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Yes Paige, dance is central to Jewish celebrations and such a beautiful way to unite families and communities as well as to preserve traditions. The communities and connections we make by dancing together are truly magical. Even through our separated zoom windows this week I felt our community come together through our shared movement. Wishing you a restful holiday.

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Dancing bodies creates meaning in so many different ways, all impacting the cultural dynamic of society. Dance is so ingrained in culture that it is virtually inseparable for people in their everyday life. Of course there are such differences between cultures that the dances and traditions surrounding dance in each particular culture is very different. Personally my cultural upbringing was tied to my family and religious gatherings. I am Jewish and come from a not too religious family but I still have very fond memories of dancing at Bat Mitzvahs, family gatherings and one of my individual family favorites: a Hanukkah party. Although I did not get to participate in dancing that really connected me to my roots or in daily life, outside of the dance classes I was taking, it was still a facet of my life in some way. With this dance and in turn society can be changed greatly due to shifts in culture. Certain cultures may adopt or phase out traditions depending on the community it is in so dances evolve overtime with these communities. With this, cultures that started out similarly may become drastically different overtime or the opposite may occur where different cultures may evolve to become similar. Either way dance connects people to the culture and society that they live in, allowing them to other people that are a part of these communities.

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http://celebritydancestudio.com/new-blog/2018/1/5/how-dancing-benefits-society#:~:text=Dance%20also%20benefits%20society%20because,also%20serve%20the%20same%20purpose.&text=By%20doing%20partner%20dances%2C%20people,us%20certain%20things%20about%20civilization.

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The file is too large so it is uploaded to Canvas!

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Creating dance for the screen is definitely not something that I have experienced before. Of course I have been recorded but usually that is either for choreography purposes or during a performance. This entire week we have been choreographing and creating pieces in each of our classes which is very new to me as I have never really had the opportunity to choreograph something before, let alone record it and share it with my peers. With modern we started with some writing and then took inspiration from that to create our screen piece. With this exercise I worked a bit with levels as I focused on the words self growth and assurance, so it made sense to me to start on the ground and work my way up. In ballet we got to explore the fish bowl and find a spot to dance and record ours and our partners pieces. This allowed me and my partner to explore different parts of the building, as we have not gotten to do that yet, leading us to find our way to a bridge type structure and recording at some interesting angles that would not be able to be experienced if not through a recording. For the Padlet I made it a point to record around sunset, as I knew it would add an element of natural lighting that I would not be able to get on the stage. Through all of these experiences I have found a new interest and curiosity with how I can create art on the screen in way that wouldn’t be possible on a stage.

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Why is body weight and image so important to the dance world? Why can't the dance world appreciate movement for what it is in its individualism with different bodies?

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Paige, you bring up something that is often seen as taboo in the studio which body image, body weight, body schemas, body types, and more in dance. We dont like to recognise it but we have been shaped by the world of entertainment, modeling, and advertising in dance even though the majority of dancers who train never get into those worlds of work, however, company owners and donors have control and thus the image of the ballerina. I want you to do some research on ballerinas from the past, they were not always "thin" or "skinny" in fact they were quite curvacious and full of body. Given your writing here, what question do you have to propose to the dance world and how can this grow throughout the week. I want you to track it as you are learning and developing your practices in and out of dance.

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https://www.newuniversity.org/2020/10/19/body-shaming-in-ballet-yes-its-still-happening/

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My first impression with the term “bodies carry weight in society” is to take the term literally as body discrimination is very prevalent in dance as well as society as a whole. Ballet, from what I’ve seen, is one of the most discriminatory as many companies will one hire dancers with a certain aesthetic. As much as aesthetic is and should be valued in dance, looking at a person's body type should not be a determining factor as to whether or not they should be hired or fired. One very recent example of this was seen when multiple dancers formerly employed with Miami City Ballet stepped forward to share their story in the discrimination they faced due to their weight. These dancers were taken out of roles, called into meetings to discuss their “image” or fired completely just because they were “overweight” when in reality they were not. This favoring of thinner body types can also be seen in everyday society, especially in beauty standards, as the aesthetic that many aspire to be is tall and thin. More recently, art has started to shift to become more inclusive. More models are being chosen to represent the real image of people, despite their weight or the color of their skin. This is not to say that there is no more discrimination in art at all because that is far from the truth, but it is definitely an improvement from the discrimination seen in the past where people were only accepted if they were tall thin and white.

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Hi Paige, As I was reading your entry I was starting to think of encouraging words and then you wrote: "Being in a new and more positive dance community has allowed me to come into class in virtually any mood and still be able to fully commit myself to moving to the best of my ability, and come out with a refreshed attitude." and I felt relief. I too find the ritual space of the dance class therapeutic and healing. I am glad you are finding this as well. What questions are you exploring in your classes and through the assigned readings? I know Randall and I would love to read more about this. Also it would be great if you can enter a few words as to why you picked an article or image to post. What most resonated with you?

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https://www.luc.edu/features/stories/artsandculture/danceactivism/

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Expression and feeling in dance could mean something different for everyone, and even so that could vary from day to day. Personally I have found that my feelings have often affected my expressiveness and the quality of my movement while I dance. For example, if I am feeling down when coming into class one day I find that my movements are often incomplete or not executed to the best of my ability. On the other hand if I come into class feeling positive then I find myself doing much fuller movements and I am more willing to take risks in my dancing. This may be different for everyone though, due to either the emotions they may be feeling or the dance community they may be a part of. Being in a new and more positive dance community has allowed me to come into class in virtually any mood and still be able to fully commit myself to moving to the best of my ability, and come out with a refreshed attitude. Dances made on specific narratives, such as those surrounding social justice or political climate, are very emotionally charged which can greatly affect the movement quality or choreography of the piece. Allowing these strong emotions to lead and be a part of a movement often leads people to connect to the piece, especially if they are involved in the narrative.

