“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost.” -Martha Graham
The dance major or minor experiences dance as a cultural endeavor in the liberal arts tradition. This program prepares the student to dance and perform in a variety of settings and combines the discipline of dance with other areas of study.
Dance is a performing art that places human experience before an audience in the present moment. It holds a mirror up to nature, allowing us to see ourselves and our place in the universe in a manner that is at once immediate and timeless. Dance promotes self-examination and self-discipline, fosters the development of artistic, analytical, critical and organizational capabilities and stimulates the student to realize their full creative potential.
As a liberal arts discipline, dance blends practical studio work with theoretical studies in areas such as dance history, labanotation and critical thought. You'll learn:
Labanotation is a symbol-based language used to analyze, describe, and document movement. These scores contain exact movement information for each body part, in specific time, with description of energy and spatial orientation. Each year students have the opportunity to dance in stagings from Labanotation scores which have afforded them a direct link to Dance History that they would not be able to experience otherwise.
The Dance Program is an institutional member of the American College Dance Festival Association (ACDFA). Each year the faculty selects a group of students to represent Agnes Scott College at the regional conference of the American College Dance Festival Association. ACDFA's sponsorship provides the venue for students and faculty to engage in three days of performances, workshops, panels, and master classes taught by instructors from around the region and country.
With Decatur situated just outside the bustling metropolis of Atlanta, the off-campus opportunities to dance and be involved in the Decatur-Atlanta dance community are abundant. Many of the dance program's visiting instructors are dance professionals belonging to other organizations, providing students with exposure to dance companies and opportunities for internships and continued work after graduation.
The practical and collaborative skills you'll learn as a dance major will prepare you for a variety of paths to success.
To major in dance is to demonstrate a commitment to practice, focus, discipline, rigor, and reliability. You may continue on as a performer or choreographer, but these skills also translate well to other endeavors. Arts organizations, corporations, and foundations alike seek employees who can think innovatively, work collaboratively towards a common goal, and adapt with flexibility to changes.
