Reflections
DAN211 was a class unlike any I have ever taken before. I have learned many things throughout this course, such as how there are various ways that you can express yourself through dance. It can be any simple movement, anything that you want it to be. I also learned how important it was to breathe and connect your breath with your dance movements. Additionally, I learned a lot about several important people in the history of dance, such as Laban and how he was the father of modern dance influenced by expressionism.
We also learned about Wigman’s approach, The Green Table, Duncan’s moves, etc. Every topic was unique, taught me something new, and reinforced the idea that dance can be portrayed any way you desire. Growing up, I was never used to these fundamentals. I always felt very restricted in my choreography. The course has taught me that there is no one-way street when it comes to dance, instead it can be customized to the dancer’s interpretation more freely.
After taking the course, I find myself to be more flexible. I feel like I can do some of the stretches a lot easier now than I could at the beginning of the course. Also, every time I left class, I would feel more energized and healthier. My brain and body felt refreshed and I was ready to take on the rest of the day. I am definitely going to keep up the stretching and incorporate the movements into my daily routine. I did not find the course challenging at all, rather, I found it relaxing and fun. I loved working with my group on our dance. We got to share our ideas and work together to create a great piece.
In the future, I plan to be a business woman working in the financial services industry. I can incorporate what I learned in class into my field of study by doing the stretches that we learned in class before starting my day, and also during my breaks. When working in the financial industry, it is very important to incorporate movement into your daily routines because most of the time you are stationary in a chair staring at the computer screen all day. By moving your body around and stretching several times throughout the day, this will refresh your mind and body and give you more energy to keep working. I will also utilize the breathing exercises we learned in class on a daily basis because I believe it is very important to stop what you are doing at least once a day and take the time to breathe and meditate.
2
More Confident
Alexia Lozano
For me, Dance 211 was a class where I could be myself and learn how to do this in front of others. I have always been slightly shy in class since I was younger and this class allowed me to follow a learning path to become more outgoing and understanding. I not only took away a new physical understanding of the class but an emotional understanding of dance as well. it is a movement that not only looks nice and interesting but helps you to internally feel the emotions and actions you are portraying within the movements and steps.
During the learning process, I was slightly hesitant to open up and move freely in front of people that I did not know. It took me a while to not only become comfortable with others while dancing but to be comfortable with myself and be open and free to those movements. I did feel slightly frustrated at times as modern dance is a new technique and style of dance that I have never experienced before but I eventually was able to learn to become happy and relaxed while doing my choreography. With the group dance, I felt more closed off and scared but eventually realized that we are all in the same place and opened up. This class helped me fully immerse myself in a new style of dance and overcome any shyness I had in the class.
In the future, this class has helped both my physical and mental health. I was able to physically be more active in my daily life, as well as, continue to constantly stretch my body and muscles in a healthy way. The daily warm-up has also helped my balance and my overall flexibility. This will be helpful in my future to continue as it is a good habit to have as you age to properly stretch your muscles and keep your mind and body active. As a nursing major, I will be active a lot and will have to learn to stretch on breaks and give my body breaks. I also gained a lot of new self-confidence through this class that I will take with me to the outside world and be more confident in life and school and my future career.
3
A Lot of Creative Freedom
Trudi Fleishman
Initially, I enrolled in DAN211 with the goal of having a fun course in my schedule to finish out my college experience. I also took dance classes growing up, which was a significant part of my childhood. While I claimed I “retired” from dance, I was excited to get back into it as a way to change up my weeks. One thing this class truly showed me is that there is no “retirement” from dance or one-way street to what dancing looks like. Dance does not mean having the perfect technique, but rather about the story being told and the emotions conveyed in the choreography. Dances look different to everyone and can be interpreted in their own way, which I gained a greater realization about through DAN211. I always thought that dance was pointless without dance class, but I’m so happy that dance can be something I continue to engage in, whether it be in a structured or unstructured way. Aspects such as stretching or gym zumba classes can be integrated into my daily life in new ways.
The learning process was very different from a typical dance class. This class allowed me a lot of creative freedom, which I was not used to. Growing up, I was always given structured choreography to mimic rather than finding movements that felt best to me. Although we say we dance in a kinesphere, I feel like this course brought me out of the stereotypical “kinesphere” I felt I was trapped in with dancing. It took me some adjustment to become comfortable with this learning process because dancing in front of others with your own movements can be awkward and almost embarrassing at times during the introductory period. However, with time I was able to open up and embrace the learning process we were given. The learning process was also made comfortable because everyone embraced it as well, which allowed for a more open classroom where I could express myself.
