Image of the front cover of a book on dancing, circa 1878. (Image courtesy of the Library of Congress.)
Instructor(s)
Prof. Thomas DeFrantz
MIT Course Number
21M.675
As Taught In
Fall 2003
Level
Undergraduate
Course Description
Course Features
Course Description
This course introduces students to the art and formal ideologies of contemporary dance. We explore the aesthetic and technical underpinnings of contemporary dance composition. Basic compositional techniques are discussed and practiced, with an emphasis on principles such as weight, space, time, effort, and shape. Principles of musicality are considered and developed by each student. Working with each other as the raw material of the dance, students develop short compositions that reveal their understanding of basic techniques. Hopefully, students come to understand a range of compositional possibilities available to artists who work with the medium of the human body.