Dance Program
Alexa Robertson (B.S. Biology; minor Dance and Chemistry ’22) has already completed her required courses for the pre-med track. And during her sophomore year, she was an undergraduate research assistant with Duke’s Kwatra Lab, where scientists focus on finding targeted therapies for adults diagnosed with glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive and common brain tumors. Robertson combines her medical pursuits with her interest in disability rights through volunteer work in special education at a local elementary school… read more about Dance and Medicine Creating a Well-Rounded Scholar »
Not only is the senior Economics major with a finance concentration preparing for her move to New York City, where she will be working for JP Morgan as a first-year analyst in sales and trading, she’s debuting her original choreography for the Duke Dance Program’s ChoreoLab. An annual spring performance showcase of creative works by Duke faculty and students, ChoreoLab encourages dance experimentation across aesthetic genres and modes of presentation. Since its inception, the event has provided a support structure for… read more about Elizabeth Ehrlich has a busy last semester at Duke »
Raucous drag shows, dazzling Broadway performances, a smorgasbord of food: Duke in New York: Arts, Culture and Performance isn’t just a study away program, it’s a feast for the senses. Falling in love with the city is a familiar American story, and New York didn’t hold back on the charm for these program alumni. “My favorite part of the city overall is how creatively rich it is with opportunities (especially in fashion) at every corner,” said Sydney Reede, a sophomore who participated last semester. Hoping to work in… read more about Experiencing New York's Arts Culture for Credit »
Claudia Chapman (B.S. Computer Science and Electrical and Computer Engineering, minor Dance ’22) is focusing on the software side of computer engineering. Although her passion for technology can be traced back to her kindergarten days, her specific love for coding developed during high school, when she took advantage of every computer science course offered. At Duke, Claudia is a Computer Science teaching assistant and a DTech scholar, and she is just as dedicated with her dance training — minoring in the… read more about The Arts Advantage: Dance is the Balancing Force that Challenges this Software Engineer »
Over the weekend, dancers, artists and scholars came together in-person and virtually to Dance Black Together. The three-day Collegium for African Diaspora Dance began Friday with a rhythmic procession through campus, leading to the Rubenstein Arts Center. During breakout sessions, film discussions and movement workouts, the participants shared ideas about dance's role in the culture and politics of the African diaspora. Read more at the conference website… read more about Three Days of Dancing Black Together »
The Duke Dance Program welcomes award-winning choreographer Dianne McIntyre to campus for a development residency February 21-25, 2022. This year, Ms. McIntyre celebrates 50 years of dance making, and during her residency in the Dance Program, the venerable choreographer will be joined by her company dancers and musicians for rehearsals to develop new work titled Speaking in the Same Key. Ms. McIntyre’s work draws on collaborations between dance, live music, poetry and text. This is a unique opportunity to connect… read more about Dance Welcomes Choreographer Dianne McIntyre »
American Ballet Theatre’s pre-professional Studio Company recently returned for its third and final residency in Duke’s Rubenstein Arts Center. The visit was part of an ambitious three-year collaboration between Duke and American Ballet Theatre (ABT), one of the world’s leading classical ballet companies. While some elements of the partnership were altered and delayed due to the pandemic, the junior ensemble spent a week in training and engagement with the Duke Dance Program, culminating in a series of public performances… read more about Transforming Teaching: Duke Students Learn From American Ballet Theatre Residency »
From China to modern Palestine, from Renaissance Europe to Reagan’s America of the 1980s, new books by Duke faculty will take you on a fascinating journey through time and space. We present a selection of books published in late 2021. Many of the books, including new editions of previous titles, can be found on the “Duke Authors” display shelves near the circulation desk in Perkins Library. Some are available as e-books for quick download. Most can also be purchased through the Gothic Bookshop. [Duke Today will… read more about Dance, Spirituality and Black Art: Books by Duke Authors Warm This Winter »
The Dance Program welcomes Michaela Dwyer (she/her/hers) to the role of Assistant to the Director of Graduate Studies. She joins the Program after three years as Community Engagement Coordinator between Duke Performances and Duke Arts, where she managed dance projects and devised artist-in-residence programs in collaboration with Durham-based artists, public educators, arts and culture workers, and university students, staff, and faculty. She’s worked in various capacities in secondary and higher education over the past… read more about Dance Program Welcomes Michaela Dwyer »
Simone Wall (B.S. Biomedical Engineering; minor Dance ’22) is part of the Pratt Research Fellows program, working in a lab that develops point-of-care diagnostic tools. With a career path firmly heading toward research, Simone also wants to focus on exploring as many facets of dance as she can before she graduates. She started with ballet at age four and enjoys learning new styles of dance, but she is drawn in particular to modern dance classes offered in the Dance Program because they cover such a wide variety of movement… read more about The Arts Advantage: When BioMed and Dance Overlap »