Currently, I am finishing up my studies in Marketing, Finance, and Management. I never truly thought about how these related to modern dance, however there are many similarities. One aspect of marketing that is important is brand storytelling, and modern dance applies storytelling through movement. I can bring these emotions I was about to visually convey in DAN211 into my marketing career by allowing myself to truly open up and embrace the feeling of the room. Sometimes it can be hard to sell a product or connect with a customer without the core emotions and candid moments, and this is something DAN211 has helped me with when communicating with people. Also, since I will be presenting in front of others often, I will absolutely use my new and improved posture techniques that we learned through aspects of meditation and feeling the surroundings! I am going into a very business-oriented career, as I am working at a bank, therefore work-life balance plays a big role in my area of study. I hope to use dance as an outlet to improve my physical and mental health, ultimately making me a better and more motivated worker. Overall, this course really inspired me to think in new and creative ways that changed my outlook on what movement can look like both physically and emotionally.
4
I Felt Happy
Jiacheng Zhou
Time flies. I feel that it has been just a while since the semester began, and now here comes to the end of the class. Dance 211 gives me a different perspective to interact and feel myself. Physically, I have learned many other dance techniques, and I know how to stretch my body in a very fresh way. Also, I get the chance to have a glance at what Butoh represents within the context of modern dance and its many eastern influences. I also understood Tai Chi a little more, which I didn't know very well even though I used to see old people do Tai Chi in the park in front of my house for many years. In addition, I am so excited to study the African movements, conveying so much enthusiastic emotion relating to daily working life and modern dance training.
During the learning process, psychologically, the professor and my colleagues taught me many lessons on how people can interact with each other with the help of dance. I feel that I can get closer to people through dance. I could not imagine that in the past when I did not even dare to start to talk to others because I thought there was no need. But I felt happy after I gradually got to know people better and better through our class.
In the future, Although I won't be participating in formal dance training, the knowledge I've acquired in this class will unconsciously benefit me. I will try to understand my body and my mind and, at the same time, remember to take the pressure off myself and respect my inner voice. At the same time, I will go back to taking the initiative to communicate more with others, even if, at first, these would seem to be a strange situation. Still, as long as one has a sincere heart, as I have felt it in class, eventually, friendship will naturally emerge. I will also continue to use the stretching methods I learned in class to free myself from my sedentary life.
5
Past Basic Movements
Trishika Gupta
Joseph Contillo
One of my biggest takeaways from Modern Dance Il is that dancing is a way for us to freely express ourselves in whatever way we please. We need to free ourselves from all of life's distractions and temptations in order to fully be present in the moment. When you are not 100% there mentally on the dance floor, it will show in your flow of movement. Clearing your mind and letting your body do as it pleases really is such a freeing experience. I notice that everyone's flow of movement is different in their own way and we all have our own unique take on what we deem as a beautiful piece of work.
I felt very hesitant at
the start of this learning process. I love to dance but have never taken
any real lessons or classes for it. I feel as if I slowly
became more connected with my mind and body in terms of my flexibility
and freedom to move my body. I noticed as the weeks went by, that my
confidence to dance in class and in front of people dramatically
improved. I noticed that I was in my head too much at the start of
Modern Dance Il and it was
holding me back from my full potential. Dance is such a beautiful way
for us to freely express ourselves and it's a time to let ourselves
go. Thinking about anything else will only take away from your
performance and how much you can actually resonate with any type of dance or movement your are trying to achieve.
Moving forward, I know for sure I can take some valuable lessons
from Modern Dance II and apply them to my future career. I will be
graduating in two weeks time and will be entering the field of sales for
the tech industry. While dance may not seem to connect with anything to
do with the outside world, especially business sales, I now see that it
for sure can be connected to all aspects of our lives. For example, I
notice that I get distracted many times in my day to day tasks due to
having such a constantly thinking, loud mind. Thinking about the past or
dreaming about the future will only hold you back in life. The only
thing we are guaranteed in life is the present moment and that is the only
place we should be. I know that for me to be the most successful
salesman, I need to hone in everyday of my life and mentally be all
there so that I can showcase my full potential and what I'm truly
capable of.
7
Freedom and Happiness
Mia Atrio
Dan 211 has been an amazing class and I definitely will be recommending it to others. I have gained an immense amount of knowledge from this class. I now realize how important it is to remain in tune with your body. I have begun to do some sort of stretching every day. The warm-ups at the beginning of class were always something I would look forward to. After warming up and stretching, my body I always felt better. This class has inspired me to try and accomplish a split by the end of the year.
Another takeaway I have come to learn is that dance does not always have to be perfect. Showing your emotion and putting something together that is powerful can help make your dance beautiful. I feel as if the learning process in this class was great. Anything that we were instructed to perform, the professor would do first to show us that it was possible. I really liked this aspect of the class as I am a visual learner. This class gave me the freedom to perform in front of others and really grew my confidence. Before this class, I did not understand the concept of “dancing in your own kinesphere” but now I do.
The topics about The Green Table and Isadora Duncan’s moves were probably two of my favorite topics we covered. Fascinating videos always supplemented what we learned and everything we were taught was so unique would definitely apply some of the things I learned into my own field. For example, as a soccer player it is crucial to stretch before any games or practice so that you do not pull anything.
I have begun to do the same warm up we learned in class, before going out and playing soccer. It has helped me greatly to feel better prepared and stretched before I get onto the field. Also, with everything I do in life I will always be present and put in my full emotion to whatever I am doing just as I have learned to do when I dance. Overall, this class made me feel free and brought me a lot of happiness.
