In the fall of 2012, the University of Tampa dance program proposed its first dance major. The vision was to build a unique curriculum that would strengthen our approach to teacher training and offer the tools to teach a wide variety of populations. Much of the inspiration for this approach came from our training with Anne Green Gilbert, the…

Ballet dancers are exposed to the high likelihood of lower extremity injury due to repeated high-impact jumps under stringent ballet rules. The injury incidences occurring in dancers during jump landings are highly associated with excessive vertical ground reaction forces (vGRF) and the sharp loading rate (LR). The aim of this study was to compare…

Mirror visual feedback increases neural activity, enhances performance, and induces neuroplasticity; however, mixed results have been observed during the learning of motor skills. While mirrors are commonplace in Western dance education, further research is needed to determine how mirrors are used when learning dance phrases. This study measured…

Teaching dance technique in academic environments can be problematic in that many Western practices are rooted in traditions that contradict contemporary educational theory. This can create a disconnect between maintaining time-honored traditions and developing more student-centered class structures. This article questions the importance of…

During the course of a program evaluation for Footprints Dance Project Society of Alberta, we uncovered a discrepancy between children and parents regarding both motivation for program participation and expected outcomes. At Footprints Dance Project, we work with a diverse group of children, primarily from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Despite…

This study investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dance freelancers' mental health and wellbeing using a cross-sectional exploratory qualitative methodology. Findings from semi-structured interviews with six dance freelancers indicated the pandemic posed challenges to the mental health of dance freelancers, amplified preexisting…

This article connects the "Theory of Extended Mind" with the use of three-dimensional, physical objects in dance pedagogy. The theory of the extended mind supposes that cognition is an activity that reaches out from the mind to the body and to the environment. In particular, we take up Dewey's pragmatic Instrumentalism as a framework…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the embodied qualities of aerial practice among 13 US undergraduate students (M[subscript age] = 20.46 years old). Drawing on the philosophy of embodiment, interview questions addressed bodily sensations, cognition, and the role of music and mirror viewing. The first emerging theme from the…

Undoubtedly, every young dancer aspires to be an expert technician and artistically dazzling. Working toward that end, a dancer is aware that he or she needs to spend many hours of practice in technique classes and on the stage. However, a dancer might not consider the fact that to become the best dancer possible, he or she needs equal abilities…

This mixed methods study investigates the juncture of dance science, somatics, and contemporary modern dance training, and how they intertwine with learning processes and skill execution through transfer theory. The effects of a novel somatics training program are analyzed through six case studies using data reduction and interpretation of…

Principles of responsible citizenship that can contribute to the development of a pedagogy of collaboration in dance making contexts are examined. Philosophical ideas about relational being and what it means for people to be, think, and act together contribute to a framework for investigating communication and habits among dance makers. Rehearsal…

This study emerged out of collaboration between an artist-educator and a dance researcher. It explores student experience participating in a school based dance outreach program at an urban elementary school. The program is supported by a local, contemporary dance company. The artist-educator approaches teaching and curriculum with values shared by…

Collaboration is inherently part of many dance pedagogies, dance practices, and dance careers, which is why dance students are frequently required to work and learn together in the dance studio and classroom. Outside of dance, in a variety of disciplines, the ability to collaborate is prized as a highly valuable competency, and the facility to…

This article calls choreographers and educators alike to continue building an awareness of methodologies that support a disability aesthetic. A disability aesthetic supports the embodiment of dancers with disabilities by allowing for their bodies to set guidelines of beauty and value. Principle-based work is a methodology that supports a…

Research on the efficacy of traditional ballet barre exercises in relation to student learning and performance in technique class essentially is non-existent. This research explored how students described their experiences with barre work as well as how they saw these experiences as developing desired skills for moving in the center work.…