Dance Courses and Schedule

ARTD B136 Modern: Beginning Technique

Not offered 2025-26

Beginning level dance technique courses focus on introducing movement vocabulary, developing skills, and gaining an understanding of the form. Students must meet the attendance requirement, and complete three short writing assignments. Offered on a pass/fail basis only.

Course does not meet an Approach

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ARTD B137 Ballet: Beginning Technique

Fall 2025

Beginning level dance technique courses focus on introducing movement vocabulary, developing skills, and gaining an understanding of the form. Students must meet the attendance requirement, and complete three short writing assignments. Offered on a pass/fail basis only.

Course does not meet an Approach

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ARTD B138 Hip Hop Lineages

Not offered 2025-26

Hip Hop Lineages is a team-taught practice-based course, exploring the embodied foundations of Hip Hop and its expression as a global phenomenon. Offered on a pass/fail basis only.

Course does not meet an Approach

Counts Toward: Africana Studies.

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ARTD B140 Approaches to Dance: Themes and Perspectives

Not offered 2025-26

This course introduces students to dance as a multi-layered, significant and enduring human behavior that ranges from art to play, from ritual to politics, and beyond. It engages students in the creative, critical, and conceptual processes that emerge in response to the study of dance. It also explores the research potential that arises when other areas of academic inquiry, including criticism, ethnology, history and philosophy, interact with dance and dance scholarship. Lectures, discussion, film, video, and guest speakers are included.

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ARTD B141 African Diaspora: Beginning Technique

Fall 2025

The African Diaspora course cultivates a community that centers global blackness, dance, live music, and movement culture. Embody living traditions from a selection of peoples and countries including Guinea, Ghana, Mali, Brazil, and Cuba. Offered on a pass/fail basis only.

Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)

Counts Toward: Africana Studies.

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ARTD B142 Dance Composition: Process and Presence

Not offered 2025-26

This dance and movement composition course is open to movers of any kind, from any background, who want to explore embodied creation as a part of their educational and/or life practice. It engages students in developing and structuring movement ideas to build community with one another and the natural environment. This course will offer tools for developing creative problem-solving skills; exploring embodied approaches to observation, analysis, and communication; and investigating possibilities for collaboration. Students will be introduced to freestyle, cultural narratives, memoir, and other relevant resources as tools for researching and sketching choreographic ideas. Movement exercises, viewing of live and filmed work, and discussions will help to sharpen visual analysis and kinesthetic responses. The course includes journaling and required readings and viewings but focuses primarily on weekly movement assignments. Concurrent participation in any Dance Program technique course, either for academic or PE credit, is recommended.

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ARTD B143 Jazz: Beginning Technique

Not offered 2025-26

Beginning level dance technique courses focus on introducing movement vocabulary, developing skills, and gaining an understanding of the form. Students must meet the attendance requirement, and complete three short writing assignments. Offered on a pass/fail basis only.

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ARTD B144 Dance Composition: Elements and Craft

Fall 2025

This dance composition course introduces students to the craft of choreography. Foundations of dance making, such as space, time, performance, and artistry are explored and refined through the creation of short choreographic studies while observing and reflecting upon the work of peers. This course will explore structured and open movement experiences, such as: movement invention skills; compositional strategies; investigating music, language, images, and objects as sources of individual and collective inspiration. Students will be guided through solo and collaborative methods. Supplemental viewings and readings may be offered to support choreographic processes. Concurrent participation in any Dance Program technique course, either for academic or PE credit, is encouraged.

Critical Interpretation (CI)

Counts Toward: Theater Arts Program; Theater-Arts Program.

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ARTD B146 Asian Diaspora: Beginning Technique

Not offered 2025-26

Beginning level dance technique courses focus on introducing movement vocabulary, developing skills, and gaining an understanding of the form. Students must meet the attendance requirement, and complete three short writing assignments. Offered on a pass/fail basis only. This course is focused specifically in the dance form Bharatanatyam.