8
A Sense of Belonging and Ease
Rose Satriale
In this class, I have learned
everything from the historical types of music and associated dance to the way
to express your body emotionally and freely in modern dance. I learned that
there are ways to express emotions through movement that can cure anxiety
disorders. I did not know before that there was a sense of communication
involved in dance. Although it is nonverbal, those interested in the arts
communicate stories through moving in a cinematic way. This is a form of
emotional healing and self-expression, ultimately fulfilling a basic human need
in a natural and peaceful manner.
At a young age, I had learned the importance of communication in all forms. Growing up with a profoundly disabled brother and witnessing his difficulties with natural flow have taught me a lot about the art of negotiation with people. Without his ability to communicate with the spoken word, I had to develop a keen understanding of people's needs. Navigating the variety of pressures and the emotional toll upon an entire family had forced the ability to find different ways to communicate.
When relating dance and communication to my brother, I can easily apply the material learned to a better understanding of how this may help certain individuals in therapy. My brother uses music and dance as a way to express his current emotions, and I now notice his level of frustration through the way he moves his arms. Having a passion for art, music, and dance especially can be used in connecting people with similar problems.
I primarily learned the importance of warmups on a daily basis, applicable to more than preparing for dance. Warmups are a way to rejuvenate the mind and body and recenter to focus for any type of task. Moving the body releases endorphins necessary for certain physical and mental exertion. The universal warmup for dance and sports is stretching, but warmups can range from slow yoga to fast paced cardio. The productivity that follows a warmup is higher than going into a dance or task straight off the bat.
Through raising your internal body temperature, your heart rate also raises and increases the blood circulation to your brain and body muscles. Better circulation means more focus and higher mobilization in your joints. In addition, warming up prevents injury from occurring and allows the body to move more freely in dance. Last semester, I began to invest my time in yoga. Although I have not been this semester, the warm ups in class reflected some of the movements I learned in yoga. Our class did not use music for our warmups, which led me to become distracted at times by other classmates. I never went to yoga with friends, so I felt that it was difficult to center my mind towards breathing and the movements.
Group activities engaged me the most and taught me the importance of collaboration, understanding, and synchronization. The dance creation aspect provided me with a cohesive group to rely on, as well as a sense of belonging and ease. Cohesion provides togetherness and connection through mirroring each other's movements. I learned that the overall energy of the group needs to move in a rhythm to the music, which centers the group by bringing them back in touch through following a beat.
Navigating
group work in a dance setting involves similar, if not the same characteristics
that are necessary in the business world. In the future, I will be working in a
business position, which requires group efforts. In order to understand how to
communicate within the group, I will need to apply all of the group therapy
processes. will be utilized as I enter the business world because I will be
constantly collaborating with partners on projects.
Lastly, learning more about meditation and the exercise that we have practiced are going to be helpful in managing my stress and anxiety in my future career. I had begun the practice of meditation throughout the pandemic, and this class has emphasized the importance of incorporating it into my everyday life. It also introduced the idea of meditating and stretching my body in a work setting to prepare for strenuous tasks and events.
9
Simple Gestures that Describe Emotion
Deeya Roundtree
It was interesting to learn about modern before the modern dance pioneers that I learned about. I was use to hearing about Ruth St. Denis, Ted Shawn, Martha Graham, Jose Limón, and Alvin Ailey. I was expecting a class similar to other modern classes I’ve taken where we went through different techniques such as Horton and Graham, but instead this class gave me more information onto how those techniques even came to be. Without Laban and his kinesphere modern dance would not be what it is today, and we most likely wouldn’t have strayed away from ballet roots.
I plan to have a career in dance and sports medicine. Since this is a dance class and I do teach students at studios I would be able to teach them things I took away from this class. I could teach them different dance theories and forms that we’ve learned, such as expressionism, in order to enhance their own dancing abilities. When it comes to physical therapy this class has showed me the importance of working in a group and making sure everyone is being held accountable. It has helped me with my leadership skills as a whole.
10
A Look Back at the Semester
Maddy Carter
Taking DAN 211 taught me so much about creativity, movement, and health. One of the key points that will stay with me is the significance of breathing during movement. Specifically, in class when we closed our eyes during certain exercises, I realized the importance of focusing on working through the movements without getting distracted. Additionally, this class taught me about kinespheres and creativity. By choreographing in our kinespheres during class, I gained a deeper appreciation for individual expression. In past dance classes I took in high school, the main emphasis of the class was usually to follow the teachers’ choreography, so DAN 211 was an exciting opportunity to work on my own sense of style.
In the process of taking this class, I learned a lot about influential leaders in modern dance. For example, I was not aware of Laban or Isadora Duncan prior to taking this course. In addition to my knowledge improving, my performance skills improved as well. I was slightly hesitant at the beginning of the course because it had been a few years since I had danced, but the welcoming nature of the classes encouraged me to get outside my comfort zone and try new exercises. Even when the class was on Zoom, I was still able to learn a lot from the warm-ups at the beginning of our classes as well as the videos and discussion boards.
