Modern Dance Midterm

Early modern dancers/choreographers

● Isadora Duncan
● Martha Graham
● Doris Humphrey

Innovators who first radically veered from modern traditions

• Merce Cunningham (NYC)

• Anna Halprin (San Francisco Bay Area, CA)

• John Cage (Composer – collaborator with Cunningham)

• Robert Dunn

Robert Dunn quotes

“Class discussion never assessed good or bad, but focused on the methods,
materials, and structures used in making the dance.” (Morgenroth, p. 7)
“What did you see, what did you do, what took place, how did you go about
constructing and ordering.” (Banes, p. 11)

neutral standing position

Standing tall with feet parallel and hip-width apart, spine in natural
alignment

first position (rotated)

Heels together, toes turned out, creating a "V" shape

second position (rotated)

feet wide apart and turned out

narrow parallel position

feet hip-width apart, feet parallel to each other

scores

sequences of diagrammed instructions

wide parallel position

feet wider that hip-width apart, parallel to each other

inversion

moving the body upside down in space while weight bearing with arms, hands, shoulders, or head

cervical spine

vertebrae of the neck; there are seven cervical vertebrae

thoracic spine

chest area of spine; includes twelve thoracic vertebrae

lumbar spine

lower back area of the spine; includes five lumbar vertebrae

coccyx

the tailbone, made up of three-four fused vertebrae

acetabulum

the hip/thigh socket where the femur articulates with the pelvis

greater trochanter

the bone located laterally at the junction of the shaft and neck of the femur (felt on the outside of the hips)

head of femur

ball-shaped top of the femur that fits into the acetabulum, forming the hip joint

pelvis

a bony structure comprising the sacrum and the left and right hip bones

sacrum

the wedge-shaped posterior part of the pelvis, located between the pelvic bones

hip joint

a ball-and-socket joint formed by the head of the femur and the acetabulum

heel-sits bones

the energetic connection between the heel and the schial tuberosity
(sitz bones)

femur

the thigh bone, longest and strongest bone in the body

qaudriceps

four muscles on the front of the thigh responsible for extending the knee

hamstrings

muscles on the back of the thigh responsible for knee flexion and hip extension

thoracic curve

natural rounding or extension of upper back

lumbar curve

natural rounding or extension of the lower back

upper back arch

lifting and extending the upper back and head upward and backward

upper back curve

rounding of the upper back, focusing on thoracic mobility

the five elements of dance

BASTE (body, action, space, time, energy)

choreography

describes a dance sequence in which the movements in the sequence were arranged

levels

the height of the dancer in relation to the floor

locomotor movement

a movement that travels from place to place usually by the transfer of weight from foot to foot

non-locomotor movement

a movement that is anchored to one spot only, moving in space around the person without losing the initial body contact

Weight/grounded pelvis

stability and connection to the floor through the pelvis

Intentional focus

directing attention to a specific part of the body or movement

traveling

movement through space, emphasizing weight shifts and momentum

body part initiation and awareness

leading movement with specific body parts

movement initiation

purposeful and expressive execution of movement

range of motion

the extent of movement possible at a joint

example of action

locomotor, nonlocomotor, leading, following

example of body

flexion, rotation

example of time

tempo, rhythm, with music/without music

example of space

levels, direction, spacial plane, exploring pathways

example of energy

light, strong, sharp, smooth

choreographer of revelations

alvin ailey

choreographer of esplanade

paul taylor

choreographer of gauntlet

elizabeth streb

choreographer of movin’ out

twyla tharp

choreographer of L’Allegro

mark morris