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ARTD B148 Tap: Beginning Technique

Fall 2025

Beginning level dance technique courses focus on introducing movement vocabulary, developing skills, and gaining an understanding of the form. Students must meet the attendance requirement, and complete three short writing assignments. Offered on a pass/fail basis only.

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ARTD B210 Sacred Activism: Dancing Altars, Radical Moves

Fall 2025

How do practices of embodiment, choreography, artistry, performance, testifying and witnessing guide us to transformative and liberatory action in our lives? Centered in this course is adornment culture, intergenerational dances, and embodiment as sacred from a range of global perspectives. We will engage altar building through our beings/bodies and with materials, as well as the importance of costume and garb in setting the scene for advocacy, ritual, and staged offerings. Expect to dance, move, write, discuss, create projects, and engage in a variety of text-based and media resources. We will work individually and collectively for communal learning. The content for this course will be steeped in the lives, cultures, and practices of black and brown folks. This is a writing and dance attentive course. No dance experience necessary, just the courage to move.

Writing Attentive

Critical Interpretation (CI)

Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)

Counts Toward: Africana Studies.

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ARTD B220 Screendance: Movement and the Camera

Not offered 2025-26

This course is a practical introduction to Screendance for students interested in extending their experience or interest in dance and movement into a new realm. Also known as dancefilm, cinedance, videodance and/or dance for the camera, Screendance connects film (and filmmaking) with dance (and dancemaking) in an evolving hybrid performative practice. For both the maker and audience, the inquiry is the adventure of discovering what the coming together of dance and screen can be. Screendance can be described as diverse, global, emergent, alive, active, trans-media, continually evolving. Through class screenings, exercises, readings and discussion, students will learn approaches to combining dance and the moving image. Students will work alone and in small collaborative groups to create their own works integrating dance and video. Through creative projects, students will develop their own cinematic style and an increased proficiency with both filming and editing movement.

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ARTD B225 Dancing Histories/Writing Dance

Not offered 2025-26

Black and African American dance is often best analyzed, critiqued, and understood in its sociopolitical context. In this course, there are two questions that will be primary modes of engagement: What are the major American and African American political and social agendas and events in the late twentieth century? What are the major choreographic works in the late twentieth century African American concert milieu? The socio-political and the field of dance merge seamlessly as the centerpieces of this course. As researchers, there are three overlapping aims: to learn about concert dance histories through historical sources, scholarship, and embodiment; to understand the processes of historiography; and to prepare students to undertake their own historical research and scholarship. The course is designed to illustrate how our understanding of the past is dynamic and evolving rather than fixed and static. Through critical engagement with the art of concert dance, Dancing Histories/Writing Dance emphasizes how history is written, questioned, and rewritten through vernacular and sacred dance performance. Assigned readings and viewings of work will enable recognition of how dance scholars have written, and revised, dance histories. Students will develop a strong methodological framework that will allow them to grasp the effects of cultural competence and critical bias, and the ways in which the writing of history is a creative, political, and ideological process. This is a writing attentive course and was originally created by Elizabeth J Bergman.

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ARTD B230 Modern: Intermediate Technique

Not offered 2025-26

Course Objectives: to experience a progression of movement phrases designed to develop an understanding of modern dance principles; to gain confidence in increasingly complex movement sequences, and explore movement creatively; to improve body placement, strength, stamina, and flexibility while embodying modern dance technique; to investigate elements of choreography with an emphasis on modern dance characteristics; to incorporate elements of improvisation and to communicate movement ideas, both individually and collaboratively.

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ARTD B231 Ballet: Intermediate Technique

Not offered 2025-26

ntermediate level dance technique courses focus on expanding the movement vocabulary, on introducing movement phrases that are increasingly complex and rigorous, and on directing attention to dynamics and spatial ideas. Students will be evaluated on their openness and commitment to the learning process, increased understanding of the technique, and demonstration in class of their technical and stylistic progress and accomplishment. Preparation: three semesters of beginning level ballet, or its equivalent, or permission of the instructor.