Moving forward, I will apply what I learned from this class in my own field of study: Marketing. One of the key components of marketing is creativity, and this class challenged me to think in unconventional ways. For example, when we choreographed phrases for our group piece and then changed the movements to fit different specified prompts, we had to look at our work in a different way. This re-imagining of our dance showed me the importance of taking a step back from projects to rethink certain aspects and come up with even more innovative solutions. I thoroughly enjoyed this course; thank you for an amazing semester!
11
A new perspective on Dance
Valery Truong
I have always been enjoying dance as a hobby throughout my life. Since I was young, I have been practicing and taking dance lessons on and off. However, DAN 211 was a different experience for me. It was not just about technique and improving the moves. It was about putting feelings into the dance and embodying the emotions of the dancer. Besides, I have learnt the process of creating my own dance using my creativity, which I have never done before. I used to always learn a choreography from someone else instead of being able to create my own moves, so this was a new experience for me.
I think the class taught me a valuable lesson about being authentic and embracing myself, not only in dancing but also in connecting with other classmates. I also feel less afraid of creating authentic, yet not-so-beautiful, movements in order to communicate my story. With the transformation and knowledge gained from the class, I look at dance with a new perspective. I seek to understand the emotions and meanings of movements instead of just appreciate the beauty and gracefulness of the piece and the dancers. This allows me to enjoy dance on a whole different level.
One thing I think will stuck with me a long time is the stretching techniques, which I never knew about before. I felt more connected to my body when I stretched, which is something that I will definitely continue to do in the future. I hope to practice stretching more to improve my flexibility. This course also helps me appreciate my ability and freedom to move and to be flexible, which I have sometimes taken for granted. As an upcoming PhD student, I will take more time to train and take care of my body. With the stretching exercises learnt from the course, I can prevent injuries and improve my flexibility. This course gave me a lot of motivation to keep my body in good shape and condition, because being able to move is the most important and often forgotten kind of freedom. I am truly thankful for this experience.
12
Enhancing My Understanding
Krystal Shi
In this past semester we had lectures, dance practices, different ways of warming up, videos for background information, group dances, and solo pieces built up. Then, we had the rehearsal at the very end of this semester in front of everyone in this class. This is not the first time I take Morejon’s class. the reason I took this class is because I wanted to spend my last undergraduate semester in his class since I’m graduating, and I may go back to my country after my graduate school. So, I will have less chances in the future to come back to the U.S. and visit all my professors. But this class will really give me good memories in this semester. Everyone was just so nice and worked so well as a whole.
I really liked this class with my classmates and Mr. Morejon. For the warmup part, we have several ways to do each time, like working on the floor, or did them in a circle not faced with the mirror, instead we can see each other in the circle. I had very deep memories of the ‘Taiji’ movements because it is originally from China where I come from. In my country, most of the time, the Taiji only will be used by elders. I was not thinking I could have the chance to study the Taiji and the ‘Qi’ in a U.S. dance class. But I think this is great because this indicates other people, modern dance pioneers included, have been trying to understand and study our culture and history. It is nice that people in this world communicate and study through each other’s cultures.
I learned a lot during this semester in regards to my own field of studies which in psychology and biochemistry. Both fields focus on human development. In psychology, dance and music therapy have been used to improve for patients' health. In biochemistry's view, especially the epigenetics, the environment, and the gene both work as important parts for creature evolution. Dance and music are necessary for human development and mental recovery in some way. I believe what I learned from this class did help me enhanced my understanding of my field of study. I hope everyone can be happy and stay save in the future. Hope we can keep connected no matter where we will live in the future.
13
Moving in an Unrehearsed and Unchoreographed Manner
Olivia Davis
Throughout the semester, DAN 211 has taught me an abundance of new perspectives on dance. Having been a competitive dancer my entire life, I had a large interest in taking this class. In the competitive dance world, formal ballet training is necessary, as well as always keeping a tight core and trying to have perfect technique. This class took all of that away from me and allowed my body to move in an unrehearsed, unchoreographed manner. Laban’s choreutics taught me how to move my body in the form of a shape, while using my personal kinesphere. Using a kinesphere taught me how to more effectively use spatial awareness while dancing.
Within a free movement style class like this one, my body was actually able to feel something through the movements I was doing. Being able to pick the moves that came from my body gave me a sense of comfort, and made the movements feel more raw and grounded. Using emotions while dancing is a big part of why I enjoy it so much. It releases unwanted tension and connects me to how I’m feeling.
Dance and criminology are two totally different fields of study, yet they definitely share some similarities. Performance is just one of the ways these fields relate. Performance is a key component to dance and is probably one of the most exciting times for a dancer. Through any type of performance, whether it relates to dance or a job, it is important to sell yourself to the audience or present the most accurate information.
