THET608A

This seminar will investigate dance and performance as both a subject area and a mode of inquiry. We will investigate examples from contemporary choreography and performance, including a variety of concert and theatrical dance styles, and other movement practices. In conjunction with readings and discussions from dance history and theory, performance and cultural studies, we will consider different areas of the field of dance studies. We will address questions of subjectivity, location, audience, ommodification, conventionality, staging and the representation of ody politics. Students are expected to engage in critical viewing of dances and performances, conduct in-depth analyses of readings, participate in class discussions, give a presentation, and produce a final research paper.