Description
Book SynopsisBurridge and Svendler Nielsen bring together many perspectives from around the world on dancing experiences through life of senior artists and educators, whether as professionals working with community dance groups, in education or for recreation and well-being.
Broadening our understanding of the burgeoning sector of maturing dances and dancers, this book incorporates a range of theoretical approaches with an emphasis on cultural and experiential dimensions. It includes examples of how artists, community practitioners, teachers, policy makers and academics work to better understand, promote and create new ways of thinking and working in the field of dance performance, education and well-being. Each section of the book includes a mixture of chapters based on research and case narratives focusing on practitioners' experience, as well as conversations between world-renowned mature dance artists and choreographers. It features an eclectic mix of lived experiences, wisdom, deep k
Trade Review
Bringing together a wealth of perspectives from an array of cultures, Dance On! Dancing through Life is an essential contribution to our knowledge about intergenerational dance. Through in-depth case studies and the flow of conversation, it communicates the vital ways that dancing changes perceptions of what the body can do, regardless of age. Expert practitioners share their experiences and contemplate a future for dance that, freed from the prejudice of ageism, is open to the prodigious possibilities of dancing wise and dancing long.
Professor Carol Brown, Choreographer and Head of Dance, Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, University of Melbourne.
Dance On! Dancing through Life is a unique and much needed collection of perspectives on dance for all ages. With this book, the editors, Stephanie Burridge and Charlotte Svendler Nielsen, bring their broad experience, fruitful collaboration on previous editorial work, and passion for social justice in the field of dance to a fruition. The book adds to the literature relevant to dance practitioners, researchers and students of all ages and across diverse dance forms. I warmly recommend this valuable reading to anyone, also beyond the dance field.
Professor, Eeva Anttila, Head of Dance Pedagogy, University of the Arts Helsinki, Finland.
Table of ContentsIntroduction
Section 1: Conversations
Conversation 1.1 A conversation about junctions, milestones and thresholds Germaine Acogny and ‘Funmi Adewole with Helmut Vogt translating and contributing
Conversation 1.2 A life travelling in dance Aida Amirkhanian in conversation with Artsvi Bakhchinyan
Conversation 1.3 Dancing is shape-shifting Elizabeth Cameron Dalman and Michael Keegan-Dolan
Conversation 1.4 A conversation about life in dance: A crossing of two paths Henry Danton and Ravenna Tucker Wagnon
Conversation 1.5 The love and kindness of teachers: Reflecting on working with senior Javanese masters Alex Dea conversing with Javanese senior dance artists Rama Sas, S. Ngaliman, Bu Yudanegoro and Bu Tarwa.
Conversation 1.6 A life in dance: Collaborating and working together Anca Frankenhaeuser and Patrick Harding-Irmer with Eileen Kramer
Conversation 1.7 The joy of life experience in contemporary dance Graeme Murphy and Janet Vernon in conersation with Shirley Gibson
Conversation 1.8 A sense of place and creating together Antonio Vargas with Stephanie Burridge
Section 2: Professional Dance Practice
Chapter 2.1 Too old to dance! Says who?: Senior professional dancers defying ageism
Sonia York-Pryce
Chapter 2.2 Creating in the liminal space: connecting pathways of embodied experience.
Stephanie Burridge
Chapter 2.3 ‘Open Culture’ as practiced by three Singaporean dance pioneers
Melissa Quek and Tan Ngiap Heng
Chapter 2.4 (K)not in Dance: bodies and dancing as states of becoming
Gerard M. Samuel
Chapter 2.5 Dance, is "who you are; it’s who you are known as"
Amy Dean
Chapter 2.6 A full and creative life
Mary Davies
Section 3: Community Dance Practice and Performance
Chapter 3.1 An idea, a passion, a shot of tequila and a whole lot of love
Liz Lea
Chapter 3.2 Still Ripening: evolving a practice through reflection.
Gail Hewton
Chapter 3.3 From viral hit to vital troupe: the "dancing grannies" of Angthong and their revival of Lakhon Chatri during a pandemic
Pornrat Damrhung
Chapter 3.4 Fine Lines: a dance collective of mature artists - the story so far.
Katrina Rank and Jenny Barnett
Chapter 3.5 Dance matters: Crows Feet Dance Collective
Jan Bolwell
Section 4.0: Pedagogy and Recreational Dance Practice
Chapter 4.1 Becoming an affirmative community: mature dancers’ experiences in an age-aware contemporary dance class
Pirkko Markula, Allison Jeffrey, Jennifer Nikolai & Simrit Deol
Chapter 4.2 From the stage to the next stage – Transitioning from a learner to a teacher: Amala Shankar’s journey
Urmimala Sarkar Munsi
Chapter 4.3 Learning in creative dance: adults and children share the space
Ann Kipling Brown
Chapter 4.4 Managing expectations: teaching mature dancers in lutrawita/Tasmania
Lesley Graham
Chapter 4.5 Traditional apprenticeship in contemporary times – Lim Fei Shen
Caren Carino
Section 5.0: Dance Therapy and Well-being
Chapter 5.1 An examination of the facilitation of dance practice for older adults: a focus group discussion between practitioners working in community settings across New Zealand, Australia and England.
Francine Hills and Barbara Snook
Chapter 5.2 The happiest hour in the week: Memory Dance and Dance Movement Therapy for elderly people with dementia
Helle Winther
Chapter 5.3 Feeling the touch: integrating sensations into dance activities for the elderly with dementia
Szu-Ching Chang
Chapter 5.4 Everyday Waltzes for Active Ageing: a creative intervention for seniors and training programme for eldercare staff
Angela Liong
Chapter 5.5 WINGSPAN - A seated dance performance
Paige Gordon