14
https://kimberlyjonas.com/bodymantra/
More Comfortable in My Own Skin
When I first enrolled in DAN 211, my goal was to reconnect with dance. I danced for a majority of my childhood and really missed it so I was so excited to learn about modern dance. This class taught me how to be comfortable in my own body and how to express my emotions through my movements. It also taught me how to enter my own kinesphere and block out my surroundings so that I can truly express myself and not worry about what I looked like in the mirror. In addition to this, I really enjoyed learning about dance techniques that helped shape how people think of dance today. Another thing I loved about this class was the freedom we had to truly be ourselves with no judgements. At the beginning, I was nervous to dance in front of everyone, and I would always judge myself when we had to come up with new phrases for our solos. As the class went on, I began to relax more and feel more comfortable exploring dance and all of the new things we were learning.
At first, I did not trust myself and found myself constantly changing the first few phrases of my solo because I wasn't confident in myself and the movements I was creating. As time went on, I began to feel more comfortable in my own skin and eventually stopped criticizing my solo. I became more confident and started to embrace all of the new dance styles we were learning instead of feeling self conscious and unsure of my movements. Warming up and doing all of our exercises before we danced also helped me learn because the time we took to warm up helped me disconnect from everything else that was bothering me or going on during the day. It helped me focus solely on dance and helped me connect to my body and the movements I was forming my dances with.
This class will help me a lot in the future because it taught me how to express myself and how to connect with people more. Before this I never thought dance would help me express my emotions, but this class has definitely proved me wrong. All of the breathing exercises we did will also really help me in the future. I am an economics major and plan on pursuing a career in the business world after college. I will definitely utilize the breathing techniques we learned in stressful situations like interviews or presentations I will have to give in my remaining years in college. The breathing exercises have also helped me mentally take a break from my day whenever I feel overwhelmed or overly emotional. These exercises really help me put things into perspective in life and also help me balance my mental health and school.
15
Beautiful Motion
Shun Wang
I think the most important thing I learned in this class was breathing and stretching. Breathe in and out to adjust your body and focus your mind. In addition to a series of stretching exercises, my body shape and function have been greatly improved.
I think it is necessary to make some funny movements during the creation process. It is like the exaggerated gestures one makes when one is drunk. Those are the acts of inner freedom. These actions can fully express one's inner thoughts.
I am a graphic design major. I will add those exaggerated beautiful dance movements into my art design. Those exaggerated and free dance moves I could not imagine before. Only those who have experienced this course can draw beautiful motion.
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https://play.anghami.com/playlist/161330306
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https://www.pinterest.com/pin/ashkan-roayaee-on-instagram-freeform-movement-is-an-incredible-escape-from-tradition-expression-using-classic-techni-in-2022--744642119651043432/
The Beauty in Free Expression
Chase Finizio
Dance 211 surprised me in many unexpected ways. I have been a gymnast my
whole life, yet never stepped foot in a dance studio. This caused me to
feel anxious that I would not be able to perform in class as well as
the rest of my peers. Flexibility, graceful movements, and choreography
would hang above my head, never allowing me to experiment in a dance
class. However, this class changed all my beliefs. There was no judgment
in the studio and no topic covered that I couldn't comfortably explore.
Whether it was Laban’s choreutics with body and breath connectivity or
the introduction of levels, I never felt overwhelmed. I began to see
dance in a new light.
Throughout the learning process I did
doubt myself, but that doubt is what caused me to push through. I wasn’t
sure that I would be able to use all these new skills to express
myself. New concepts such as a personal kinesphere, left me baffled at
first. I thought to myself, how could dance be so free and non
restrictive? I had always seen ballet dancers struggle on pointe and be
stretched till their body quite literally broke. Once I retrained my
mind to look at dance in the way that our professor had
taught us, I began to see the beauty in free expression.
I would
apply what I learned in this class to the writing aspect of journalism.
One of the main appeals of journalism as a profession is the freedom
these writers have to state their opinions, no matter who it affects. In
many ways that connects to how we learned to dance. There were no
strict rules, restrictions or guidelines. It was a studio of wandering
brains in the best way possible. As a journalist I would hope that I can
do the same. I can stand up for what I believe in even as unfiltered as
it may be.
18
A Cohesive and Energetic Environment
Chloe Glennon
I have several takeaways from DAN211, both in terms of dancing and also in life. This class made me realize the importance of moving your body to help both your body and your mind. I learned the importance of being free and expressing my emotions through the movements my body could conduct. I learned that mentally, it is so important to have the mind and body connect in order to reduce stress and anxiety.
One thing that I learned which stuck out to me was the importance of a warm-up. Even after a few minutes of warming up, I was able to feel my body become more relaxed and calm, which is a take-away and lesson I will carry with me for the rest of my life. If I ever start to get anxious, I will practice the warm-ups. I also learned the importance of moving your body to express emotions in terms of being able to take any sort of excitement or anxiousness and get it out through dance and movement.
