Life as a Modern Dancer

The 2015 Virtual Writers’ Workshop for Dancers (Exercise #1)

—

Photo

From Blog Director Jill Randall:

 
I am thrilled to launch another monthly column for the Life as a Modern Dancer Blog. Whether you are a college student or a professional dancer, we all need to keep developing our writing skills.
 
I want us to tackle the common misconception that dancers only need to communicate with our bodies and through our work, not with words and writing. Yes, I first and foremost believe in our work as kinesthetic artists, but we do live in a verbal and digital world. Words and text will articulate to others what our work is about, who we are, and why people should be a part of what we are working on – whether that be on stage, at a studio, or in a workshop.
 
Dance artists will write a wide range of text throughout their careers, including:
  • Cover letters for jobs
  • Class descriptions and workshop descriptions
  • Website content
  • Grant applications
  • Press releases for upcoming performances
  • Facebook posts, tweets, and blog posts 
Over the next twelve months, I will post a writing exercise that all of us can try. These exercises are for you to reflect on your work and articulate the what, why, and how. Find yourself a beautiful journal to write in or start a Google Doc to write on your computer. Use whatever works best for you.
 
I am excited to have dance scholar Simar Belmar join me for the Virtual Writers’ Workshop. Sima will be contributing writing exercises and bibliographic references throughout the year. Sima is a longtime friend and colleague of mine. Her writing on dance has appeared in a wide variety of publications, including the San Francisco Bay Guardian and Dance Magazine, and she will complete her PhD in Performance Studies at the University of California at Berkeley in May 2015. Sima's profile on the Life as a Modern Dancer Blog appeared in December 2012. Click here to read her profile.
—————————-
Writing Exercise #1: Begin to Describe
 
This exercise will take approximately twenty-thirty minutes. Let’s begin by simply creating a word bank around our own movement. Next month, we will use these words to develop sentences about our work.

 

  1. To begin, create a generous word list of 50 dance verbs or steps (walking, running, leaping, etc). This will get the ball rolling. You might surprise yourself and quickly reach 100 words. Do not filter the list – simply work on creating a robust list of words. This will take 5-10 minutes.
  2. More specifically, how do YOU love to move? Free write in words, phrases, or sentences for 2-5 minutes to create a list of dance steps, verbs, and adverbs that describe your movement choices and qualities. Ask yourself how you use space, time, and energy. Pull from the big list you just developed. 
  3. What are your STRENGTHS as a dancer (performer, choreographer, student, dancer within the rehearsal process)? Modesty aside, free write again in words, phrases, and sentences. Think about your technical strengths, performance qualities, and work ethic. Write for 5 minutes.
  4. As a whole, what are your current passions in the field of dance? Your ideas can encompass performing, choreographing, teaching, community, accessibility, audience development, and much more. Free write for 5 more minutes.

If you are writing on your own, take time to re-read your ideas from these three prompts. Circle key words or ideas. Group these terms under Movement Qualities, Strengths, and Passions. Refer to these ideas next time you are writing a cover letter for a job or a description of your class, workshop, or upcoming performance.

If you are doing this exercise in a college course, take time in a class session to discuss each response. You can discuss as a whole group, in small groups, or with a partner. If you have your students write within a Google Doc, professors can easily add comments to these “online journals.”

If curious about further reading related to description of movement, check out "Describing the components of the dance, " Chapter 2 in Janet Adshead's book Dance Analysis: Theory and Practice. You can purchase the book here.

——————–

 

Leave a comment

● About Me

I’m Jill, the creator and editor for this site. I am passionate about sharing artists’ journeys and offerings resources and inspiration for the field.

● Recent Articles