Assistant Professor and Director of Graduate Studies, Sarah Wilbur, has recently published her first book through Wesleyan University Press. Funding Bodies: Five Decades of Dance Making at the National Endowment for the Arts is the first scholarly manuscript to focus on the shaping influence of federal dance funding on the working livelihoods of three generations of US dance artists. Drawing upon archival documentation of NEA narratives, program eligibility guidelines, and standards of evaluation… read more about Sarah Wilbur's new book connects NEA arts funding policies to dance organizational ideals »
The Dance Program is looking for a work study student for Spring, 2022. Please email your interest and resume to: Adrienne Brandon, Assistant to the Director of Undergraduate Studies. read more about Wanted: Work Study Student for Spring, 2022 »
The Duke Dance Program has welcomed its third MFA cohort to campus. Brooks Emanuel, Marika Niko, Leo Ryan, and Zhixuan “Miki” Zhu are the latest multi-faceted artists to join the Master of Fine Arts in Dance: Embodied Interdisciplinary Praxis Program. The Duke Dance MFA is a two-year, full-time terminal degree program dedicated to expanding dance and embodied knowledge across cultures, communities, and contexts. The program endorses dance as a transformative force in society and engages students whose research centers… read more about MFA in Dance Welcomes Third Cohort to Duke »
The Dance Program at Duke University is proud to welcome Iyun Ashani Harrison as an associate professor for the ballet practice. He will also serve as director for undergraduate studies. A graduate of The Julliard School, Harrison received his M.F.A. from Hollins University in Virginia and is a doctoral candidate in education at Marymount University. He is the founder and executive director of Ballet Ashani and has performed with the Dance Theatre of Harlem, Ballet Hispanico of New… read more about Duke Dance Program Announces New Faculty Appointment »
When Duke Dance Program director Andrea E. Woods Valdés greets the audience at the Chelsea Theater on Tuesday, August 10, she’ll discuss a new film that she shares deep connections with—both personally and professionally. Can You Bring It: Bill T. Jones and D-Man in the Waters is a feature documentary celebrating the history of D-Man in the Waters, a tour de force ballet from Bill T. Jones, co-founder of the venerable Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company which formed in 1982. Jones choreographed the… read more about Circling Spheres: Andrea E. Woods Valdés and Her Mentor Bill T. Jones »
When he was an undergraduate political science student, Kerry Haynie was never taught about the 1921 Tulsa massacre. Nor was there much discussion about the role of race in the founding political documents of this country or much examination of how race influenced public services such as sewer lines and zoning. In one sense, a lot has changed. In 2021, Duke’s faculty includes a strong lineup of leading scholars who examine how race is embedded in issues that cross all the schools of the university. This fall, many of… read more about University Course Raises Race as a Central Element of Undergraduate Education »
Recent MFA in Dance graduate Alyah Baker weighs in on the strict gender norms in ballet that often put pressure on women to conform—and how more dancers who refuse are finding they're not alone. Read The New York Times article here. read more about Alyah Baker, MFA in Dance '21, discusses gender norms in NYT article »
The Collegium for African Diaspora Dance (CADD), a community that supports scholars and artists committed to dance of the African diaspora, has been awarded $25,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts, the organization announced on May 12. Thomas F. DeFrantz, professor in both the Dance Program and the Department of African and African American Studies, is a founding member of the Collegium for African Diaspora Dance. He wrote the grant to support the project, “Dancing the African Diaspora:… read more about NEA supports project led by Duke Dance professor »
On Wednesday's CoastLine: Professor Thomas F. DeFrantz studies African American history, writes books, and he DANCES. We'll hear why he sees dance as a technology to translate feeling and transcend language -- and white supremacy. Listen for CoastLine Wednesday at noon on 91.3 FM, WHQR Public Media, Hanover Co/Wilmington, NC. Find the podcast on Spotify, Stitcher, or iTunes. Email coastline@whqr.org. Guest: Thomas F. DeFrantz, Duke… read more about Thomas F. DeFrantz on Transcending Language Through Dance »
About this Event: Join the African and Diasporic Religious Studies Association (ADRSA) ONLINE via LIVE STREAM for its 9th conference! Sponsored by Ase Ire Communiversity, Congress of Santa Barbara(KOSANBA), Center for African and African American Studies at Southern University at New Orleans, WaWaWa Disapora Centre, MAAFA San Francisco Bay Area This year's theme, Praising and Raising the Dead: Life, Death, and Rebirth in Africana Religions, will explore concepts of life, death, and rebirth in Africana… read more about Ava LaVonne Vinesett Presents at the African and Diasporic Religious Studies Association 2021 Conference »
We celebrate the inaugural cohort of Duke’s MFA in Dance: Embodied Interdisciplinary Praxis, a program dedicated to embodied knowledge and practice-led movement discourses. read more about MFA in Dance Class of 2021 »
Artificial Intelligence research at Duke covers everything from health to enhancing photos to machine learning. See what some Duke researchers are doing in the field. AI for Everyone Was An Academic Gateway During Winter Breakaway, David Carlson, an assistant professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering taught “AI for Everyone,” which included an introduction to the math and computations underlying machine learning and artificial intelligence. Full Story Duke Students… read more about Artificial Intelligence Research at Duke »