The learning process was very rewarding and I finally learned that learning can be fun! I learned so much during this process and was able to feel thankful for the experience I had. I came into class with some friends, and met more friends along the way. The classroom was a cohesive and energetic environment, which is the type of learning environment in which I thrive in. I also felt thankful for learning how to properly stretch, warm up, dance, and cool down. I learned about movement in the kinesphere, and all different types of dances, which we incorporated into our group and solo phrases.
My field of study is Business Law, and it can be very technical and strenuous with lots of readings and writings. I think I would use what I learned to relieve stress and allow for my creative side to shine through. During a work day at a desk, it is important for your mind and body to move in order to get blood flow through your body and to alleviate all sorts of anxiety. Additionally, if I had a major call or client meeting, by moving before it helps to wake your brain up. I think I will apply my warm up and cool down to every stage of my life.
19
Finding a Balance
Katy Hylton
For 12 years I have committed myself to dance as a sport and an art. At my peak, I would tire myself out endlessly and consistently gave myself expectations that were higher than I could realistically achieve. As my career began to decrease and I started taking dance more lightheartedly, there was still an expectation to be great. In a setting where everyone else is pushing you to be better, there is a very competitive mindset that is not necessarily the healthiest.
As I entered this course, my mindset immediately shifted. I have never fully enjoyed being notable, even in a good way, and I don’t enjoy putting myself in a position where I set high expectations for myself that I might not be able to achieve. Going into our class, I figured the easiest thing to do was to match the abilities of the rest of the people in my class, as standing out really wasn’t my goal.
For the first couple of weeks, I tried my hardest to blend in and not let some of my abilities show in the interest of working through the class without having higher standards for my own work. However, as we continued to progress in the class, I saw my mindset shift. I began to express myself freely without limiting my skills to my classmates, yet I refused to keep the mindset of the competitive dancer I have been for over a decade.
I learned how to move freely with content for your own abilities wherever they lie, without feeling a need to either stand out or blend in. Creating the solo piece meant a lot for me because while I have always loved choreographing my own work, it was always a terrifying experience as it would be met with a lot of harsh but constructive criticism and judgment in the competitive world. Seeing that dance can be used in a purely loving light was so influential in how I will continue to dance for the rest of my life and has given me a new love for the art.
This class will impact not only how I view dance, but how I view my career as well. As someone who was always brought up with expectations, I used to do a lot of things for someone else's approval. I'm currently majoring in entrepreneurship and hope to go into nonprofits in the future, and the thought of applying the mentality I learned during this class into that field will change my outlook on work and success. This class emphasized success as the act of doing your best work while being proud of your accomplishments and deconstructed the negative mentality of creating standards and expectations. I will continue to take that mindset with me out of this course, and will use it in every aspect of my life.
20
Heard, Relaxed, Focused and Supported
Isabel Nakash
When I decided to sign up for Dance 211 I was looking forward to being in a class where I could forget about the stress of being a senior in college. Throughout the semester, I have grown in many ways. At first, it was really hard for me to sit still, focus and actually take the class seriously. One of my biggest challenges I have with college courses is focusing on whats being taught and actually caring about it. Without a doubt, this was the first class in college where I felt heard, relaxed, focused and supported. Although I took this course with some of my closest friends, there was never a class where I did not have fun. Weather is was stretching, creating dances, laughing with my classmates or learning about the history of modern dance, there was never a dull moment.
During each class, my professor always made sure I was in focus. Right away, he was able to spot that I had trouble with it. Professor's comforting and calming energy made me believe that I was capable of thriving in the course. As the weeks went by I became more in tune with myself and actually wanted to use the dance class as a way to cope with my anxiety and ADHD. While working with my group who were complete strangers I learned that we all were using the class for the same reasons. It really helped me connect with them on a deeper level and form friendships. Although I was not the best dancer in the group, they made me feel that I was. This helped me build the confidence to preform our group dance.
When I graduate and enter the real world, I will be using the tools that I learned in Dance 211. Mostly importantly, I will never forget the unconditional support that my professor gave me. He always spoke to class with respect, kindness and pure love. With this guidance, I am able to take what I learned and use it for my future endeavors.
21
A New Approach on Dance
Natalie Nitzberg
DAN 211 was my favorite class this semester. I looked forward to going to this class, and going to a space where I was able to express myself freely. I have learned many things throughout this course. I learned there are so many ways that you can express yourself through dance. I learned how to cope with my moods in different ways. Instead of lashing out in anger, or being in a bad mood, I inserted my emotions into my dancing. This really helped me mentally, and was an extremely healthy way to express emotion. I also learned when you are being true to your emotions, it actually ends up improving your dancing. I also learned about many influential people in the dance world. Some of these individuals include Laban, Wigman, Duncan, etc. All of these people opened my eyes to a new approach on dance. My biggest takeaway was to never feel restricted and to flow into the next movement freely with whatever feels right.
