For non-dancers, the appeal behind Faith Morrison’s award-winning screen dance and site-specific choreography may be difficult to express beyond stunned stammering about a “cool outdoor dance video.”
However, for Melanie Meenan, clinical assistant professor and co-program coordinator of dance in the UI Department of Movement Sciences, it’s a revolutionary form of artistry utilizing “technology to bring dance to the masses.”
Morrison will give a free lecture from 12:30 p.m. to 1:20 p.m. Friday in Room 200 in the Physical Education Building at UI. Any student can attend her lecture and demonstration, which will focus on her research in the fields of screen dance and site-specific dance.
Screen dance, also known as “dance for camera,” allows the audience to “feel like (they’re) actually a part of (the dance),” Meenan said. Because the dances are captured on film in a specific location, Meenan also said the performances make viewers feel as though they’ve been “taken to another space.”
“It would appear differently on stage,” Meenan said.
Unlike with traditional performances, the audience is able to see different views of the dance as revealed by different camera angles. The main difference between traditional dance performances and dance performances on film, is the performances captured on camera give the ability to relive the choreography and setting.
Screen dance is a growing field with certification available through a few larger graduate degree programs across the country. Meenan and her colleagues in the Department of Movement Sciences are bringing in the renowned screen dance artist to diversify the experiences of their students.
“We don’t have a class that particularly highlights (screen dance),” said Belle Baggs, clinical assistant professor and co-program coordinator of dance in the Department of Movement Sciences.
However, Baggs said several of her students have expressed an interest in the growing field of screen dance, and having Morrison come in as a guest speaker allows students to learn more about this potential career.
“The cross between dance and film is so fascinating,” Baggs said.
She also said she was excited to think about adding screen dance classes in the future to meet demand as the field continues to evolve and grow.
With the intimacy of the camera’s perspective and the audience’s heightened sense of movement that comes with the removal of a fourth wall, screen dance has the ability to expand a dancer or choreographer’s creativity by bringing digital editing and filmography into the mix.
“There’s art on both sides,” Baggs said.
“There’s the composition and choreography of the dance, and there’s also how things are captured.”
For this reason, Baggs said she encourages anyone interested in the arts or movement sciences to attend Morrison’s lecture, not just dance majors.
Morrison, a company member at Portland-based Polaris Dance Theatre, earned her B.A. in dance and mathematics from University of Montana and her MFA in dance from the University of Oregon. At the University of Oregon, she held a graduate teaching fellowship to instruct dance classes there in modern, ballet, jazz and contact improvisation styles.
Baggs said the guest dancer was selected primarily for her “intriguing” work and experience in teaching college students.
In addition to giving a public lecture and assisting with both modern and improvisational classes, Morrison will also be one of the guest choreographers participating in UI’s fall concert which goes from Nov. 2 to Nov. 5.
Vincas Greene, a guest artist from Spokane, will also participate in the concert along with Morrison, Baggs and Meenan.
During her week at UI, Morrison will work with dance classes to share her dance style with students and set choreography for the concert.
Beth Hoots can be reached at [email protected].