Humanities

Sometimes learning occurs best when students are given a few basic instructions and then allowed to discover more for themselves. Such learning can be enhanced when students share what they have found with one another. This exercise will give you the opportunity to take what you have already learned from the textbook and the PowerPoint lecture and dig deeper through class interaction with various samples of dance.

View each of the following selections from the YouTube website. (This will take approximately 40 minutes.)

• Swan Lake Main Scene [Video file][1 min 36 sec] (Ballet)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjDYW46PjA8

• The Dying Swan [Video file][4 min 14 sec] (Ballet)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFJGhQYex-E

• Appalachian Spring [Video file][8 min 04 sec] (Modern Dance)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmgaKGSxQVw

• Yamanba [Video file][7 min 24 sec] (World Concert/Ritual Dance-Japanese Kabuki)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JjLuh4Ns7s

• Riverdance [Video file][5 min 27 sec] (Celtic Folk)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgGAzBDE454

• Gypsy Dance [Video file][2 min 52 sec] (Gypsy Folk)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVWIe_5FhZU&feature=related

• Ghana Tribal Dance [Video file][6 min 10 sec] (African Folk)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyyT2_8U2TM&feature=related

• James Brown [Video file][5 min 1 sec] (Jazz Dance)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZF_rZrH4yBY&feature=em-share_video_user

• You Can't Stop the Beat [Video file][3 min 21 sec] (Jazz Dance)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfigjLzsnTQ

Choose selections from three different genres (for example, ballet, modern, and folk) and write a comparative analysis in no less than 250 words. Address the following:

• Compare and contrast the selections.

• Discuss dance styles and variations in the steps.

• Discuss the lighting, use of color, and interaction with the dance floor.

Once you have submitted your comments, you should read a minimum of two comments posted by your fellow students. Respond to your peers by critically reading their submissions and addressing the following issues:

1. The thoroughness of the post (taking into account that most students in this course are not experts in dance).

2. How your own assessment might be different, including aspects of the selection which especially stood out to you.