Matching Items (15)
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- All Subjects: Dance
- Creators: Britt, Melissa
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Description
Embodied Continuity documents the methodology of Entangled/Embraced, a dance performance piece presented December, 2011 and created as an artistic translation of research conducted January-May, 2011 in the states of Karnataka and Kerala, South India. Focused on the sciences of Ayurveda, Kalaripayattu and yoga, this research stems from an interest in body-mind connectivity, body-mind-environment continuity, embodied epistemology and the implications of ethnography within artistic practice. The document begins with a theoretical grounding covering established research on theories of embodiment; ethnographic methodologies framing research conducted in South India including sensory ethnography, performance ethnography and autoethnography; and an explanation of the sciences of Ayurveda, Kalaripayattu and yoga with a descriptive slant that emphasizes concepts of embodiment and body-mind-environment continuity uniquely inherent to these sciences. Following the theoretical grounding, the document provides an account of methods used in translating theoretical concepts and experiences emerging from research in India into the creation of the Entangled/Embraced dance work. Using dancer and audience member participation to inspire emergent meanings and maintain ethnographic consciousness, Embodied Continuity demonstrates how concepts inspiring research interests, along with ideas emerging from within research experiences, in addition to philosophical standpoints embedded in the ethnographic methodologies chosen to conduct research, weave into the entire project of Entangled/Embraced to unite the phases of research and performance, ethnography and artistry.
ContributorsRamsey, Ashlee (Author) / Vissicaro, Pegge (Thesis advisor) / Standley, Eileen (Committee member) / Dove, Simon (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
This six month IRB approved qualitative study was held at Arizona State University to see how a group of seven university dancers' body appreciation and body perception would be affected by introduction and familiarized with Bartenieff Fundamentals and other somatic practices. During this process the individuals gained knowledge about their own bodies through somatic movement activities, journal writings, group discussions, and personal interviews. Movers then used this knowledge to create movement phrases that represented their own personal journeys with body image struggles, doubts, and insecurities. These movement phrases were then linked together in a 40-minute expressive movement piece that represented the journey the group of movers had made and was still making together.
ContributorsRodgers, Patricia (Author) / Jackson, Naomi (Thesis advisor) / Britt, Melissa (Committee member) / Vissicaro, Pegge (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
Transformation Is... is an arts practice-led research in Dance and Design, embodying and materializing concepts of structure, leadership and agency and their role in bringing about desired social transformation. My personal experiences as a foreign student interested in transformative experiences gave origin to this arts practice-led research. An auto-ethnographic approach informed by grounded theory methods shaped this creative inquiry in which dance was looked at as data and rehearsals became research fields. Within the context of social choreography, a transformational leadership style was applied to promote agency using improvisational movement scores to shape individual and collective creative explorations. These explorations gave birth to a flexible and transformable dance installation that served as a metaphor for social structure. Transformation revealed itself in this research as a sequence of process and product oriented stages that resulted in a final performance piece in which a site-specific interactive installation was built before the audience's eyes. This work became a metaphor of how individual actions and interactions effect the construction of social reality and how inner-transformation and collaboration are key in the process of designing and building new egalitarian social structures.
ContributorsSibauste Bermudez, Janelle (Author) / Kaplan, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Britt, Melissa (Committee member) / Standley, Eileen (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
"Linked Together" is a choreographic piece inspired by at-risk youth and their ability to learn, grow, and transform their lives through dance. The idea for the piece originated from dance programs implemented with under-resourced populations in Virginia, Panama, and India. My teaching experiences in these places sparked the development of a longer, more comprehensive dance program in Arizona, with a Boys and Girls Club. The Arizona dance program included specific somatics exercises, focused on the integration of mind and body, as well as other types of improvisations, to help the participants learn about movement concepts and develop original movement.
The title "Linked Together" suggests that all people are connected in many ways, regardless of personal differences such as socioeconomic status or language. The dancers included myself, Arizona State University (ASU) dance students, as well as Boys and Girls Club dance program participants. For the concert, all dancers portrayed stories and concepts related to empowerment through emotionally charged movement, and thereby provided audience members with a visceral lens through which to see the transformative powers of dance. The data collected from this project through observations, surveys, and interviews suggest that constructive behaviors that are internalized through dance can flow seamlessly into the non-dance world, encouraging people to think creatively, collaborate with others, gain a sense of ownership, and feel empowered in all parts of life.
