News

Trustees Approve a Degree in Master of Fine Arts in Dance

From Duke Today, 12/2/2017: "...the trustees approved a degree in Master of Fine Arts in Dance: Embodied Interdisciplinary Praxis. The program is open to all forms of dance and human movement -- artistic, aesthetic, social and therapeutic. Moreover, it will provide an exclusive collaboration with the American Dance Festival, which is based in Durham. The new MFA seeks to attract dance artists who recognize the potential of all forms of creativity, be it traditional, contemporary or experimental. The Dance Program will… read more »

November Dances showcase visually stunning talent, student choreography

By Sarah Derris | 11/29/2017 Duke’s annual dance showcase, the November Dances, proved to be a visually stunning display of athleticism and art last Friday and Saturday, Nov. 17 and 18. The concert presented by the Duke Dance Program featured ballet, modern, jazz and African dance performances, with many of the performances being choreographed by the students themselves. ... Read the full article published in the Duke Chronicle: http://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2017/11/171129-derris-november-dances read more »

Job Announcement for a New Faculty Hire in Dance

Duke University Dance Program September 12, 2017 Position: Assistant or early Associate Professor of the Practice (regular rank)Qualifications: Ph.D. and/or MFA in Dance required; teaching experience in an undergraduate / graduate dance program preferred. Position Qualifications: The Duke University Program in Dance seeks an outstanding, ambitious dance researcher and movement practitioner who will contribute to the development of the undergraduate program as well as to the new proposed MFA in… read more »

The Dance Program mourns the loss of Chuck Davis

Baba Chuck Davis, who was the Dance Program's first Professor of African Dance, is being remembered not just for his contributions to dance, but for the many hugs and blessings of peace he bestowed during his decades in Durham.   Please visit our tribute page: https://danceprogram.duke.edu/chuck-davis-memorial. If you would like to contribute comments, please email our publicity director, Jennifer Prather. Read more: New York Times,  News and Observer Visitation: Friday, June 2, 1pm - 7pm Fisher… read more »

Duke Forward Campaign

"Dear Friends, Thank you all for working with our development team to bring to life the growth and impact of the arts at Duke.  It was lovely to watch you dance, to hear you reflect on the value of arts in the classroom, and inspiring to hear how the arts enrich your lives.  I am grateful.  Best, Dick Brodhead" Richard Brodhead, President of Duke University’s, thank-you note to Professor Andrea E. Woods Valdés and students, Sara Yuen and Molly Paley, for their participation in a… read more »

Prof. Thomas F. DeFrantz Honored for Dance Scholarship

Thomas F. DeFrantz has won the 2017 Award for Outstanding Scholarly Research in Dance from the Congress on Research in Dance. The award recognizes an exceptional scholar for sustained contributions to dance research. In making the announcement, the awards committee scholarship by DeFrantz has contributed substantially to understanding of aesthetics and race politics and has inspired a reevaluation of race and dance history. DeFrantz will receive the honor at the organization’s annual conference in October at Ohio State… read more »

Duke Sex-Ed Squad Film Screening Feedback Session

Greetings Colleagues/Friends! I’m thrilled to invite you to a Feedback Screening that features, (among others), the Duke Sex-Ed squad in scenes they created as part of my Performing Sexual Health course this past fall.  The Duke scenes, along with scenes created by students at NCCU and UNC-CH, were shot by documentary director/editor/producer Matt Durning and edited for this screening. The purpose of the screening is to get feedback as we work to put together a film and lesson plans to share with NC health… read more »

Dance Memory: Summer Research Opportunity

Looking for something interesting to do this summer? Given your dance experience, you might be interested in this research opportunity.   Memory for Movement Lab --How dancers learn & remember http://people.duke.edu/~ruthday/m4m.html --How audiences perceive & remember http://americandancefestival.org/projects/audience-memory-program/Where: At the American Dance Festival (an international dance institute), on Duke's East Campus  (http://www.americandancefestival.org)… read more »

Indian-American performer brings a classical form of Indian dance to teach Duke students

Indian-American dancer Mythili Prakash residency in Bharatanatyam dance at Duke University  launches the Duke India Initiative. Mythili, a dynamic young Bharatanatyam dancer and choreographer, will visit Duke February 1-5 and March 1-5 to offer a residency at the Duke Dance Program. The residency includes workshops and choreographing a piece for Duke student dancers for presentation at the Duke Dance Department’s mainstage concert, ChoreoLab, at 7:30 p.m. on April 14-15, 2017 in… read more »

