Instructor: Laurienne Singer
323-953-4000 x2865
singerl2@lacitycollege.edu
History& Appreciation of Dance
Dance Studies 805
Welcome to the first Dance History course to be presented at LACC.
We are about to embark on an adventure together.
We are going to explore the history of Dance, the aesthetics of Dance, and perhaps even
probe into the meaning of Dance as it is interpreted through different times and different
cultures. We will look at it in relation to the culture, spiritually, politically and socially.
We will view different genres of dance, different styles and different techniques.
We will meet some of the pioneers of different dance modalities.
My objective for this class is that you will gain a greater appreciation and understanding
of the dance, and that you will be able to view the dance with a more educated and
perceptive eye, and be able to speak intelligently about what it is you are seeing. Also, I
hope you will enrich your own personal relationship with movement and the Dance.
Therefore I hope your critical mind and your spirit will be engaged in a new way by the
end of this course, and that you will gain a greater appreciation of this very exciting art
form, that is often not given its rightful position among the arts.
As much as possible, I will try to present this information with examples from video and
DVD. You will be expected to do one research paper and one visual, and kinetic
presentation on your paper of the subject of your choice in the areas we will be discussing
and viewing.
Most likely there will be a midterm exam and certainly there will be a written final. There
may be further reviews of the subject matter.
Attendance is very important because a great deal of the material will be video and
kinetic. If you do have to miss, see if you can get notes from a classmate. It is a good idea
to get a classroom buddy, so you can even work together on your projects, and fill your
partner in on what was covered if they did have to miss a class. One absence is
acceptable, 3 absences is reason to drop, 4 absences is failing. You are required to be
present for the entire 3 hours of each session.
I hope you love dance and are curious about its origins and its process. Bring a notebook,
takes notes and keep a record of the material presented each day.
Grades will be based on attendance, active presentation of your chosen research in class,
sharing the important visuals of your subject (You Tube, Video, DVD, costumes,
movement etc); completing all homework assignments, taking and passing both written
midterm and final paper, and turning in a completed research paper,in proper English
form, no less than 5 to 7 pages that includes the historical, political, social and spiritual
connections of the times and how it relates to the dance, person, genre, company that you
have chosen to research. It must also include your reasons for choosing your subject: how
it relates to you personally, inspires you and has meaning for you. It must include a
bibliography that shows a minimum of 5 research sources, footnotes, table of contents
and is typewritten using correct English spelling and grammar. Make sure you spell
check all material that you hand in. No e-mails will be accepted, no hand written papers
will be accepted for the research paper or homework papers, papers must be typed. Turn
them in on hard copy, on time. If you are not present for your scheduled presentation,
your grade point will drop. You must be able and ready to make your presentation the
following week. Depending how many people need to make presentations we need to do
it in a logical order based on where we are in our reading, it is extremely important that
you be prepared at the time slot you are given. This does not mean that you must have
your entire research paper ready, it means you have found the visual resources and are
able to share the nature of your dance or dance subject with the class. If you miss your
given time for presentation, there is no guarantee that you will be able to make –up the
time later. You will lose points towards receiving an excellent grade. Your presentation
should be no longer than 15 minutes unless you have cleared it with the instructor.
Sometimes a person will be very knowledgeable about their subject and desire to share
more time. This can be a great asset to the class, however it does need to be approved
before hand, so scheduling of other people’s projects will flow smoothly. Be succinct and
clear; find the most relevant video images to give value to your subject.
I will request the area of concentration for your presentation be chosen by September 12.
Rough outline or first draft will be due October 3rd. After I receive your subject matter. I
will prepare the time schedule for your presentation based on the pace of the class and
what would reinforce our reading schedule. Please be prepared for your presentation on
the day assigned you. If there are issues, please discuss it and clear it with me. Other
words, you are expected to be ready and prepared for presenting to the class on your
scheduled day.
In the past, we have had a scheduled evening in the library to review how to correctly do
a research paper, how to research and what to include in terms of the form of your paper.
We will have such an opportunity this semester as well.
It is important that you are aware when doing a research project that you do not use
words and copy from a book or internet without giving credit to the author or source. It is
expected that you use your own words when writing the final and documenting any
statements or ideas expressed from another source.
To Recapitulate
To receive the 3 units of credit. 1) Attendance is important and that you stay for the entire
3 hours, experiencing the dance as well as the lecture and video material. 4 absences is
failing.
2) You read the book assignments and are capable of discussing intelligently the areas
covered. You have access to both “The Dance Experience” by Myron Howard Nadel and
Marc Raymond Strauss, and“Appreciating Dance” by Harriet R. Lihs. These are both
required reading for the class.
3) You turn in all written material in a timely fashion, spell and grammar checked,
typewritten and intelligently answered.
4) You do a well-prepared and planned visual presentation, sharing with the class the
most important aspects of your paper and the movement whenever possible.
5) Turn in on time a well-researched paper on your subject matter with at least 5 or more
resources listed and table of contents, bibliography, including knowledge of why you
personally chose the subject matter and the significance for you. Paper must connect the
dance socially, spiritually and politically to the times. . Therefore it must be a
substantially well researched paper with at least 5 resources, wikipedia is not acceptable,
and it must include a personal statement regarding your reason for this choice.
6) Be present for the final and take both written tests, passing them with clear knowledge
of the subject matter and the ability to speak intelligently on the questions based on the
knowledge you have acquired over the semester, illustrating an ability to think critically
about the subject. Papers must be written in proper English, grammatically correct.
Included is an outline for the whole course. We may not necessarily follow this sequence
or even be able to cover all this material in the semester. However, you are welcome to
choose from any of these topics for your paper.
Students with a verified disability, who may need reasonable accommodations for this
class, are encouraged to notify the instructor and contact the office of Special Services
Ch 109 323-953-4000 X2270 as soon as possible. All information will remain
confidential.
Important! Drop Date Information
The deadline to drop without a “W” is the last day of Week 2 (of the semester),
which is Sunday, September 9th for Fall 2012. If you must drop a course, drop
before the specified deadline for dropping a class without a grade of "W."
Dropping after Week 2 will result in a “W” on your transcript. Effective July 1,
2012 students will only have 3 attempts to pass a class. If a student gets a "W" or
grade of "D", "F", “I”, or "NP" in a class, that will count as an attempt. A student’s
past record of course attempts district wide will also be considered. Therefore,
before the end of Week 2 you should carefully consider if you can reasonably
manage this course with the other factors in your life (e.g. work, family, course
load). If you think you will not be able to complete this course with a C or
better, drop by Sunday, September 9th. If you have any questions, please
don’t hesitate to talk to me. You may also see a counselor in the Counseling
Center in AD 108.
If you need help paying for books and other college expenses,
call the Financial Aid Office at
(323) 953-4000 extension 2010,
or see them at Student Services Village room 117
http://www.lacitycollege.edu/stusvcs/finaid/
http://www