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One thing I will do for myself:
Acknowledge stress and breathe rather than push or work through it

One thing I will do for my community:
Be an active and engaged member

On thing will will do for my world:
Work towards making it a better place

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Paige, I have been there too, not wanting to draw attention to myself. It saves us from feeling spotlighted, picked on, called out in a not so healthy way, and more. We have learned that blending in is good and standing out is bad when in fact both are necessary but at different times. We can in any moment both blend in and stand out. I for one can tell you as a Black Queer man that I blend in with other dancers but stand out because of the color of my skin. I am one but am not the same. This is where things get interesting for me because I know in order for me to grow I need to both process and project, think and shout, find solitude and disrupt. We are creates who need balance. We cannot be one thing all of the time. Think about it this way have you ever been in a situation where you wanted to say something but was in fear so you stayed quiet but then blamed yourself for not speaking and then continued to blend in which made you feel worse? I know I have and those are the times i dont blame the world or me, but I try to figure out where am I missing the connection of being alive and taking risks to free myself from oppressive structures. As you move forward notice when this happens and just track it so that one day you will find your resolve. It took me many years to figure this out and there are still times I apologise to others and myself for speaking when things are not spoken for being quiet when things are too loud. We have to remember that we are not fixed creatures. We are always ebbing and flowing. This will impact your dancing in the most powerful ways that "perfecting" a movement can never give you. Embrace who you are. Embrace the mess. Embrace the fact these are all learning experiences to get you to the places where you shine and radiate.

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https://www.drjimtaylor.com/4.0/self-confidence/

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Over the course of the past 5 weeks my resiliency and willingness to enter the space have changed drastically, and what I believe is for the better. In the beginning of the semester I carried in habits of attempting to not bring attention to myself as that is what I believed was better in the dance world; if you don’t make mistakes you don’t draw attention so that must mean I’m doing a good job. This changed just within the first 2 weeks when we talked about balance, being willing to be off balance, and the idea of moving through and taking up space. Although I had heard this idea before, this was the first time I was ready to try and enter the dance space and be willing to take up space. This caused me to be more willing to commit to different movements or try different positions in exploration that I previously would be too scared to try. This also came with me being overly critical of myself thinking that trying something new would ‘look too weird or awkward,’ whereas now I enter the space looking forward to these times of exploration. This new found courage while dancing has also given me more resilience, as when I go to try something new I am more determined to fully commit myself as I know that will result in me finding something new that could potentially lead to me growing as a dancer.

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What an appropriate video for the topic this week and as you begin your journey as a dancer in a liberal arts college. Nice thinking through your identities and how they intersect and have an impact on your dancing. Keep exploring...note how they change and expand.
Ah baking...I guess that one is a little hard to do on campus. Hope you find some substitutes.

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https://youtu.be/qQ4evJfmBws

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The intersectionalities most present in my identity would have to be the fact that I am a cisgender jewish female with white skin. Having white skin is definitely part of my identity that makes me feel very comfortable in modern day society. I have never once had to worry about being called a racial slur, or being denied something due to the color of my skin, or just overall racial discrimination which make me very thankful for the way that I was born. With that I had to learn about the privilege I have and use it to not perpetuate the current discriminatory practices that were put into place so many years ago, how exactly I am going to do this is something I am still learning about. Being jewish, more culturally than religiously, made me more self conscious due to the fact that I grew up in a mainly catholic area so many people did not share in my beliefs. To this day there are people who are still surprised and almost confused by my jewish upbringing but over time I have found to take pride in it. Yet with this pride also came a new idea of fear, anti-semitism is still somewhat prominent and there are times where I’m afraid to where certain pieces of jewelry as I don’t know how people may react to this part of my identity. A somewhat similar fear comes into play with me being a cisgender female with things like walking alone or being out at night still being a very dangerous thing of women in todays society. This all comes together in the way I experience movement but I have still yet to explore the depths of my identity in dance. Until we began talking about it, I never thought about the way my belief system could impact my movement. My femininity has always been a part of me, causing me to gravitate towards free flowing moves rather than sharp bold ones (although this may also be due to a lack of confidence). When it comes to self care, this is also something I recently discovered, mainly due to the fact that I had a lot of time on my hands during quarantine. A few things that I found that allowed me to take care of myself and mental health was baking, finding new music I enjoy, and researching topics that peak my interest. I’ve found that these activities allow me to get intouch with myself and get out of my head as I am a person who tends to overthink things.

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https://www.worldpulse.com/community/users/sycamoremay/posts/71433

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This week our ethnographic research centered around the butt, the hips, and the general idea of different body types. Brenda Gottschild's piece really opened my eye to the restrictions often placed of dancers by ourselves as well as outside sources, based off of aesthetic or general pressures to look like a certain standard. I was not until this research did I realize the amount of pressure I placed on myself surrounding body aesthetic, especially with my butt. I was always told to "tuck under" but through this reading, along with the discussions we had in class, I realized that this correction was partially just from the way I am built and not actually for my placement. The actual correction for my placement would be to align my hips and not to try and hide my butt. I also came to a new appreciation for all the different body types I have seen in my dance classes, specifically in modern. This came while we were in the middle of some improv and as I turned to look throughout the room I had a new awareness of how differently people were moving in a way that felt right to them with their body and how coming to this appreciation in ones own body shows through into the beauty of ones movement. I am really glad to have been able to conduct this research over the past week as it has brought me a new appreciation and comfort within my own body, rather than attempting to look like an aesthetic that was built without different body types in mind.

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Are the Padlet assignments always due at 9:30am on the Monday after each week?