Humanities Arts Cultural Stu 0118 - Dancing Coalition: Contact, Partnering and Ensemble Improvisation

This course invites dancers and movers of all experience levels to dive into the bold work of moving together. Over the semester, students will learn techniques from contact improvisation, contemporary partnering, and ensemble improvisation. We will engage with dance artists who utilize these practices and view choreographic works generated through related inquiries. In dialogue with readings and audio materials (podcasts), we will ask how dancing together relates to community organizing, collective work, and building coalitions. While harmony and shared affinity may arise in our dancing, this course acknowledges that dancing together requires active-and sometimes difficult-negotiations between one's own aims and those of one's collaborators. Drawing on Bernice Johnson Reagon's theorization of coalition, we will cultivate spaces for discomfort, difference, and conflicting needs within our group practices. Personal practices for grounding in one's own body and environment will also be an essential component. keywords:dance, care, coalition, organizing, improvisation

Time and Narrative Field Trip fee: (mileage, admission fees, etc.):$35 Students should expect to spend 6-8 hours weekly on work and preparation outside of class time