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Experts in a wide array of disciplines provide remarkable insight into the Alexander technique, the use of psychological gesture, period movement, the work of Rudolph Laban, postmodern choreography, and Suzuki training, to name but a few. Those who want to pursue serious training will be able to consult the appendix for listings of the best teachers and schools in the country. This inspiring collection is a must read for all actors, directors, and teachers of theater looking for stimulation and...

Dancing Mind, Minding Dance encompasses a collection of pivotal texts published by scholar and researcher Doug Risner, whose work over the past three decades has emphasized the significance of social relevance and personal resonance in dance education. Drawing upon Risner’s breakthrough research and visionary scholarship, the book contextualizes critical issues of dance making in the rehearsal process, dance curriculum and pedagogy in 21st-century postsecondary dance education, the role of dance...

This book provides a thorough analysis of terpsichorean lexis in Renaissance drama. Besides considering not only the Shakespearean canon but also the Bard’s contemporaries (e.g., dramatists as John Marston and Ben Jonson among the most refined Renaissance dance aficionados), the originality of this volume is highlighted in both its methodology and structure. As far as methods of analysis are concerned, corpora such as the VEP Early Modern Drama collection and EEBO, and corpus analysis tools such...

Communication is a fundamental human activity, and as much as 90% of all communication is non-verbal. Yet awareness of embodied intelligence in communication is rare. This book is the fourth in a series by interdisciplinary educator Andrea Olsen focused on embodiment. Through the exercises and readings in this book, we can deepen our relationship to ourselves and others and improve our communication skills, moving between worlds: inner and outer; self and other; self and Earth. Each of the thirt...

Ballet in Western Culture is a history of the development of ballet designed for dance history courses. After a brief discussion of the origins of dance through the middle ages, the author then traces the beginnings of ballet to Renaissance spectacle in Italy and the beginnings of ballet in France. In the second part of the book, the maturation of ballet as a style is studied, from the 1600s through the 1800s, in France, Russia, and other major European countries. Finally, the last part of the...

Destined to become a classic text and reference, "Dynamic Alignment Through Imagery" shows you how to use imaging techniques to improve posture and alignment and release excess tension. The book's 195 illustrations will help you visualize the images and exercises and show you how to use them in a variety of contexts. Part I of "Dynamic Alignment Through Imagery" discusses the origins and uses of imagery and includes 36 exercises that demonstrate dynamic alignment in practice. You'll explore the...

The process of beginning a career in dance can be intimidating and overwhelming. In choosing a school and a teacher, auditioning, competing, and signing a contract, a young dancer has to play many roles and make many difficult, life-altering choices. The older dancer faces a different set of concerns: dealing with the management and the press, navigating backstage politics, working through injuries, staying healthy, and eventually coping with the prospect of moving to a new profession. In ""The...

The training of elite dancers has not changed in the last 60 years; it is often only those that have survived the training that go on to have a career, not necessarily the most talented. It is time to challenge and change how we train tomorrow’s professional dancers. This book brings you the reasons why and all tools to implement change. 10 years ago, Matthew Wyon and Gaby Allard introduced a new pedagogical approach to training vocational dancers: Periodization. This ground-breaking new method...

This Guide provides the reader with a chronological survey of contemporary dance. It is studded with references to Internet sources to satisfy readers who may not have access to live performances. Rather than illustrating this book with photographs - Google, YouTube, Vimeo and similar sites have become the illustrators. Focusing on dance innovation from the late 19th century to today, this history provides the reader with accessible information on the major contributors to the art. Organized ch...

In the last few years, concerns about dancers’ health and the consequences of physical training have increased considerably. The physical requirements and type of training dancers need to achieve to reach their highest level of performance while decreasing the rate of severe injuries has awakened the necessity of more scientific knowledge concerning the area of dance, in part considering its several particularities. Scientific Perspectives and Emerging Developments in Dance and the Performing Ar...

Dances of José Limón and Erick Hawkins examines stagings of masculinity, whiteness, and Latinidad in the work of US modern dance choreographers, José Limón (1908-1972) and Erick Hawkins (1908-1994). Focusing on the period between 1945 to 1980, this book analyzes Limón and Hawkins’ work during a time when modern dance was forming new relationships to academic and governmental institutions, mainstream markets, and notions of embodiment. The pre-war expressionist tradition championed by Limón and...

Originally published in 1963 and authored by the then Editor of the Dancing Times, this was a pioneer work discussing not only the origins and development of many social dance forms from early times, but also relating these forms to their environment. As well as its role in social history, the book analyses the role of dance as a prime creative power in Renaissance spectacles which depicted and celebrated diplomatic, military and regal occasions. After a wide-ranging introductory chapter on the...