Below is an overall outline of my project. This is a rough outline though. Stuff will probably be adjusted as needed to
my video making skills. We will just have
to see.
Audience Question: How will I be organizing my project? That’s a
good question, that I do not have a concrete answer to at the moment. However, I plan on filming not only my
interviewees but also classes and/or specific dancers.
OUTLINE
1.
Many do not think of writing and dance as going
together; however, writing in both textual and non-textual ways are incredibly important
in the dance world. Not only are there
multiple magazines and books regarding dance and it’s history, but in a sense
choreography and dance itself is an unwritten form of communication. Resumes are another written component of
dance that are crucial for dancers going into the professional dance world.
2.
Books
a.
Dance Autobiographies
i. Relies
on ethos (you want to probably hear about a person with experience right?)
1.
Ex: Twyla Tharp Autobiography. Gelsey Kirkland
Autobiography.
ii. Pathos
is often used, otherwise you wouldn’t be able to relate or not relate with the
author(s).
1.
Past experiences
b.
Dance History Books
i. Educate
both dancers and non-dancers on the history of dance.
1.
Purpose was to create a book for this class.
There was no textbook before.
ii. Relies
on the ethos of the author.
1.
Example: Clouser’s Looking at Dance.
a.
No index was intentional! (Purpose)
3.
Choreography
a.
Process of Creating a Piece
i. Go-with-the-flow
1.
Mr. C’s process
ii. Structured-Outline
1.
Michael’s process
b.
Dance Technique
i. Helps
portray the feeling of the music (and possibly story if applicable).
ii. Often
uses pathos generated by music or specific images.
iii. The
purpose behind choreography is often portrayed in the choreography itself. And
if not, it is printed in the program.
iv. Visual
aspect is often more engaging than textual mediums.
v. Examples:
Con Spirito, The Unsung (costumes)
c.
Mime and Gesture
i. Helps
portray a story.
1.
(Sleeping
Beauty/ dancers doing particular gestures)
ii. Examples:
The Unsung
a.
Series of symbols used to record dance
choreography.
b.
Rely on people trained in Laban recording
(ethos).
c.
Symbols represent certain technical aspects
(logos)
d.
Audience: people who are dancers,
choreographers, or people who can actually translate Laban notation (not too
many).
e.
Purpose: to help store and record choreography
for future use.
f.
Being increasingly replaced by film.
5.
Resumes (Supplementing with Michael’s interview)
a.
Formatting is important for audience.
i. Items
often put in order of importance (ethos).
ii. List
title of piece, choreographers, and your role in the piece (ethos)
b.
Content of resume is altered depending on what
kind of dance job you will be applying for.
i. Example
resumes
1.
Ballet, jazz, modern, theater, etc.
6.
Closing Paragraph
All of the above forms of writing
and communication may seem rather unconventional compared to those in other
genres; however, their importance in the world of dance is extraordinary. For
instance, without having Laban technique, many of today’s famous dances might
not exist, or would not exist in their most true forms. Resumes are one of a dancer’s best tools in
an audition. An affective resume can
potentially cause you to be chose over another dancers in certain audition
situations. The choreography itself is
so important because it is such a foundation of dance. The process of using words and music to
generate movement that is communicable and can address everyday situations and
problems, to something that is purely for audience entertainment.
**Examples and Their Importance
1)
Gelsey
Kirkland and Twyla Tharp autobiographies:
One was one of the most famous ballerinas in perhaps the world. However, her life was rather tumultuous given
her many affairs and persistence drug usage.
Her book present a strong amount of pathos as well as ethos, as she goes
in depth on her the story of her career and personal life. The other is a world renown choreographer. She has worked with dance in so many
different mediums and genres. Her book
is incredibly detailed, and mirrors her style of choreography and her overall
nature.
2)
Mr. C’s
book Looking at Dance: Also shows structure of a book, but
uses less pathos than the autobiographies, since it is focused more on
presenting facts (logos). Somewhat like
the autobiographies, we do rely on ethos to some extent. Also interesting is that he did not include
and index in order to get his audience, UA students, to read the whole book and
not cherry pick parts.
3)
Con Spirito: Piece by Mr. C. No intended motive. Just reflects music and appears purley for
entertainment.
4)
The Unsung (clips): Famous modern piece by
Jose Limon.
Comments on the Native
American culture and how it is slowly dying out.
Each dancer and their solo represents a
chief.
Dance is done in complete
silence.
Pathos is definitely present.
The image of each dancer rolling off stage
symbolizing the disappearance is very powerful.
Costumes also, help with pathos in a visual manner.
Logos is also applied in describing
historical characters and events.
Piece
is very gestural.
The movements almost mimic
that of tribal dances.
The opening of
the piece is almost ritualistic.
5)
Sleeping Beauty: Classical ballet
piece by Marius Petipa. Employs classical
conventions (which will be pointed out in my video) and various spots of
miming. These miming elements help convey important aspects of the story to the
audience that the classical ballet vocabulary can not communicate.
6)
Examples of Laban Notation: Proves
that choreography can have a language other than just body motion. Uses extensive symbols shapes to record
choreography. Without it we would not
have several of today’s most famous dances.
7)
Resumes: I
have not gathered specific examples of these yet, but I plan con quickly
comparing different kinds of resumes.
Dance resumes vs. non-dance resumes, and ballet resume vs. jazz resume,
etc. It is important to show how
sequence and formatting are important in dance resumes. Ethos is greatly used. Audience is an important factor; a resume
must be adjusted to fit the dance job you are applying for.
