ellawithatwist

[ellawithatwist]

1) The origins were during the apartheid era in south Africa. The government had passed a law that didn't allow the workers to speak to each other, since originally they had used drums which were referred to as "talking drums", with that done, they came up with a different method in order to communicate with each other. By the  stomping of their gumboots, this was used as a type of Morse-code, which soon changed as a fight as well as a symbol of protest against the apartheid.

2) Gumboot and Indlamu are performed and closely associated with the Zulu culture

Read:

Dancing Through History - Gumboot / Indlamu / Step Dance Diaspora

http://artsemersonblog.org/2018/04/06/dancing-through-history/

Homework Questions: What are the origins of Step Dance in Africa?

What parts of Africa perform Gumboot and Indlamu?

[ellawithatwist]

The origins of the dance were done by the African slaves, when they began first with the drums, in order to communicate with each other, then after the drums were banned, they began with the dance, which is made of complex steps which are synchronized hand and feet movement, sharp and precise. Most of the time, this also includes chanting, verbal play and singing. The chants relate to history of the organization, or principals or even what they would be involved in. It is usually performed by fraternities or sororities including step teams.

Watch:

Many Steps - The Origin and Evolution of African American Collegiate Stepping

https://www.kanopy.com/product/many-steps

Homework Questions: What are the origins of Collegiate Step Dance How is it learned? Who performs it?

[ellawithatwist]

A change between the original and the re-setting would be the balancing of both sexes. Seeing as how both of them come together to unify, and be together rather than separate. It's more about being one rather than separate.

Read and Watch:

Original, Pina Bausch - Rite of Spring:

https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2017/10/11/pina-bauschs-rite-spring/

Pina Bausch The Rite of Spring - Rehearsals at École des Sables

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJWk1dzB_Mw

Homework Questions: What changes from the original performance to the re-setting of the work, Rite of Spring?

[ellawithatwist]

The movements do seem to be fluid at most part, but balancing each part of the body so that support is fully there, there is no pressure only put on a specific muscle or part of the body. The muscles in the body as well as the body parts are used equally rather than just one. The movements also may be used to express many emotions even if it's just an 8, 16, 23, 32 step movement.

Watch any five minutes:

Martha Graham Technique Class

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuCbs25LGh0

Homework Questions: Describe the movement of the dancers in class

[ellawithatwist]

Martha Graham: she innovated her technique by identifying a new style of movements that she had called contraction and release. This had been based on her own views that she had on the principal of tension and relaxation, of Delsarteans principle. Which then gave a type of hard and angular style that had been an opposite to the structures and movements that were smooth and bodily motions of Duncan and St. Denis.

Doris Humphrey: was a master in choreography, theoretician, as well as coining the technique "fall and recovery". She created a studio with Charles Weidman after performing in her first independent concert, which was names "the Humphrey-Weidman Studio and Company" in NY.

Her style of movements had been seen as unerring and into a large-scale of abstract.

Ruth St. Denis: at a young age St.Denis was performing, she had studied skirt dancing and ballroom. She had the influences of imagery and eastern spiritualism incorporated in her dances. Her dances were names "translations" since they were ethnically inspired movements that soon incorporated contemporary movements which then led to her becoming famous for the theatricality. The dances as they were also inspired from eastern spiritualism, had included the cultures and mythologies which where depicted from Egypt and India. In 1906, her dances evolved to giving equal portions of erotica, mysticism and voluptuousness.

In the late 1960's -1970's this is when modern dance took a turn into being more sophisticated in both technology and technique

Read:

A History of Western Modern Dance

https://artsintegration.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Modern.pdf

Homework Questions: Name three figures of Modern Dance What did they innovate in their techniques? What is Modern Dance? What years did it occur?

[ellawithatwist]

Through the Minuet dances, this was typically used in a style of courtship which would indicate a mating process between two people that was expressed throughout court society

allemande

Contredance was less conservative, unique and complex. This was a dance done by multiple people and it wasn't as constricting to two partners, therefore giving everyone a chance to take part in the dance.

This would relate to ballet because the dances were more of a theatrical styles and well as ballroom, as well as adding virtuosic steps and including specific actions that were appropriate to the character of the dancer at the time the music was playing.

