Moving History/Dancing Cultures: A Dance History Reader - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0819564133 ISBN 13: 9780819564139

Publisher: Wesleyan University Press, 2001

Synopsis

A comprehensive and multifaceted anthology of dance history ― ideal for the classroom.

This new collection of essays surveys the history of dance in an innovative and wide-ranging fashion. Editors Dils and Albright address the current dearth of comprehensive teaching material in the dance history field through the creation of a multifaceted, non-linear, yet well-structured and comprehensive survey of select moments in the development of both American and World dance. This book is illustrated with over 50 photographs, and would make an ideal text for undergraduate classes in dance ethnography, criticism or appreciation, as well as dance history―particularly those with a cross-cultural, contemporary, or an American focus.

The reader is organized into four thematic sections which allow for varied and individualized course use: Thinking about Dance History: Theories and Practices, World Dance Traditions, America Dancing, and Contemporary Dance: Global Contexts. The editors have structured the readings with the understanding that contemporary theory has thoroughly questioned the discursive construction of history and the resultant canonization of certain dances, texts and points of view. The historical readings are presented in a way that encourages thoughtful analysis and allows the opportunity for critical engagement with the text.

About this title

About the Author

ANN DILS is a professor of dance at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and coeditor of Dance, Place, and Identity. ANN COOPER ALBRIGHT is chair of the Dance Department at Oberlin College, coeditor of Taken by Surprise, and author of Choreographing Difference, Traces of Light, and Modern Gestures.

Reviews

Albright (dance, Oberlin Coll.; Choreographing Difference: The Body and Identity in Contemporary Dance) and Dils (dance, Univ. of North Carolina) have compiled an eclectic selection of articles on the world of dance, covering historical, theoretical, and international perspectives. A useful source for academic dance programs, the book includes professors, choreographers, anthropologists, and others among its contributors. "The Belly Dance: Ancient Ritual to Cabaret Performance" and "The Harsh and Splendid Heroines of Martha Graham" are a few representative essays in a book that places a strong emphasis on dance traditions from around the world. Conceived as an alternative to the usual photocopied packet handed out in many university dance classes, this book presents a wide assortment of material in one volume. It also makes a much-needed contribution to dance scholarship. Recommended for academic libraries and specialized collections. Barbara Kundanis, Batavia P.L., IL
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0819564133
• ISBN 13: 9780819564139
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 544
• Editor: Dils Ann, Albright Ann Cooper