Observation 8: Broward College performance

On April 10th, I was able to see a student dance performance at Bailey Concert Hall at Broward College across the street. The performance started at 8 pm. I was glad to be able to observe this performance. There were a total of four pieces, two of which were choreographed by Erin St. John. Another by a professor at BC. However, one was choreographed by a student. Well observing, I could definitely see the difference between professional dancers from college level student dancers. I definitely did see some great talent.
It was mostly a modern dance performance, but there was one ballet piece. The ballet piece was very original and I could see some modern in it as well. The dancers were all very together as they danced. It was very beautiful. On the other hand, the modern pieces that were performed were very intense I felt. A lot of movement was happening on the stage at one time, which always intrigues me. The costumes were subtle and calm, but the movement was not. It was obvious to me that the dancers had work very hard on these pieces and it was wonderful to see. I could also see the potential that was in their bodies. It is just important to continue to work hard and to train the body in the correct ways.

TTYL
~AMY~

Observation 7: Heather

On Wednesday, March 24 from 5:30-7:30, I was able to work with a group of five dancers. Heather, a Miami based choreographer was working with us to choreograph a seven minute piece for the Nova Dance Concert. During this rehearsal, we were running the dance for tech people. They had to do lights and sound for us. The fact that I was able to work with Heather for a couple of months helped me learn that it is important to adapt to the choreographer's style and their environment. I noticed that Heather was very intelligent and sometimes it was hard to understand what she was talking about because she would use words that I had never heard before. For example, she would tell us to use our "body half" or to let our bodies "inhabit our movement." I, as well as the other dancers, were not use to these words. We had to learn and adapt to her language. I also noticed that heather alway used words to choreograph more than actual movement. Of course, she would show us what she wanted, but mostly she would tell us and that allowed us to explore the movement and find it for ourselves. It was very different for me. Heather's choreography was very smooth and flowing all together and it took the dancers a while for their bodies to adapt. However, I felt that it was a much needed experience and I hope to have more like that. It is good to be put out of my comfort zone and "stretch" myself a little further. :) TTYS!!

~AMY~

Observation 6: Local-Motion

Ok, so I was able to see the performance Local-Motion: A Black History Month Celebration of South Florida Dance at Nova on February 27. Special guests included Elena Garcia, Jubilee Dance Theatre, Brazz Dance Theatre, Clarence Brooks, and Live in Color Dance Collective. It was a short, sweet performance. Although I did not like all of the performances, there were some amazing dancers that did perform. My favorite piece was called "Kayala", which was choreographed by Augusto Soledade and danced by Christane Silva and Liony Garcia from Brazz Dance Theatre. The reason I loved this piece so much was because it was so different than anything I had seen before. It was modern dance, but had very wild movement that seemed effortless to the dancers. If I am able to see movement performed that seems effortless than I know that the dancers are professionals. Because their movement seemed effortless does not mean that it was weak, but actually very strong action was made. I just could not take my eyes off of the movement. When I think about the action that is taken by professional dancers, I wonder how is it so possible? Body awareness must be so extremely important, because if tension is created and held in the body, then the body will not be able to move so freely. Also, lots of experience and practice, of course, is necessary. I really was glad to see that, learn from that, and experience that. It was really a joy to me. Talk to you soon!!

~AMY~

Interviews

Fortunately, I was able to interview two dance professors at Nova, whom I take classes with. Even though I know them as my professors, through the interviews I was able to learn so much more about them and dance as a career. After interviewing both of them, I learn how different the two professors are. Erin, the person I first interviewed, really focused on the education part of dance and how important it is to have something to fall back on in case dance did not work out. Elana, however, really focused on having faith in yourself and really just doing what you love and have passion for, which is dance. I learn that having a dance career in South Florida is challanging, because the dance community is quite small down here. It is very important to be involved in organizations and other dancers in the community (networking). I also learned that even though dance as a career may not always be finacially rewarding, it is emotionall and physically rewarding. Both of my professors spoke about different organizations that they are involved with (Florida Dance Association and Florida Dance Educators Organization).

