Candidates have both broad and in-depth conceptual knowledge of the historical and cultural contexts of dance. They understand that dance has been a means of emotional and intellectual expression throughout human history and have basic familiarity with the roles and forms of dance in societies past and present. They recognize how research is used in dance to understand the movement practices in a variety of cultures throughout the world and the ways in which dance communicates and conveys the ideas and perspectives of the cultures from which dances come. They understand how dancers connect with choreography and the relationship between choreography and personal perspectives, and they are familiar with a variety of dance careers.
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Descriptive Statements:
- Demonstrate knowledge of how dance is a means of emotional and intellectual expression, including recognizing how dance works convey emotions, ideas, and relationships; and analyzing how audience members compare or relate what a work of dance is expressing to their own experiences, relationships, ideas, or perspectives; and comparing two dances with contrasting themes, analyzing feelings and ideas evoked by each, and describing how the themes and movements relate to other human points of view and experiences.
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Demonstrate knowledge of how research informs response to dance works, including observing and asking questions about a dance; observing a work of art, describing and then expressing through movement something of interest about the artwork, and asking questions for discussion concerning the artwork; discussing observations from a story, identifying ideas for dance movement that communicates important ideas of the story; asking and researching a question about a key aspect of a dance that communicates a perspective about an issue or event; choosing a topic, concept, or content from another discipline of study and researching how other art forms have expressed the topic; analyzing a dance that is related to content learned in other subjects and researching its context; conducting research about a social issue of great interest and using the information gained to create a dance study that expresses a specific point of view on the topic; and using established research methods and techniques to investigate a topic, collaborating with others to identify questions and solve movement problems that pertain to the topic, creating and performing a piece of choreography on this topic, and reflecting on the knowledge gained through the research process.
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Demonstrate understanding of the cultural context of dance works, including observing a dance and relating the movement to the people or environment in which the dance was created and performed; describing how the movement characteristics and qualities of a dance in a specific genre or style communicate the ideas and perspectives of the culture, historical period, or community from which the genre or style originated; analyzing and discussing dances from selected genres or styles, historical time periods, and world dance forms; formulating reasons for the similarities and differences between them in relation to the ideas and perspectives of the peoples from which the dances originate; and analyzing how dance movement characteristics, techniques, and artistic criteria relate to the ideas and perspectives of the peoples from which the dances originate.
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Demonstrate knowledge of movement characteristics, including observing the movement characteristics or qualities observed in a specific dance genre and describing differences and similarities about what was observed to one's attitudes and movement preferences and comparing and contrasting the movement characteristics or qualities found in a variety of dance genres and discussing how the movement characteristics or qualities differ from one's own movement characteristics or qualities and how different perspectives are communicated.
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Demonstrate knowledge of connections between dances, including relating connections found between different dances and discussing the relevance of the connections to the development of one's personal perspectives.
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Demonstrate knowledge of how dancers connect with choreography, including analyzing a dance to determine the ideas expressed by the choreographer, explaining how the perspectives expressed by the choreographer may impact one's own interpretation, and providing evidence to support one's analysis; reviewing original choreography developed over time with respect to its content and context and its relationship to personal perspectives; and reflecting on and analyzing the variables that contributed to changes in one's personal growth.
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Demonstrate knowledge of dance careers, including investigating various dance-related careers through a variety of research methods and techniques.
Sample Items:
As a pioneer of modern dance, Ruth St. Denis was most influenced by which of the following dance traditions?
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polyrhythms of West African traditional community dances
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group movement patterns of folk dances of the Caribbean region
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the naturalistic expressive style of Soviet-era Russian ballet
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thematic movement ideas of traditional East and South Asian dances
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
D. As a young artist, Ruth St. Denis became interested in cultures and expressive qualities of traditional dances of Eastern and South Asia as well as Egypt. She designed and performed dances that featured Asian-influenced movement styles, costuming, and storylines. Her work stimulated new ideas for creative experimentation and expression in early modern dance.
Watch the video1 below to answer the question that follows. The video shows a segment of a young man dancing outside. To play this video, click the Play icon (
). You may also use the Pause (
), Stop (
), and Replay (
) features. You may watch the video as many times as you wish.
This video shows ten seconds of dance movement. Performing outside on a paved space, a teenage boy, wearing street clothes, performs a series of six turns using his hands as the base of support. From a wide stance, he places one hand on the ground and, with legs open and extended slightly bent, rotates around his axis, changing the hand underneath him as he turns and balancing over the supporting hand. He repeats this action eight times, pressing a foot to the ground between each to initiate the next rotation. Each turn is a single rotation, except the third and fifth turns in which he rotates twice. All are performed with relatively even timing except the fifth turn, during which he accelerates his rotation, bending his legs closer to his body, as he turns.
This video best illustrates elements of which of the following styles of hip-hop dance?
- locking
- tutting
- breaking
- popping
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
C. Breakdancing, also known as b-boying/b-girling, is characterized by primarily four types of movements: toprock, downrock, power moves, and freezes. Power moves are acrobatic, using momentum, speed, strength, and flexibility. In a power move, the dance is generally supported on the hands or head and creates circular momentum, spinning the upside-down body over that base of support.
Use the photograph2 below to answer the question that follows.
Two dancers perform outdoors on a block-paved surface in front of an elaborate door and wall of a stucco building. Both dancers are in a wide stance, weight evenly distributed with the right toe lifted as though stepping onto that foot. Both have the left arm lifted, bent at a 45-degree angle with open hand, and both are smiling. The dancers wear sleeveless tops and shorts, the dancer on the left in a textured fabric of yellow and gold, the dancer on the right in fabric with stripes of multiple bright colors and the image of a half sun on the top. Both dancers carry small multi-colored umbrellas in front of their torsos that replicate the bright primary colors in their clothes.
The photograph shows dancers during a performance of frevo, a traditional Carnival dance of northern Brazil.
In studying a performance of frevo, a dancer could best understand the function and importance of the umbrellas that are used as props by:
- analyzing videos of frevo performances during Carnival parades.
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researching the origins and historical development of the dance form.
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exploring the use of an umbrella while improvising movement to frevo music.
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evaluating the expressive intentions served by umbrella props in other dances.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
B. Miniature umbrellas are an essential element in the contemporary performance of frevo, a traditional Carnival dance in Brazil. The dance originated in competitions between military bands that paraded during Carnival and were preceded by capoeira dancers who cleared the way for the bands to march as they competed. Today, the umbrellas function as substitutes for knives that were carried by the early dancers. As with any dance, knowing its origins and development can provide insight into the functions of its elements.
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