The title "Linked Together" suggests that all people are connected in many ways, regardless of personal differences such as socioeconomic status or language. The dancers included myself, Arizona State University (ASU) dance students, as well as Boys and Girls Club dance program participants. For the concert, all dancers portrayed stories and concepts related to empowerment through emotionally charged movement, and thereby provided audience members with a visceral lens through which to see the transformative powers of dance. The data collected from this project through observations, surveys, and interviews suggest that constructive behaviors that are internalized through dance can flow seamlessly into the non-dance world, encouraging people to think creatively, collaborate with others, gain a sense of ownership, and feel empowered in all parts of life.
ContributorsDaniel, Chareka (Author) / Fitzgerald, Mary (Thesis advisor) / Britt, Melissa (Committee member) / Manning, Linda (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
Bisexuality is a unique kind of sexual identity, as a gray area between heterosexuality and homosexuality. The piece You made up the Story and I Played with all the Parts explores bisexuality as a lived artistic experience based on my sexual journey within a society that advocates heterosexuality. The piece includes movement phrases and text derived from conversations with intimate partners, characters based on former partners, storytelling, a 1950s-style sex education video parody, and audience participation via dialogue. The creation of movement and dialogue manipulated heteronormative social stigmas into a canny social acceptance of bisexuality. The multifaceted nature of the piece provokes viewers to consider how sexuality is constructed socially through my own interpretation. As a result, the work suggests that bisexuality is a legitimate sexual identity and represents a culture within American society.
ContributorsBedford, Crystal (Author) / Corey, Frederick (Thesis advisor) / Dove, Simon (Thesis advisor) / Jackson, Naomi (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
This thesis, Impressive Mastermind, examines notions of privacy and the law, particularly with regard to the USA Patriot Act implemented following the events of 9/11. The author/artist believes that numerous freedoms related to personal privacy, especially those rights protected by the Fourth Amendment, were diminished in order to ostensibly seek out potential terrorists. Through the vehicle of a theatrical dance performance, Impressive Mastermind investigates these privacy issues on a public and personal level and also asks the audience to question their own views on government policies regarding personal privacy, including illegal search and seizure. Drawing on the previous work of other intervention artists, this thesis explores the realm of public intervention. Moving away from the usual spectacle of traditional theater, this multi-dimensional piece explores an experiential examination of how the public relates to what is real and what is considered performative.
ContributorsFerrell, Rebecca A (Author) / Murphey, Claudia (Thesis advisor) / Dove, Simon (Committee member) / Mcgurgan, Melissa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Don't Hold Your Breath is an evening-length performance created and performed by Sarah "Saza" Kent and EPIK Dance Company that consisted of street and concert dance combined with hip hop theatre, spoken text and live singing. What began as a one-woman show about the choreographer's life, turned in to an ensemble piece that included the stories of many people, including ten community members who were interviewed on their views of life and death after being affected by a diagnosis. The show follows Kat, a young woman tiptoeing the line between her party girl past and the thought of finally growing up and settling down. Typically confident and self-assured, she is now grappling with the idea of life and death. Kat finds herself in an MRI machine that could ultimately determine her fate. As the machine examines her body, she begins to examine her life, causing her to confront some of life's most existential questions. Has she spent her time wisely? Would she do anything differently if given a second chance? When it comes down to it, and all distractions are stripped away, what is truly important? Her thoughts take her to memories of her past and visions for her future as she faces the reality that life is finite and tomorrow is not promised. This document is an account of the show's process and serves as a place of explanation, analysis, and reflection, while also questioning its significance on a personal level all the way to its place in the field.