Throughout this course, I find myself to be more strong mentally. Even having only two days a week an hour to stretch and relax has really improved my mental health. Everyone lives are so busy and fast paced these days, that students generally don't give themselves the time to meditate or take time for themselves. I realized very early in the course that my lack of flexibility shocked me. I’ve learned to take 10 minutes out of every day to stretch and meditate. This has really helped me in many aspects of my life, and I definitely do see myself getting more flexible everyday. I feel more energized and my brain feels less fuzzy. I loved working together with my group, Eyob and Valerie. I think we worked very well as a team and watching the dance come together every week has been fun and also rewarding.
In my future, I plan on continuing to take positive time for myself. As I am graduating in a few weeks, it is an extremely stressful time. It is very easy to get caught up in the stress and it can become extremely overwhelming. When I join the working world very soon, I want to set time in my day to continue to stretch and take deep breaths. This class also reminded me how much I love dancing and how much joy it gives me. When I am living in New York next year, I will try to take leisurely dance classes on the weekends. I also will move around my body more next year. Sitting at an office desk all day is not good for your mental, or physical body. I want my body to remain young. I will incorporate walks, our breathing techniques that we learned, and meditation.
22
I Now Feel Comfortable Dancing
Arianna Goldberg
I really enjoyed DAN211. It was one of my favorite classes. I really liked how I was able to learn about moving around in my own kinesphere. I felt like I was able to expand on my movements and feel more comfortable in my dancing techniques. I really enjoyed it especially because I took this class with friends. I feel more comfortable when I am around people I know, and because of that I felt like I was able to gain more from this class. Additionally, I like how we were put into ensemble groups and didn’t pick them. It made me accept being able to branch out and work with others in the class (who I didn’t know before). I now feel comfortable dancing and also feel like I learned a lot of new movements. I feel like I was able to connect my emotions to my dance moves and that is something I enjoy doing!
My learning process in this class evolved over time. As I felt more familiar and comfortable with movements I was able to perform them better. I like how a lot of classes were dedicated to learning new movements. My favorite days in class were when we did something new such as walking towards the mirror in lines doing different moves or shadowing Professor in cool movements he taught to us. I felt very open to learning new movements especially because I feel like I always do similar ones. This class really broadened my ability in dance movements and I feel lucky that I was able to learn new moves.
My career path is real estate so I don’t know how I would particularly be able to connect it to dance. However, whenever I was feeling stressed throughout the semester and I came to dance class, my stress went away. When I feel stressed in my new career, taking a second to experience my emotions and carry them out with dance moves will be relaxing to me, even if it was simply in the car. I can also suggest dancing to clients who feel stressed. Overall I had a great experience and will miss this class terribly!!!
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https://www.enkiquotes.com/dance-appreciation-quotes.html
Like a Family
Eyob Yirga
This DAN211 class has been one of the most interesting and fun classes I ever took during my 4 years here at UM. I have learned a lot of valuable lessons from this dance class. This class has made me realize that dance is not just physical but also mental. After seeing Professor’s physique and how healthy he is, I have understood the value of stretching and exercising every day to have a healthy lifestyle. I also now understand the message that is explained through dancing and how each movement is interpreted differently by various people but everyone gets the overall message from the dancing. Dance has also helped me in connecting with my inner self and I also know how breathing in and out consciously really helps sometimes when feeling anxious.
When I walked in this class the first day, I felt like I was not going to enjoy this class since I had no prior dance experience as others did. But after a couple of weeks in, I started to see how Professor’s efforts to the class were paying off to make sure everyone was enjoying themselves. I then started enjoying the class and actually looked forward to coming in and separating myself from all the stuff that was going on around me and in my other classes.
I also learnt that I have to give 100% of myself in everything that I do, tomorrow is never promised, and thus I started viewing life more thankfully and enjoying it to the fullest. I am just thankful I decided to take this class for fun but ended up teaching me more than that. I have learned a lot of life lessons and many other things besides coming in and dancing; I will forever value this class in my life. The way the class is taught is very interactive and did not feel like a class with many students in it but more like a family with all the people. I have met some great people in this class and created good friends as well.
Even though I am a tech major and will be having a tech corporate job after graduation this May and will mostly force me to lead a sedentary lifestyle, I will still do my best in doing a daily stretch to exercise my body every day. And even if sometimes it is just difficult to exercise when having a busy day, dedicating at least 30 minutes of my day in the morning is my number one goal. After taking this class, I understand how valuable exercising is for mental well being and for my physical appearance being in great shape all the time. I will continue to give 100 percent of myself in every endeavor that I step into and will continue enjoying life to the fullest and value the lessons learned throughout.
Thank you for this wonderful class!
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A New Perspective on Dance
Lucy Levin
Modern is not my favorite style of dance, but our class was not like any other modern class I’ve taken or what I would expect a modern class to be like. I added DAN 211 to my schedule this semester to help me continue towards the dance minor as well as hoping it would be a fun class. I found that I was more creative and had more of an open mind after taking this class. I really enjoyed learning about the important modern dancers as well as when we had the guest teacher. This class has helped me see dance in a different way, as more fun rather than super structured and similar. And I feel like I got more out of this class as we had more freedom in what we did with class time and what we wanted to learn about.
