This course is an introduction to West African Mandingo dances. Additional instruction will include Afro-Caribbean as well as other African Diasporic techniques and dances. Students will learn the fundamentals of Mandingo dances through basic movement vocabulary and selected traditional dances. Students will have access to online resources; the course may include videos, lectures, readings, and discussions to give students a context for learning African dances.
In Burkina Faso, dance is community practice. Dance is about relationship – within our own bodies, with the earth, with others, with the world around us, both visible and invisible. That relationship is where rhythm takes place. Our role as dancers is to serve the spirit of the dance and all the relationships that go with it in creating our sacred space.
This class is an inclusive learning community and is respectful of all citizens in this class, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, or sexual orientation. Dance is a group activity. All the students have to be willing to work as a part of the community so that the group can successfully grow and produce.
Learning Outcomes:
1 Explore and utilize time, space, and energy in the execution and/or creation of a dance work.
2 Appreciate dance as an evolving art form as a performer and as an informed audience member.
3 Understand the cultural and historical significance of African dance.
4 Perform with kinesthetic, rhythmic, musical and intellectual sensitivity.
5 Execute traditional African dances with the appropriate technique and purpose.
6 Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge, well-developed technique, and cultivated self-discipline.
Delivery Method: Fully in-person
Corequisites: Dance or Drama Lab assignment if students sign up for 4 or more credits in dance.
Course Level: 2000-level
Credits: 2
M/W 10:00AM-11:50AM (Full-term)
Maximum Enrollment: 20
Course Frequency: One time only
Categories: All courses , Dance , Fully In-Person , Updates
Tags: African Dance , African Diaspora , movement