creative work) and its methodological-didactic analysis.

Other requirements attendanc 80%, activizy in class, portfolio creation.

Further information

No schedule has been prepared for this course

The subject is a part of the following study plans

Dance Pedagogy (BA) - Methods of Modern and Contemporary Dance - from 2023/24 (Required subjects with the possibility of repeat registration)