Watch:

Baroque Classical Dance - Dancing Through Time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wlU4PP1eUI

Homework Questions: Describe two Baroque Dance styles What distinguishes one dance from the other How do these dances relate to Ballet?

[ellawithatwist]

1) Kealiinohomoku  troubles the privileges of western dance ballet by informing the readers that they have categorized ballet as belonging to only one type of nationality/status and therefore making it inferior if it is done by others outside the European countries. As shown in the text "Granted that ballet is international in that it "belongs" to European countries plus groups of European descendants in the Americas. But, when ballet appears in such countries as Japan or Korea it becomes a borrowed and alien form."

2) "Ethnic dance should mean a dance form of .a given group of people who share common genetic, linguistic, and cultural ties, as mentioned before." She calls it an ethnic dance because it is shared by many people of difference cultures. Regardless of their age, race, status, or cultural background, music is one and in a way they are connecting through music and through ballet making it an international language.

3) Ballet would relate to white supremacy due to the lack of agreement of communication in making dance as an equal. Apparently it is believed that  would have "belonged to European cultures" and if shown otherwise then it would have been seen strange and abnormal.

Read:

Ballet As an Ethnic Dance, JOANN KEALIINOHOMOKU

https://www.oberlinlibstaff.com/acceleratedmotion/primary_sources/texts/ecologiesofbeauty/anthro _ballet.pdf

Homework Questions: Joann Kealiinohomoku troubles our privileging of Western Dance and Ballet, why?

Why does she call it an ethnic dance? How does Ballet relate to white supremacy?

[ellawithatwist]

During the 20th century there were new forms of theatre that were used to serve as a platform for political reforms and patriotism. The type of style that Kawakami Otojiro, one of the important men in theatrical life, based it off kabuki, with a western influence. There was also an influence in Japan of the spoken theatre, huaju, that began in China. The interest for western drama grew to high demand in 1906, which were called shingeki, and was also at the start of Japan's Shakespearean tradition.

In 1909 a group called The Free Theatre was founded which included kabuki actors who were highly experienced and interested in the drama from the western society. Although there was a restriction for the freedom of expression and tightening of censorship before and during the second world war.

After the second world war, there was a domination of new media, movie industry and tv which also helped for there to there include variations of theatre such as traditional forms, experimental theatre, musicals, spoken theatre, western operas, ballet, etc.

There was also many things that were new to the traditional dance and theatre such as the all female Takarazuka Revenue, which was a modern butoh dance that changed and had an affect on the contemporary dances that were known in the west.

Read:

The 20th Century

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/the-twentieth-century-japan/

Homework Questions: What occurs in Japan in the 20th century that shifts culture? What changes in the culture of Japan’s entertainment industry?

[ellawithatwist]

Due to the geographic location of Japan, it had faced isolation from the rest of the world in early history. Although being in isolation There were periods in history where Japan was influenced by other sources such as the mainland. Coming to contact with china, later establishing and adopting forms from the Buddhist east as well as central Asia, they incorporating other things similar to them such as the gigaku mask theatre.  During the beginning f the 8th century, there was an expedition of monks and scholars that were sent out by Prince Shotoku in order to learn and master the ways of the Buddhist culture and in return bring manuscripts, instruments, masks among other things to Nara.

Read:

Dance and Theatre in the History of Japan

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/dance-and-theatre-in-the-history-of-japan/

What forms outside of Butoh are essential to Japan’s history? Why?

[ellawithatwist]

1. It is a form of dance in Japanese theatre that is compiled is different activities, techniques as well as motivations for the dance, performance and even the movements that are shown. Not only this, but it includes nudity, eroticism, sexuality and it can range from tender and soft to excessive and grotesque. The performers are also painted in white during the scenes and it can range from slow movements to rapid.

2.

Its development was a reaction of rebellion from the influences form the West in politics and culture. It was also developed to try to bring back the ancient ways of connection through dances, music and masks.

3.

Kazuo Ohno and Tatsumi Hijikata are two of the important figures that are mentioned in Butoh

Watch:

Butoh Dance - Body on the Edge of Crisis

https://www.kanopy.com/product/butoh-body-edge-crisis

Homework Questions: What is Butoh? How did it develop? Name two important figures to the form.

