From ABT to Oberlin.Thank you for the article on Oberlin College's dance program called "Pioneers in Ohio" by Stephanie Woodard (February, 1999). After retiring from a five-year career with American Ballet American Ballet was the first professional ballet company George Balanchine created in the United States. The company was founded with the help of Lincoln Kirstein, and was populated by students of Kirstein and Balanchine's School of American Ballet. Theater I began searching for a school with an established contact improvisation Contact improvisation (CI) is a dance technique in which points of physical contact provide the starting point for movement improvisation and exploration. Contact Improvisation is a form of dance improvisation and is one of the best-known and most characteristic forms of postmodern community that simultaneously offered rigorous academic course work. After reading the article mentioned above, I visited Oberlin, liked it, applied, and happily will be graduating in December 2003 with a major in biology and a whole new perspective on dance. Oberlin College's dance department was aptly described by your magazine. It encourages that dance be used to develop community values, physical and mental health, and as a tool for progressive social change. The dance department offers courses in modern dance, contact improvisation, West African West Africa A region of western Africa between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. It was largely controlled by colonial powers until the 20th century. West African adj. & n. diaspora, cross cultural dance history, improvisation improvisation Creation of music in real time. Improvisation usually involves some preparation beforehand, particularly when there is more than one performer. Despite the central place of notated music in the Western tradition, improvisation has often played a role, from the , and kinesiology kinesiology Study of the mechanics and anatomy of human movement and their roles in promoting health and reducing disease. Kinesiology has direct applications to fitness and health, including developing exercise programs for people with and without disabilities, preserving . I am fortunate to have received an education at Oberlin and would like to encourage dancers retiring and planning second careers to aim high and look beyond cost when investigating colleges. In my case, attending a private school was much cheaper than attending a public institution, since I had a good financial aid package. State schools, where tuition is less, often cannot offer adequate aid to those in need. If you are a dancer in transition, keep an open mind and investigate thoroughly the schools that interest, excite, and offer quality programs in subjects you want to study. Think idealistically, apply, then go from there. JANE VORBURGER AMERICAN BALLET THEATER, 91-96 OBERLIN COLLEGE Oberlin College, at Oberlin, Ohio; coeducational; opened 1833 as Oberlin Collegiate Institute, became Oberlin College in 1850. It includes a college of arts and sciences and a well-known conservatory of music. , 2000-2003 |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion