The author explores the relationship of play to choreography. He defines choreography as the rules that guide body movements from their minute physicality to their broad social and cultural contours. He conducts a review of the literature and accentuates five general topics--learning through creativity; choreography as writing and pedagogy;…

Over the past 35 years, the dance domain has adopted sports medicine as a key driver of professional practice. However, similar to limitations identified within sport, research is yet to achieve its full translational potential within applied settings. This "Viewpoints" paper begins to identify and unpick key philosophical and…

Incorporating Balinese dance into American college curricula provides artistic and cultural benefits for students. However, careful consideration is required to fit its instruction within institutional frameworks in ways that meet the needs of students and local communities alike. This article, which is based on a decade of ethnographic research,…

This article interrogates the veneer of Orientalism in the course content related to dance practices from East Asia, reflecting on pedagogy and experience in teaching the topic of "Chinese" dance, within the demographics of a majority White university. It examines how existing curriculum structure shapes the ways students learn about…

To date, there has been minimal analysis of the intersections between dance pedagogy and the climate crisis. Arguing that it is essential to approach the climate crisis via the lens of decolonization and underscoring the indivisible links between modernity, coloniality, and the climate emergency, the author considers what it might mean to develop…

Central to restorative justice is a commitment to sharing and listening to first voice. This is required for the work of transitioning to just relations. The Restorative Inquiry for the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children (The Home), and its Digital Oral Histories for Reconciliation (DOHR) project, offers a significant example of the power of…

This article investigates the implications of childhood dance training and its effects on dance artists' trajectories into the professional field in the United States. It asks what would happen if young movers did not start their dance training with technique, but rather the foundations of the creative process, improvisation, and dance making. By…

In this article, we explore the transformational power of holistic studio culture in dance education, drawing from our personal experiences growing up in dance studios that engaged in community events and dance competitions. Unlike traditional studios bound by a single technique, our formative environments embraced a rich tapestry of dance…

The need for a shift in approach to dance education and non-Eurocentric dance forms in postsecondary dance programs is apparent. This paper begins with a fundamental "why" and then offers the frameworks of gnosis (knowledge by perception) and episteme (knowledge by systematic study) and process-based teaching-learning as viable…

Ballet programs were established in universities in the United States as early as the late-1940s, but are generally omitted from the story of dance in American higher education. This essay partially addresses this absence in the literature, speculates about the reasons for ballet's limited legacy in the story of dance in American higher education,…

Flow states have been linked to positive emotions, optimal focus, productivity, and a stronger sense of self through learning. Past research has confirmed that dancers experience flow, that flow in dance is related to spirituality and community connectedness, and that environmental factors can inhibit or facilitate dancing flow. This exploratory…

Commercial dance forms, specifically musical theater dance, remain highly marginalized within higher education research. This article presents the need to establish more scholarly research in musical theater dance and points out the ethnographic identity of the genre in our global society. Ethnographic study can be useful in validating musical…

The primary aims of this qualitative interpretive inquiry were to gain better understanding of dance teaching artists' preparation and preparedness, workplace challenges, and the role and impact of policy and regulations in P-12 schools. A secondary aim focused upon identifying school environments that support effective and purposeful dance…

In her seminal text, "Feminist Theory: From the Margin to the Center," bell hooks calls attention to the "transformative impact the eradication of sexist oppression could have on all of our lives." She goes on to say that "challenging sexist oppression is a crucial step in the struggle to eliminate all forms of…

The research outlined in this article offers a systematic training methodology for students and licensed Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners to learn the clinical art and science of pulsology through dance. One of the greatest hurdles in learning pulse palpation is a TCM practitioner's inability to feel the pulse with a degree of…