DANCE 100Dance Appreciation

3 credits · Dance · Penn State

Explore dance as a vital, communicative and performing art, reflecting social values and cultural beliefs. DANCE 100 Dance Appreciation (3) (GA;US;IL)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. An introduction to dance as a vital, communicative and performing art reflecting social values and cultural beliefs. Through a combination of lectures, video samples, and active participation in scheduled movement classes, lecture demonstrations and live performances, this course will examine a wide range of dance across cultures and time periods. Students will learn to identify the key components of movement: time, space, shape and effort. Once identified, these elements will become the building blocks for further analysis and understanding of the myriad forms of movement that can be called dance. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of dance within various cultural belief systems and the relationship between dance and cultural identity. The influence of social and political values as they relate to the development of specific dance forms will also be examined. Students will be graded on their ability to clearly and intelligently articulate their observations and analysis through participation in threaded discussions and online quizzes. Students will also be graded on their level of participation in scheduled movement classes, lecture demonstrations and attendance at live performances. The mid-term and final exams will assess the student's ability to integrate and synthesize the experiential components of the course.