Course does not meet an Approach

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ARTD B232 Jazz: Intermediate Technique

Fall 2025

Course Objectives: to experience a progression of movement phrases designed to develop an understanding of modern dance principles; to gain confidence in increasingly complex movement sequences, and explore movement creatively; to improve body placement, strength, stamina, and flexibility while embodying modern dance technique.

Course does not meet an Approach

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ARTD B233 Hip Hop: Intermediate Technique

Fall 2025

Course Objectives: to experience a progression of movement phrases designed to develop an understanding of Hip Hop dance principles; to gain confidence in increasingly complex movement sequences, and explore movement creatively; to improve body placement, strength, stamina, and flexibility while embodying Hip Hop dance technique; to investigate elements of choreography with an emphasis on modern dance characteristics; to incorporate elements of improvisation and to communicate movement ideas, both individually and collaboratively.

Course does not meet an Approach

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ARTD B235 Tap: Intermediate Technique

Not offered 2025-26

Course Objectives: to experience a progression of movement phrases designed to develop an understanding of tap dance principles; to gain confidence in increasingly complex movement sequences, and explore movement creatively; to improve body placement, strength, stamina, and flexibility while embodying tap dance technique; to investigate elements of choreography with an emphasis on tap dance characteristics; to incorporate elements of improvisation and to communicate movement ideas, both individually and collaboratively. This course is most suited for students with tap dance experience. Course placement occurs the first week of classes during the designated course time. Attend the first week of classes to be considered for the course. This course is most suited for students with tap dance experience.

Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)

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ARTD B238 African Diaspora Dance and Drum: Intermediate Technique

Not offered 2025-26

African Diaspora courses cultivate a community that centers Black international dance and music cultures. In this intermediate course students learn drumming and dancing and embody living traditions from a selection of peoples and countries including and not limited to Guinea, Ghana, Mali, Brazil, and Cuba. The objectives are to experience a progression of movement traditions to develop an understanding of cultural world views, orientations, lifeways, and values through embodied/performance research; to gain confidence in increasingly complex movement and music sequences; to improve body placement, strength, stamina, and flexibility while embodying technique; to investigate elements of choreography with an emphasis on African Diaspora dance and drum movement cultures; to incorporate elements of improvisation; to communicate movement ideas; to integrate concepts of movement and music both individually, collaboratively, and collectively. This course is appropriate for intermediate and advanced dancers.

Cross-Cultural Analysis (CC)

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ARTD B243 Dance Comp: Making in the Moment

Not offered 2025-26

What movement emerges from your body/being in the absence of memorized choreography? How do you make an improvised dance in collaboration with others? This course is primarily a movement experience course sourced from western practices of dance improvisation. It will include guided movement practices, some readings, viewings, and journaling, as well as partner and group work-- all in service of exploring your improvisation movement practice. We will consider dance as a playful act that belongs to everyone, develop an eye for how composition emerges out of improvisation, and delve into collaboration as a rich creative resource, all of which become platforms to address discourses on body politics, the multicultural foundations of western dance improvisation, and the interdisciplinarity of the form. This course works to build a space in which the vulnerability of your curiosity leads to the discovery of dance compositions and movement that can only transpire through making dance in the moment. Some previous dance experience is good but not necessary; the courage to move is critical and will most support this work.

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ARTD B256 Dance Movement Therapy

Not offered 2025-26

In the fields of dance, embodiment, health, and movement, methodologies and practices of the being/body in motion are well-known as preventative art. This course will build a beginning understanding of dance/movement therapy or DMT. Through experiential exercises, lecture, discussion, and video presentations, students will explore contemporary structures of DMT and the intersection of DMT with social justice, psychology, and neuroscience, with a deep focus on the framework offered by anthropologist dancer Dr. Pearl Primus at the American Dance Therapy Conference in 1969. This course will review the historical roots of dance/movement as a healing art form prior to the western development of DMT, the origins of dance/movement therapy in the United States, and current theoretical frameworks and interventions of DMT. Critical analysis of theoretical structures will be applied in embodied practice throughout the course. This is a writing and dance attentive course. No dance experience necessary, just courage to move.