I felt that the learning process was slow and steady. It took me longer than I was expecting but it all came together very well at the end. Each class we would work on our ensemble or solo piece just a little so that we would be ready to perform it at the end. It didn’t hit me until the very end how fast the semester went by and how each class was important. I found that it was easier for me to take all that we’ve learned in class towards the end and then incorporate it into my solo, rather than adding something new each time. This class did have some structure in what we did every class but we were always encouraged to be creative and think outside of the box. Having prompts and learning new styles of dances helped me learn more about modern dance and incorporate what I learned into my own choreography.
An important part of this class was the warm up stretches we did before we started dancing. I appreciated how there was some sort of routine, where the stretches we did each class were the same for the most part. It was really nice to just spend some time only focusing on stretching rather than thinking about everything else going on. I already spend some time stretching during my week but I want to incorporate some of the stretches and exercises we did during class into my daily routine. I found that it helped me focus and ground me, especially when I was having a busy or stressful day. I also liked how we spent some class time meditating. And I hope to start meditating more on my own as well. Our classroom was a very creative and supportive space and I really enjoyed my time spent there.
25
Input and Output
Michael Falcon
As someone who could not actively participate due to a surgery, based on my narrow lens from home, via zoom, I can tell that the dance was needed to tell stories and show emotion. Without dance, human experience would not be the same, as they would use dance to convey what was going on in their world. It was interesting to see how certain people used dance to perceive certain emotional states. I had never known that in some aspects of the dance required the extensive stretching and various stretching methods. I thought that the whole aspect of the stretching in many cultures was interesting as it helps the dancer become more flexible and be smoother.
I really enjoyed the creation of the dances in this class. It taught me the different aspects of every dance and how certain movements meant certain things in the dance. It was enjoyable as I got to see my classmates develop and learn how to dance in different motions. The teaching method was perfect, as it allowed groups to collectively think and talk about things while you still give input and output of certain things. Also, the different styles and techniques can be traced to the certain parts of history which they were first choreographed.
It was
amazing to see how all these innovation and portrayal of feelings came
through dance. I was glad I was able to view this class as it taught me
things many classes have not taught. I had no knowledge of choreography
and different methods of dance before joining this class and leaving it, I
know I can say that I truly learned something from watching my
classmates. I thank you for this class as it thought me that dance means
more that movements, and it is tied into the experiences and the emotional
state of an individual.
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Emotion and Expression are Essential
Casey Goodman
DAN 211 was one of my favorite classes I took at UM, for a variety of reasons. Modern dance was something that never intrigued me when I was a dancer in high school, because my dance teacher steered me towards the jazz and hip hop root. After taking this type of dance, I realized how modern dance incorporates a lot of genres I have already danced to before, making this class a great experience for me.
The major takeaways I have from this class are that emotion and expression are essential when performing modern dance. Most modern dance routines are telling a story through moves, which is why facial expressions can make or break a performance. It is important to fully embrace yourself in a modern dance routine and make it your own. Everyone interprets a routine differently, which is why modern dance is so individualized.
During the learning process, I felt calm and happy. Having this class with Professor and my peers made the class extremely entertaining. I was able to learn with my friends which is something I don't have in my other classes. Also, the professor is the best professor and has always given his students a sense of comfort in the classroom. I loved being able to bring back my dancing roots from my childhood, and apply them to my college days.
Because I am going into teaching, I can apply what I am learning from DAN 211 to my classroom. Modern dance is extremely therapeutic and helps clear your mind. When my students are having a stressful week, I can lead a meditation which is what we did in this class class to ease their mind. I am super excited to apply the skills I learned in modern dance to my professional life!
Freedom of Expression
ReplyDeleteChase Finizio
Dance 211 surprised me in many unexpected ways. I have been a gymnast my whole life, yet never stepped foot in a dance studio. This caused me to feel anxious that I would not be able to perform in class as well as the rest of my peers. Flexibility, graceful movements, and choreography would hang above my head, never allowing me to experiment in a dance class. However, this class changed all my beliefs. There was no judgment in the studio and no topic covered that I couldn't comfortably explore. Whether it was Laban’s choreutics with body and breath connectivity or the introduction of levels, I never felt overwhelmed. I began to see dance in a new light.
Throughout the learning process I did doubt myself, but that doubt is what caused me to push through. I wasn’t sure that I would be able to use all these new skills to express myself. New concepts such as a personal kinesphere, left me baffled at first. I thought to myself, how could dance be so free and non restrictive? I had always seen ballet dancers struggle on pointe and be stretched till their body quite literally broke. Once I retrained my mind to look at dance in the way that our professor Jorge Morejon had taught us, I began to see the beauty in free expression.
I would apply what I learned in this class to the writing aspect of journalism. One of the main appeals of journalism as a profession is the freedom these writers have to state their opinions, no matter who it affects. In many ways that connects to how we learned to dance. There were no strict rules, restrictions or guidelines. It was a studio of wandering brains in the best way possible. As a journalist I would hope that I can do the same. I can stand up for what I believe in even as unfiltered as it may be.