Observation 5: Bill Evans Dance Company

-Saturday (Feb. 6th 8pm-9:30pm)
Tonight I was able to see a professional dance company perform at FAU's theatre. Bill Evans Dance Company is a modern dance company. They also performed with FAU dance ensemble, which consisted of the students who study dance there. The Bill Evans company had three dance pieces, all of which were very beautiful and exciting to see. Bill Evans, the choreographer, really just has a great way of working with his dancers and setting up a beatuiful piece of visual art. It was interesting to me, because through out all the performances you could really see the difference between the professionals and the students dancing. You could really just see the huge difference between the level of skill. The students were just not as good as the professional dancers. The first of the three pieces by Bill Evans was called "Impressions of Willow Bay", which was choreographed in (1978). It was a very beautiful piece danced by four strong dancers, two girls and two boys. They wore all white costumes. By watching them dance, you could tell they were very strong and there was just so much dynamic in their movement, which really grabbed you and pulled you in. There was a lot of work between all of the dancers and partnering which was greatly displayed. The dancers sensed each other on stage and worked with each other amazingly well. It seemed effortless and I just love how dancers make it look effortless, because that just shows how strong they really are. In reality, it is lot of work for them. All the movements really just flowed together so smoothly. The second piece called "What's Your Story? Morning Glory"(1974), whiched was danced by one male dancer, in all white. This was a really fun piece, because the dancer used a tennis racket as a prop, and that is definitely something you do not see a lot of. He used it really well and in a lot of unique ways. It reminded me a lot of a classic broadway jazz routine. The third one was called "Climbing to the Moon" (1997), which was danced by another male dancer. He was wearing a grayish costume. His movements were quick and tight, which takes a lot of strength to do, because you need to have that sharpness in the moves to be able to define the moves. He had a lot of energy.
I really enjoyed being able to observe dance professionals live on stage, doing what they do best. The performance quality was great and they did not hold back at all. You could just see the confidence a mile away. I think it is really important as a professional dancer to be able to get over your nervous and just enjoy the movement, because if you let nervous get the best of you then they will mess you up. I would really encourage everyone to see at least one professional dance show once in their life, because it really is a great experience.

~AMY~

Observation 4: Erin St. John

Thursday, Feb 4th (9:15-10:30)
Today, I took a ballet 2 with Erin St John, a dance professor at Nova. I really enjoyed her ballet class. The classroom setting was comfortable, unlike other ballet classes, which can be very tense at times. She teaches a lot through her words; although, she does demonstate at times. At a level 2 class, she expects much of her students. When she speaks in French terminology, she expects her students to understand. Of course, she does not expect them to know everything, then she would have no reason to teach. If you take her class, you will definitely be challenged. She pushes her students in order for them to gain the strength and stamina needed for ballet. One thing that I wish she would do more of is hands-on instruction. I noticed that she makes a point to put you in something that may be uncomfortable, but she knows that it will help you grow as a dancer. At the end of class, I asked her a few questions about teaching dance and a little bit about her professional career. I learned that she started teching when she was very young. At 13 or 14, she was an assistant teacher and she began to teach classes on her own while she was obtaining her masters. She told me that she loved teaching dance because it enabled her to carry on the traditions that she had learned from her teachers. Dance technique is an oral tradition that needs to be passed on from generation to generation. She takes pride in teaching students new to dance and seeing how far they come along. Later, she went back to school to get a degree in education in order to further her knowledge in teaching. She feels that in order to TEACH dance, you must know how to teach. Professional dancers may be great at dancing, but are they great at teaching it? There is a strategy for teaching dance and it is important to learn it. She also explained to me that while teaching it is important to sense the engergy in the class from the students, in order to get a feel of where the class should and should not go. You never want to push the students further than they can go. I was really glad to be able to speak with her and I learn a lot. :)

~AMY~ ttys

Observation 3: Dance and the Body

Wednesday, Jan 28th
Today, I had a great opportunity to listen as my professor, Elana, spoke to her modern 2 class (10:30am-12pm) about dance and the body. It was different today, because the students usually dance, but instead they spoke about the body. I noticed that it was a very comfortable setting among the students and they were able to speak their mind and state what they know and what they want to know about their own bodies. This discussion was about creating and finding the correct alignment of the body and also, learning how not to create unnecessary tension in the body. It was very interesting to me because I was able to learn that dancers tend to put too much strain on their body when it is not necessary. This means that in the long run, they are hurting their bodies. It is important for dance professionals to know about the body and how it works with all the bones and muscles. I thought this was really great for me to learn and apply to my own life now. Elana talked about the unnecessary tension dancers may put on their body really restricts all the true, full range of motion they can have. She did some hands on exercises for the students in order for them to experience it in their own bodies. I thought it was great of the professor to give hands on training for the dancers; I feel that is really important, because some things cannot be learned just by words alone. I hope that I may have another opportunity to learn more about this aspect of dance through my research.