Writing Attentive

Critical Interpretation (CI)

Inquiry into the Past (IP)

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ARTD B260 Dance Education: Practice and Performance

Not offered 2025-26

Dance education is a world where teaching and performance coalesce to center being-with-our-bodies as a platform for learning. This course involves collaboratively creating an educational program for young audiences, communities, and participants in various educational sites. The seminar portion of the course engages students in reading, writing, and discussion on various perspectives of dance pedagogy, theory, and teaching strategies. The embodied component of the course brings students into a fluid relationship between theory and practice through teaching, peer-observation, and reflection on arts in education. There will be field visits during the course that include teaching and performance opportunities. This course is intended for students with experience in any dance form or theatrical performance at any level and we welcome students who are courageously beginning their journey with dance. It is embodied and writing attentive.

Writing Attentive

Critical Interpretation (CI)

Counts Toward: Education Studies.

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ARTD B280 Practical Anatomy: Muscles, Bones, Movement

Fall 2025

KNOW THYSELF! This course is designed as a human anatomy class for students interested in the application of anatomy to physical activities including dance, sport, and movement in general. Students will learn musculoskeletal anatomy, basic kinesiology, strengthening and stretching practices, and injury identification and management. Students will support theoretical knowledge with experiential movement analysis in class. The goal of the course is to present a scientific basis that will aid in a greater understanding of how individual's bodies are shaped and move, and how to achieve greater efficiency of movement and desired performance outcomes.

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ARTD B315 Dance Ensemble Intensive

Fall 2025

Dance Ensemble Intensive invites intermediate and advanced dancers to grow their performance abilities extensively, learning choreography from 2-3 guest artists in varying genres and movement cultures. Engage in artistic inquiry and embodied/performance research culminating in an April performance. Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills at a beginning professional level. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment, openness to the choreographic process, and integration of all elements in performance. This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Concurrent attendance in technique class per week is recommended. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for technical/dress rehearsals and performances in the Spring Dance Concert. If participating in a fall ensemble, students must also commit to scheduled rehearsals in the spring semester.

Course does not meet an Approach

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ARTD B330 Modern: Advanced Technique

Not offered 2025-26

dvanced level technique courses continue to expand movement vocabulary and to introduce increasingly challenging movement phrases and repertory. The advanced modern course focuses on both intellectual and kinesthetic understanding of movement and command of technical challenges and performance. Students will be evaluated on their openness and commitment to the learning process, increased understanding of the technique, and demonstration in class of their technical and stylistic progress and accomplishment. Preparation: three semesters of Modern: Intermediate Technique, or its equivalent, or permission of the instructor. First-year students should contact Lela Aisha Jones at ljones2@brynmawr.edu to discuss placement at mcantor@brynmaw.r.edu.

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ARTD B331 Ballet: Advanced Technique

Fall 2025

Advanced level technique courses continue to expand movement vocabulary and to introduce increasingly challenging movement phrases and repertory. The advanced ballet course focuses on both intellectual and kinesthetic understanding and command of technical challenges and performance. The last half hour of the class is used for optional pointe or variations with the permission of the instructor. Students will be evaluated on their openness and commitment to the learning process, increased understanding of the technique, and demonstration in class of progress and accomplishment. Preparation: minimum of 3 semesters of intermediate ballet, or its equivalent, or permission of the instructor.

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ARTD B342 Advanced Choreography

Fall 2025

Independent study in choreography under the guidance of the instructor. Students are expected to produce one major choreographic work and are responsible for all production considerations. Concurrent attendance in any level technique course is recommended. Pre-requisite: ARTD B142: Dance Composition: Process and Presence and ARTD B242: Dance Composition: Elements and Craft.

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ARTD B345 Dance Ensemble: Modern

Not offered 2025-26

Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers or works reconstructed / restaged from classic or contemporary repertories are rehearsed and performed in concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers.

