The dancer prepares: Modern dance for beginners

Designed for beginning and intermediate courses, this accessible, easy-to-read text provides students with concrete, practical information on both the technical and creative aspects of modern dance. It also covers the basics of anatomy, including posture and injury concerns.

James Penrod received his M.F.A. from the University of Southern California and his Certified Movement Analyst from the Laban Institute of Movement Studies. He is a ballet and modern dance choreographer. His choreography has been performed at the Spoleto Festival and by university companies. He is the author of Movement for the Performing Artist; and co-author of The Dancer Prepares. He teaches Movement Analysis, Laban Studies and choreography.

Janice Gudde Plastino Ph.D., is professor and Chair of the Dance Department. She teaches modern dance, choreography, kinesiology, injury prevention, and dance conditioning. She conducts and directs research in dance science at UCI. Her publications include The Dancer Prepares: Modern Dance for Beginners, with James Penrod, which has been in print for 24 years. She has published numerous articles and is a contributing author for Preventing Dance Injuries: An Interdisciplinary Approach and The Dancer As Athlete. Plastino has reported her findings in dance science to scientific societies throughout the United States, Russia, and South Korea. Her credits as choreographer and performer include the Edinburgh Festival, Scotland, NBC and BBC television and directing opera at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, New York. She is an active choreographer and director. Plastino was the 1991 National Dance Association Scholar of the Year.