GBL 2012 Dancing with Florence: The Global Citizen-Artist
We are investigating dance as an act of community engagement, civic partnership, and cultural exploration through the lens of artistic empowerment. We will immerse ourselves in the historic city of Florence and allow the architecture, art, texture, history, politics, music, poetry, communities, and people to inspire and shape our dance making and our definition of what it means to be a global citizen-artist. Throughout the course, students will be asked to build upon their understanding of the global citizen-artist gained in the predeparture course, examine the concept of the global citizen-artist authentically and continually, and to document their scholarly and artistic development through a variety of mechanisms, including: daily journal entries; daily questions of the day; daily post-rehearsal analysis; analysis of professional dance and opera performances; site-map analysis project; movement postcard dance project; movement postcard written analysis; and post-performance analysis.
The goal of this summer immersive course is to provide students with professional level performance experiences at the International Florence Dance Festival and Le Murate Arts Complex as well as hone their professional development skills by interacting with Italian artistic and cultural staff at Florence Dance Center, Florence Dance Festival (FDF), and Le Murate Arts Complex. We will create a new fifteen-minute site-specific dance piece for Le Murate and adapt that work for FDF. The first two weeks of the course will emulate a professional dance company environment in that we will create, rehearse, and perform the new dance piece at the FDF in a truncated amount of time. Students will gain valuable, professional, and career focused international experience that will help them in their profession as performing artists. The final two weeks of the course will focus on students honing their site-specific choreographic skills by completing two movement postcard projects: the first being an original site-specific dance at student selected sites throughout the city; the second being a written analysis paper noting the historical, cultural, artistic, and community relevant reasons for the chosen site. In addition, the students gain valuable site-adaptive creative skills by transferring the FDC piece to the site piece at Le Murate.
Additionally, the course includes the following: Organized excursions to Florence museums as well as the historical sites of Baratti Gulf and Siena; Italian Cooking Class; and attendance at jazz music and opera performances.
Prerequisite
GBL 1011; Audition Required
- Students will be able to:
• Global Engagement Goal #4: Problem-solve and function within an unfamiliar context (Italy). The context may be unfamiliar in multiple ways, such as: location, language, culture, cohorted group travel, interacting with non-teaching professionals in the field, and participating in unfamiliar cultural activities.
o Student Learning Objective: Students will be traveling for a month in Italy and participating in contemporary dance performance, creative driven activities, non-dance cultural excursions, i.e. museums, cultural and historical sites, opera performances, and cooking class. Specific dance activities the students will do include: perform in two public concerts, one dance film, adapt proscenium dance to site specific, and create their own individual dance films on locations throughout Florence.
o Assessment: Students will be evaluated on the following:
Active Engagement, which includes being prepared for class and rehearsal, attending all dance and non-dance related course activities, and contributing to a learning environment conducive for successful creative problem solving in an unfamiliar context.
Creative Output, which includes composing a brief, original site-specific dance piece, participating in the creative generation of the large site-specific dance piece and adaptive piece, and writing a concept paper regarding the original brief site-specific dance piece.
Integration & Reflection, which includes integrating the non-dance cultural excursions (i.e. a visit to the Zeffereli museum and writing how his focus on the visual design of his films and opera could influence the student’s compositional framing) as well as the dance specific activities (i.e. attending multiple performances of professional dance companies at the FDF) and writing about the compositional framing, technical execution, and performance expressivity and how the student may allow their own technical/performative growth to be inspired. - • Global Engagement Goal #3: Develop self-awareness and self-confidence through exposure to and reflection of different cultures
o Student Learning Objective: Critically evaluate one’s own habits, preferred culture, and biases by learning at an International School (AEF), International Dance Studio (Florence Dance Center), International Arts Complex (Le Murate), and performing in Italy.
o Assessment: Students will receive a grade on their participation in class, rehearsals, field trips, performances (not on their “talent”), as well as their abilities to collaborate with others. Students will be evaluated on the following:
Professionalism, practicing professional behavior now will help prepare you for future activities, employment, creative projects, and relationships. Professionalism includes punctuality, engagement, participation, preparation, attendance, adhering to our community standards, and the active practice of honesty, integrity, responsibility, and respect. If you show up to planned activities, performances, rehearsals, group excursions, or meals together late, that will affect your professionalism score. - • Global Engagement Goal #7: Understand the multiple dimensions of human experience within and across cultures and environments
o Student Learning Objective: Reflect on how dance is a tool of communication and can facilitate the understanding of global cultures and histories.
o Assessment: Students are required to attend professional dance performances at the Florence Dance Festival with the highest level of professional international performers. We will have in-depth class discussions and report on the professional dance performances.
o Student Learning Objective: Apply critical evaluation to the highest level of professional dance, utilizing previous analytical skills garnered from dance major curriculum.
o Assessment: Students will be use the knowledge that they learned through class and discussions in class during the Spring Preparatory Seminar to best prepare them for analyzing a professional dance performances as exemplified in a final course reflection essay.