[ellawithatwist]

After the death of Mao Zedong, the cultural revolution comes to an end, although there was a great damage to the culture after so many performances were banned due to it not being sufficient enough during that time. Dance and other art forms change because the dramatists and other artists of theatre were able to be influenced by Western plays and incorporating them into the performances. After also going through traumatic decades in Chinese history the climate was more open.

Read and Watch:

After the Cultural Revolution

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/after-the-cultural-revolution/

What occurs following the Cultural Revolution? How does the meaning of Dance, and other art forms, change?

[ellawithatwist]

The cultural revolution was a way for the communist party of china to save communism by removing the remains of traditional and capitalist elements from the Chinese society. Jiang Qing was an important figure in the social awakening because after some of the performances had been banned, he created new aesthetics for the theatrical model operas, although instead of portraying them on social status and inner qualities, they were depicted on their class background.

Read and Watch:

The Cultural Revolution

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/the-cultural-revolution/

What was the Cultural Revolution? What artists are important figures in this social awakening? Why?

[ellawithatwist]

Spoken dramas occur in the shift of the 20th century to dance in China. Not only were spoken dramas, huaju, formed, but song dramas as well, which were known as geju and then dance dramas, wuju. What sparked this cultural awakening was that they wanted to find the solutions to the problems that were happening within their own society from the Japanese reform movement.

Read and Watch:

Chinese Theatre and Dance of the 20th Century

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/chinese-theatre-and-dance-in-the-20th-century/

What occurs in the shift of the 20th century to Dance in China? What causes this cultural awakening?

[ellawithatwist]

The Peking Opera was known as the "theatre of the capital" which was only known in the capital, but in the 1860's mobile troupes of performers had done the Peking Opera outside the capital. It was a written play that was like a working script rather than a piece of literature. The plots were abstract from the historical sources, and the authors remained anonymous and in most cases, it was written by the actors who preformed in the opera. Peking operas were divided in two groups which were "civilian plays"/wenxi and "martial plays"/wuxi. The civilian plays portrayed the everyday life stories which at times included love stories. The martial plays were historical stories and heroic battles that gave more of a patriotic emphasis. The characters that appear are sheng (male roles), dan (female roles) jing (painted faces) and chou (comic roles).

Read and Watch:

Peking Opera

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/theatre-of-the-capital-or-the-peking-opera/

What is the Peking Opera? What are the stories and characters that appear?

[ellawithatwist]

The empires of China were reflected in the dances they performed by the passion and emotion that was put in every style of dance; whether it be from ritualistic/shamanistic, to melancholic, to the fighting scenes. The performances were based on texts as well as visual sources that were kept. The empires of China had also been influenced by the Korean and Japanese culture, since they had close contact with the countries in early periods, their traditions were preserved as well.

Read and Watch:

The Early History of Chinese Theatre

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/the-early-history-of-chinese-theatre/

How were the Empires of China reflected in the Dance practices of the time? What kinds of dances and art were performed?

[ellawithatwist]

Early entertainers in Korean dance were called kisaeng. The innovations they offered were by creating compositions by modifying other styles of traditions; these forms of creations were called kyobang. The dances they have created are highly valued as well as "national treasures". Korean culture has changed because originally the dances were performed by women, but over time, men have begun to perform the dance as well.

The Early “Art” of Dances

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/the-dances-of-the-professional-entertainers-the-early-art-dances/

Homework Questions: Name an early entertainer in Korean dance. What were the innovations they offered to the entertainment industry? How did Korean culture change as entertainment became popularized?

[ellawithatwist]

The dances of Korean Shamanism were gut, and nanhaean pyolsin-gut.  The  dances are either private or individual ceremonies, Which usually target diseases and making sure there is longevity or creating a road to go easily into the afterlife; which that would be to a specific dead person. The  dances also ensures that there is a good harvest an luck. Ceremonies are usually aimed for the spirits or to ensure that luck will be bestowed to the village.  These forms changed overtime because they began more as ritualistic forms of dance but now have become more of the Fine Arts for theater.

Korean Shamanisms, Origins of Korean Culture

https://disco.teak.fi/asia/korean-shamanism-the-origins-of-indigenous-culture/

Homework Questions: What were the dances of Korean Shamanism? What was the purpose of these dances? How did these forms change overtime?