ContributorsKent, Sarah Kay (Author) / Fitzgerald, Mary (Thesis advisor) / Hinds, Rickerby (Committee member) / Britt, Melissa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Computer Science and Dance are choice driven disciplines. The output of their processes are compositions of experience. Dancers are not computers and computers are not people but there are comparable traces of humanity in the way each interpret and interact with their respective inputs, outputs, and environments. These overlaps are perhaps not obvious, but in an increasingly specialized world it is important to discuss them. Dynamic Programming and improvisational movement exist within exclusive corners of their respective fields and are characterized by their inherent adaption to change. Inspired by the work of Ivar Hagendoorn, John Cage and other interdisciplinary artists, complexMovement is motivated by the need to create space for intersections between these two powerful groups and find overlaps in the questions they ask to achieve their goals. Dance and Computer Science are just one example of hidden partnerships between their respective fields. Their respective sides allow for ample side by side comparisons but for the purpose of this work, we will focus upon two smaller sectors of their studies: improvisational movement and the design of Dynamic Programming algorithms.
ContributorsOhlsen, Lai Yi Ni (Author) / Britt, Melissa (Thesis director) / Crissman, Angel (Committee member) / Standley, Eileen (Committee member) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / School of Art (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
The topic of my creative project centers on the question of "How can the audience's choices influence dancers' improvisation?" This dance work seeks to redefine the relationship between audience and performers through integration of audience, technology, and movement in real-time. This topic was derived from the fields of Computer Science and Dance. To answer my main question, I need to explore how I can interconnect the theory of Computer Science/fundamentals of a web application and the elements of dance improvisation. This topic interests me because it focuses on combining two studies that do not seem related. However, I find that when I am coding a web application, I can insert blocks of code. This relates to dance improvisation where I have a movement vocabulary, and I can insert different moves based on the context. The idea of gathering data from an audience in real time also interests me. I find that data is most useful when a story can be deduced from that data. To figure out how I can use dance to create and tell a story about the data that is collected, I find that to be intriguing as well. The main goals of my Creative Project are to learn the skills needed to develop a web application using the knowledge and theory that I am acquiring through Computer Science as well as learning about the skills needed to produce a performance piece. My object for the overall project is to create an audience-interactive experience that presents choices for dancers and creates a connection between two completely different studies: Computer Science and Dance. My project will consist of having the audience enter their answers to preset questions via an online voting application. The stage background screen will be utilized to show the question results in percentages in the form of a chart. The dancers will then serve as a live interpretation of these results. This Creative Project will serve as a gateway between the work that has been cultivated in my studies and the real world. The methods involve exploring movement qualities in improvisation, communicating with my cast about what worked best for the transitions between each section of the piece, and testing for the web applications. I learned the importance of having structure within improvisational movement for the purpose of choreography. The significance of structure is that it provides direction, clarity, and a sense of unification for the dancers. I also learned the basics of the programming language, Python, in order to develop the two real-time web applications. The significance of learning Python is that I will be able to add this to my skillset of programming languages as well as build upon my knowledge of Computer Science and develop more real-world applications in the future.
ContributorsNgai, Courtney Taylor (Author) / Britt, Melissa (Thesis director) / Standley, Eileen (Committee member) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
This project explores the cultivation of artistic methodologies centered in embodied movement practices. I worked in collaboration with dancers to inform the development of a movement vocabulary that is authentic to the individual as well as to the content of the work. Through the interplay between movement and subconscious response to elements such as writing, imagery, and physical environments I created authentic kinesthetic experiences for both dancer and audience. I submerged dancers into a constructed environment by creating authentic mental and physical experiences that supported the development of embodied movement. This was the impetus to develop the evening length work, Flesh Narratives, which consisted of five vignettes, each containing its own distinctive creative process driven by the content of each section. This project was presented January 29- 31, 2016 in the Fine Arts Center room 122, an informal theatre space, that supplemented an immersive experience in an intimate environment for forty viewers. This project explored themes of transformation including cycles, concepts of life, death and reincarnation, and enlightenment. Through the art of storytelling, the crafting of embodied movers, and the theory of Hauntology, the viewer was taken on a journey of struggle, loss, and rebirth.
ContributorsGerena, Jenny (Author) / Standley, Eileen (Thesis advisor) / Rosenkrans, Angela (Committee member) / Britt, Melissa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016