Dance Reflection Paper

Our lives are remembered by the tempo and rhythms in combinations to give a certain mood. Or as stated by Moore (1984), in life there are tempos and rhythms, within and without we are made up of life’s tempo and rhythm. As explained in class Laban/Bartenieff theories on movement and later refinements of language of movements give teachers, directors and actors a common language to not only describe certain movements but also give concrete ways to explore the way our bodies move to help express an actor’s actions and character. Working with teens that might not have total control of their ever-changing bodies this will be an outstanding way for them to experiment and not feel self-conscious about “dance”. Using the body to express oneself or a character has always been on my short list of first things to teach. It seems so

I have been dancing since the age of two. When asked about my career aspirations, there is no hesitation before saying “I want to be a dancer.” Being a dancer means putting all other distractions aside, and focusing on my craft. Currently, I dedicate over forty hours a week to dance, which is a schedule that requires sacrifice. When I am dancing, the rest of the world fades away, slipping out of my mind with relaxed importance. For that moment in time, I am completely free, wholly focused on my goals, letting me know dance is what I’m meant to do. With this realization comes a responsibility to myself and the work I have put into improving my craft thus far, and I know I must seek out the best opportunities for growth and continued learning.

Dance provides a way of learning—one that develops communication abilities, problem solving techniques, and creative and critical thinking skills along with kinesthetic abilities It employs the whole body in free and open movement. It is usually rhythmic with an element of repetition and forms of pattern in both space and time. Every movement is not run only with arms and legs, but also with mind and heart. It is believed that all in our lives we have danced because this is a natural action and must be built in time, with patience, perseverance and determination.

Of all the values that dancing instilled within me, I believe I learned the greatest lesson when I forfeited my first love. In my mind, I rationalized that school’s importance outweighed my devotion to dance. In my eighth grade year, my studio encouraged me to join their dance company, while my school implemented an academic plan for me that met my educational needs, which included placing me in ninth grade honors courses. Faced with the truth of the difficulty of balancing schoolwork with a demanding practice schedule, I reluctantly withdrew from my dance

Dancing is a recreational activity that has been enjoyed by millions of people for centuries. There have been countless styles of dance and thousands of memorized steps that have been performed in front of people or even just simply enjoyed alone without and audience. When a handful those thousands of steps come together, it creates a routine. Even though there are countless dancers that are breathtaking when they perform the routine in front of and audience, most dancers cannot be proficient without someone to assemble those countless steps together to create something awe inspiring, beautiful, and entertaining to watch. Dance is a world of constant change due to the want of awe, the need to produce something unique, and the necessity to catch the audience’s attention. Although many people believe some dance styles have not changed for centuries, innovative choreographers flip dance styles upside down with their unique approaches.

On Wednesday, November 18th, I had the pleasure to attend and watch the Dance Plus’s Fall show. The Dance Plus was performed at the Douglass Theatre, Victoria Mastrobuno Theater. When I entered the show the theatre seemed a little small for such big crowed. I immediately thought there would not be enough seats for all the audience, but somehow it fitted everyone. As everyone got settled down, the dance performance had started. I chose to write about the first performance that was choreographed by the amazing director, Jessica Lange her work was simply wonderful! I loved every little piece of the play. It put a smile on my face watching this amazing work of art. So with that said, I would now like to talk about the dance performance. There were

I was born in a seaside city where people enjoy the first ray of sunlight of a day. Running and playing on the beach is my favorite routine of my childhood life, and all my friends said that I was good at “dancing.” Frankly, I did not know what dancing was at that moment, but every time I moved my body that made me satisfied to see how it could move and make all those beautiful curves. Noticed that, my parents sent me to an after-school dance class to study when I was five, and I kept studying for seven years during which I got to be more attracted to this form of movements. In 2005, when I was twelve, I started my professional dance study in a local technical secondary school. Then，I realize that “dancing” could be my future and my life.

Dance has always been a part of my life, and it was always fun to look back at old pictures and reminisce about all of the dance issues I had when I was younger. But as I got older and better, the growing stopped. I wasn’t learning as much new stuff, just perfecting old choreography. Ballet has never been my favorite dance style, my studio is more invested in lyrical and performance styles, like tap, jazz, and musical theatre. I originally only wanted to take ballet here because I wanted to be in the Nutcracker because it was something my studio doesn’t do. But this class brought me back to ballet basics, and I have seen major growth in my ballet technique, enough for my mom to notice. I’ve gotten a lot stronger at certain ballet barre warm

For these past two years in high school, I have been taking Cleo Mack’s dance program that is provided for us at MCVTS. Starting the program freshman year I did not know what to expect at all but I am glad my mom pushed me to come to this school. I have been dancing since I was three at a competition studio who is very strict about almost everything especially performance quality, but as I have learned from Ms. Mack it’s good to tone down the face and make your dancing more authentic and real.

Our team sat in the hallway of our school, waiting for our name to be called to enter the gym. The pregame jitters were everywhere. Girls were bouncing up and down, fanning themselves and skittering around. I had a flood of emotions inside me. I was mostly excited but also quite nervous. What if my parents didn’t like the dance? What if my peers don’t like the dance? What if it looks bad? I couldn’t help but doubt the routine in a time of such nervousness. Our coach gave us each her routine good-luck shoulder shakes, and I knew the time had come. I heard the crowded gym fall quiet.

Throughout my life I have never really been interested in the dance until last year where I started to accept it. why? Why do we put ourselves through the physical stress to call ourselves dancers? Why do we love it so? I simply found those answers when I started dancing as I saw the potential it gave, showed the importance of teamwork, and the courage it taught.

What did you learn? As a result of Workshop #2, I have very high respect for the ballet profession and the dancers who perform the complicated routine night after night. In order to become a successful ballet dancer you must have an extremely strong core and a great deal of flexibility to transition from one movement to the next gracefully.

Being a dance educator, I strive to expand the knowledge of my students in everything I have learned about dance. I am currently attending technique courses such as ballet and modern, exploring the science of the body, history, rhythmic analysis, teaching methods, composition, and production to contribute to my knowledge of becoming a dance educator. I hope to encourage the students to not only learn from myself, but themselves and their fellow classmates as I remind myself that they are the future educators, performers, and artists of dance. Furthermore, I encourage commitment. I will help my students seek the potential to overcome any obstacle by providing positive and critical feedback.

A series of set of movements to music, either alone or with a partner. That is the definition of dancing. Dancing is a way to express one's feeling and to get active.

On December 1, 2017, in the University Theatre at California State University, Dominguez Hills, I observed the fall dance concert Rise. It was choreographed by Amy Michelle Allen, Marco A, Carreon, Sarah Cashmore, Jeff Hendrix, Erin Landry, Doris Ressl Acosta, and Kenneth Walker, with the long cast of dancers. The production was pleasing, and would not have been believable without the work from production designers, Frederick Depontee and Cheryl Sheldon. Rise is played out in eight different dance routines, which were Xtra Xtra, Scar Tissue, Hart Broken, Things Are A Stirrin’, and the rest are intermissions such as Female Energy, Women, Exotica, Strength In Numbers, and Makina.