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ARTD B346 Dance Ensemble: Ballet

Not offered 2025-26

Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers are rehearsed and performed in concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. Preparation: This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Concurrent attendance in at least one technique class per week is recommended. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for rehearsal week and performances in the Spring Dance Concert.

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ARTD B347 Dance Ensemble: Jazz

Not offered 2025-26

Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers are rehearsed and performed in concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. Preparation: This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Concurrent attendance in at least one technique class per week is recommended. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for rehearsal week and performances in the Spring Dance Concert.

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ARTD B348 Ensemble: African Diaspora Dance

Not offered 2025-26

Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers are rehearsed and performed in concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. Preparation: This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Concurrent attendance in at least one technique class per week is recommended. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for rehearsal week and performances in the Spring Dance Concert.

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ARTD B350 Dance Ensemble: Hip Hop

Not offered 2025-26

Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works are choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers and performed in concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. Preparation: This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for rehearsal week and performances in the Spring Dance Concert.

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ARTD B351 Dance Ensemble: Tap

Not offered 2025-26

Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers or works reconstructed / restaged from classic or contemporary repertories are rehearsed and performed in concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. Preparation: This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Concurrent attendance in at least one technique class per week is highly recommended. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for rehearsal week and performances in the Spring Dance Concert.

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ARTD B352 Topics: Ensemble: Asian Diaspora

Not offered 2025-26

This is a topics course. Course content varies.

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ARTD B354 Dance Ensemble Site Specific

Not offered 2025-26

Engage in performance based artistic inquiry and embodied research designed in collaboration with architectural structures and the natural environment, revisiting the normalization of dance performance as made for the proscenium stage. Dance ensembles are designed to offer students significant opportunities to develop dance technique and performance skills at a beginning professional level. Students audition for entrance into individual ensembles. Original works choreographed by faculty or guest choreographers or works reconstructed / restaged from classic or contemporary repertories are rehearsed and performed in a final concert. Students are evaluated on their participation in rehearsals, demonstration of commitment and openness to the choreographic process, and achievement in performance. Preparation: This course is suitable for intermediate and advanced level dancers. Concurrent attendance in at least one technique class per week is recommended. Students must commit to the full semester and be available for rehearsal week and performances in the Spring Dance Concert. If participating in a fall ensemble, students must also commit to scheduled rehearsals in the spring semester.

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ARTD B360 Dance Composition: Inter-Arts Making

Not offered 2025-26

This movement and performance based composition course is open to movers of any kind, from any performance background, who want to engage embodied making as intricately intertwined with other disciplines, especially within the arts (sound, costume, film, site, props, etc.). Further, the substance, material, or content which grounds dances will be explored. Collaboration in community and development of individual signature artistic patterns are primary objectives for the students in this course. Students will make artistic projects through engagement in artistic inquiry and embodied/performance research-developing, sketching, and structuring movement ideas in multi-dimensional works grounded in being with the body. Movement exercises, viewing of live and filmed work, discussions, and writing will help to sharpen visual analysis and kinesthetic responses. The course includes journaling, variety of text resources, and viewings but focuses primarily on weekly movement assignments. Concurrent participation in any Dance Program technique course, either for academic or PE credit, is highly recommended. This course is embodied and writing attentive.Course Prerequisite: requires a strong desire to develop a practice of making art individually and in collective.

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ARTD B400 Senior Project/Thesis

Majors develop, in consultation with a faculty advisor, a senior capstone experience that will expand and deepen their work and interests within the field of dance. This can range from a significant research or expository paper to a substantial choreographic work that will be supported in a full studio performance. Students who elect to do choreographic or performance work must also submit a reflection paper. Work begins in the fall semester and should be completed by the middle of the spring semester.

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ARTD B403 Supervised Work

Research in a particular topic of dance under the guidance of an instructor, resulting in a final paper or project. Permission of the instructor is required.

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ARTD B425 Praxis III - Independent Study

Praxis III - Independent Study

Counts Toward: Praxis Program.

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