~AMY~ ttys

additional thoughts to observation 2

I think the thing that surprised me and intrigued me the most was the fact the the professor just mostly stood to the side and watched the students. Even though it was surprising to me, I thought it was most interesting because I was able to realize that even though you may be a professional dancer and teacher, that observing your own students is very important and by watching them you can also learn about dance more and about each student's indivdual bodies, which is highly important when teaching. There was nothing disturbing to be about that aspect or any other aspect in the matter. The most boring thing to me was the fact that I was just watching the students work with each other, but really it was not all that boring because I liked to see how the students acted around and towards on another. My first and second observation was watcing Elana Lanzci, but I was able to see two different sides to her. In the first observation, I saw her really give hands on instructions to the students, while the second observation was her expecting much of her students in remembering the choreography from last semester and working with each other to help each other.

Observation 2: Reviewing Choreography

Wed. Jan 27, 2010
From 3-5pm, I was able to observe and watch Elana Lanczi review choreography to a piece that was performed last semester at Nova. The piece is called “Have Not” and the students were going to perform in for a little show that is happening on campus next Thursday. A lot of changes needed to be done to the piece because some of the students who performed in it last semester could not do it for the upcoming show. Originally, the piece had seven dancers, but now only has three, so there was a lot to be moved around and changed. Yesterday’s rehearsal was not the only one they will be having. I watched as the professor allowed some of the students to review what they remembered, correcting them along the way. It was a very relaxed setting, but stressful at times for the professor, because she was trying to figure out all that needed to be changed and fixed. It was interesting to watch because the professor sat back and observed the students working with each other. Of course, she would occasionally step in to make corrections and such, but she mostly stood at the side lines. I could tell that the professor expected the students to learn quickly and to move along. There was not a whole lot of rehearsal time; therefore, they needed to learn fast. The professor was always encouraging the students to keep at it and to focus on what needed to be done. The connection between the professor and students was very opened and comfortable, which I feel is extremely important. The relationship between the teacher/choreographer and the students is the key.
This was a nice observation, because I was able to see a different perspective of things. I learned that sometimes as a teacher, it is okay to stand back, watch the students and allow them to work with each other. This way the students may be able to learn from each other.

Teaching Dance: Modern 1

Hello, everyone! This is Amy Peters. I have chosen to study the subculture of dance teachers. I am a Nova student who is studying dance, and I really think this will be very helpful for me, because I hope that someday I will be able to teach dance at all levels. Dance is my passion and I want to share it with others.
Tuesday, January 19th at 2:30, I observed a modern dance 1 class taught by Elana Lanczi. She is a professor of dance at Nova Southeastern University. She was very kind to let me observe and take notes. Before the class began, I watched as each student wondered in from previous classes. I could tell that this was a very diverse group of students. Some students seemed nervous while others did not. I sensed a very relaxed and comfortable setting. Everyone sat down while the professor took the attendance and pointed out several important things. Today was a special class because they were going to move the class to the performance theatre, which is a lot bigger, in order for photographers to take pictures. Certain students seemed a little worried about the situation, but the professor explained that it was only for record and was not going to be published. The area in which they danced was large, which is very good because there were many students. As I watched the class continue, I paid close attention to the professor as she taught. It was obvious to me that she had control of the class and the students seemed very attentive. She had a professional approach to the class, making sure that the students had their hair tied back and jewelry off. There was not much dialog except if the students had questions, but other than that the professor was doing all the talking. The instructor was very specific to the details of the movements and really broke it down for all the students to understand. Not only did she speak the instructions, but also demonstrated them, which I feel is very important especially for a level one class. She also had hands on corrections for the students in order for them to completely understand and be able to correct themselves later on. The professor was very encouraging. She walked around the class while the students would do the movement and she would make corrections where needed and encourage the students. This way on student was left out. She acknowledged everyone. She challenges the students by making the combination faster or slower. She opened up the floor in order for the students to explore movement, which allowed each student to add personality to each movement.
Overall, the atmosphere was fun and comfortable. I felt that the professor was very approachable. I thought that observing the class was very good for me and I learned that it is very important to have confidence as a teacher; therefore, you will be able to have control of the students, which is very important. Also, I learned the importance of having fun and enjoying the time with the students and also being available and patient with them. Dance does not always come easy to everyone.