Washington College

Dance Program

About the Program

View Courses for Credit in the Catalog

The Dance Program offered at Washington College is designed to train dancers, choreographers, and performers with particular attention to artistry and proper anatomy and biomechanics. These are facets of dance that are viewed as mutually dependent and interactive. Fundamental to the training of the dancer is the building of the dancer's body; so the program includes technical training in a variety of dance forms as well as Pilates and yoga and work in improvisation, dance composition, dance history, and repertory.

Performances are an important part of the program, ranging in scope according to the student's abilities, vision, and needs.

A broad dance curriculum emphasizes both physical and cognitive skills and includes classes for academic credit in:

• modern dance,
• ballet,
• jazz,
• dance composition,
• dance history,
• tap dance
• musical theatre dance
• movement for actors.

Students may also take Pilates, Tai Chi, aerobic dance, and yoga for additional strength and conditioning of the body.

It is the goal of the program to teach vocabulary of dance movement and knowledge of factors that influence movement by introducing students to kinesthetic awareness and acquiring the fundamental skills of various techniques, developing creative potential through improvisation, developing awareness of tempo, meter, accent, and phrasing in movement, introducing spatial concepts and floor patterns. Students also are exposed to appreciation of dance as an art form by exploring the work of dance artists; viewing dance performances on video/dvd, film, and in live theater; analyzing movement ideas, and composing movement studies based on compositional ideas, musical, or dance forms; understanding musical terminology as it applies to dance; and developing musicality in performance.

The Dance Minor

The Minor Program in Dance shares a performing arts philosophy that courses in theory and history must be integrated with courses and experience in performance. Consequently, the study of dance within the context of a liberal arts education is designed as an important ingredient in the development of students for whom rigorous intellectual and artistic inquiry are inextricably linked. Critical thinking, creative imagination, intellectual and artistic collaboration, and development of aesthetic awareness and communication skills are integral components of the Dance Program. The balance of creative, cognitive, and kinesthetic courses locate the program firmly within the liberal arts tradition.

The Dance Program encourages students to indulge their passion for dance by combining a minor in dance with any of the major programs offered by the College or to incorporate dance into a interdisciplinary major of the student's own design. Within the dance minor the student will have the opportunity to develop and configure a personal program, matching that student's academic interests and goals with the requirements of the minor and the College. The Dance Minor offers coursework in dance technique, choreography, history and theory, production and performance. Course offerings strive to create an atmosphere of cooperative learning, group process, and camaraderie within a wide variety of dance traditions. The courses in the dance minor are designed to give the student an in-depth understanding of the art of dance and choreography, the field of dance scholarship, the science of mind/body integration, the craft of performance, and the management and problem solving skills necessary to produce creative work. The distribution of required courses in the minor program provides the student with an introduction to dance composition, history, technique, and theory and allows each student to direct study in the minor toward a specific area of interest. All students in the program will be encouraged to participate in technique and repertory classes each semester.

Dance Minor Requirements/Courses

Dance History, Dance Production & Performance, Dance Composition, and a minimum of three technique classes are required for the minor. A variety of electives are available to complete the minor requirement of 24 credits.

Category 1: History/Theory/production (10 credits minimum)

• Dance History I: Cultural Perspectives in Dance-DAN 203 (4 credits)
  or [one of these is required]
  Dance History II: Classical & Theatrical Dancing-DAN 204 (4 credits)
• Dance Composition-DAN 233 (4 credits)
• Dance Production & Performance-DAN 310 [up to 4 credits (2 credit class, which may be taken twice, 2 credits minimum, i.e., course is required at least once)

Category 2: Dance Technique Classes & Body Science (10 credits minimum, preferably over 3 semesters)

• Ballet I-DAN 113 - Beginning Ballet (4 credits)
• Ballet II-DAN 213 - Intermediate Ballet (4 credits)
• Ballet III-DAN 313 - Advanced Ballet (4 credits) (Advanced Ballet is required)
• Modern Dance I-DAN 227 - Beginning Modern Dance
• Modern Dance II-DAN 228 - Intermediate/Advanced Modern (4 credits) (required for minor)
• Jazz & Musical Theater Dance-DAN 106 (2 credits)
• Tap Dance-DAN 108 (2 credits)
• Ballroom Dance-PED 079 (1 credit)
• Pilates Mat-PED 019 (2 credits)
• Yoga-PED 025 (1 credit)

Dance courses that may be used for the College Distribution Requirement in the Fine Arts: Dance History I, II, Ballet I, II, III, Modern Dance I, II, III, Dance Composition, or both of the 2-credit courses: Jazz/Musical Theater Dance and Tap Dance (i.e. each is 2 credits, so both must be taken to equal 4 credits).