Andrea E. Woods Valdés presents work at the Shimmer: The Art of Light Festival

Asst. Professor Andrea E. Woods Valdés will present her video installation, "new moon sister" at the Shimmer: The Art of Light festival. Works by various artists will be installed between Carrboro and Chapel Hill. Go to http://shimmerevent.com for more information. Friday, February 10, 2017 - 6:00pm to 10:00pm Location: Chapel Hill/Carrboro, 502 W Franklin St, between N. Graham and N. Robertson streets (Outdoors). Parking decks are free after 8pm.   read more »

Diasporic Dance Humanities 2017

The Dance Program and African & African American Studies (AAAS) will convene a series of events that underscore the reach of diasporic dance humanities in Spring 2017. January 31, visual artist and choreogrpahic collaborator Lamont Hamilton will visit the Duke campus in an artist residency, sharing work he recently showed at the Studio Museum of Harlem. More info. February 14, noted historian and theorist of Asian American dance Yutian Wong… read more »

Duke Symposium Explores the Legacy of Dance Innovator Trisha Brown

Durham, N.C. – SLIPPAGE: Performance|Culture|Technology, in association with Duke Performances, announces the one-day symposium, ACCUMULATIONS: Exploring the Legacies of Trisha Brown. ACCUMULATIONS will offer rare insight into the creative process of an American dance innovator and bring together a dozen artists and researchers for discussion, performance, and film showings on Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016, 9:30am-4:00pm at the Nasher Museum at Duke University. The Trisha Brown Company will perform at Duke University… read more »

Thomas F. DeFrantz Edits New Volume

"Choreography and Corporeality - Relay in Motion", editors: Thomas F. DeFrantz, Philipa Rothfield.  This book renews thinking about the moving body by drawing on dance practice and performance from across the world. Eighteen internationally recognised scholars show how dance can challenge our thoughts and feelings about our own and other cultures, our emotions and prejudices, and our sense of public and private space. In so doing, they offer a multi-layered response to ideas of affect and emotion… read more »

Duke New Student Programs

We thought you might be interested in how Duke New Student Programs is preparing our first year students to come to campus. Take a look at their YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8E2vnZWXxznOSJR8LXFxCw Highlights of their 30 Days to Duke series include: Interview with Dean Ashby Identity Center Tour Faculty Outings Financial Wellness A Conversation with Duke Police Know your Duke Lingo Fly Dorm Room Good Study Habits Countdown for the Class of 2020 read more »

Please welcome Michael Kliën to the Dance Program

Michael Kliën, Ph.D. will join the Duke Dance Program faculty in Spring, 2017. Professor Kliën has worked individually and collaborated extensively all over Europe and the USA in an artistic capacity, as well as an academic educator. He has guest-taught at six MFA programs in European universities. "My teaching offers students the chance to experience and define dance and choreography against the backdrop of wider ecological, social and political structures. I approach… read more »

Thomas F. DeFrantz Featured Performer in Moogfest

Duke Dance Program Professor Thomas F. DeFrantz will be one of several Duke professors featured in Moogfest, a three-day celebration of art and technology, which kicks off its first Durham appearance, centered on downtown performance venues, hotels and clubs, May 19-22. Professor DeFrantz's performance, titled  “Live Processing and Ghost Dancing”, will take place at 4PM on Thursday in the Durham Armory.  For more information, read the article in the News and Observer:http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/… read more »

Chuck Davis Emerging Choreographer Fellowship

Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) announces a new fellowship in honor of DanceAfrica founding elder Baba Chuck Davis. This unique opportunity is open to emerging choreographers, offering dance practitioners a chance to travel to Africa and study with one or more experts in African dance, as determined by the awardee’s project proposal. The fellowship offers up to $9,000 in funding for travel, accommodations, and research expenses. The selection committee is comprised of various members of DanceAfrica and BAM’s artistic… read more »

“Africa in Circum-Atlantic Perspective: Feminist Performance Routes”

A conversation in movement with four female dance artists of the African diaspora April 10 – 13, 2016 Convened by: Thomas F. DeFrantz (Chair, AAAS), Dasha Chapman (Postdoc, AAAS), Mario LaMothe (Postdoc, Women’s Studies), Ava LaVonne Vinesett (Associate Professor, Dance) and Moarabi Kakabalo (Undergraduate, Engineering) April 10 – 13, 2016, Duke University will host a four-day conversation in movement with four female dance artists of the African diaspora. Sponsored by Duke’s Africa Initiative, as well as Dance,… read more »

Guest of Honor, Dean Valerie Ashby’s remarks for November Dances 2015

It is my sincere pleasure to join you this evening.  Thank you so much to Purnima and to everyone in the Dance program for the gracious invitation.  I hope that you are anticipating with as much excitement as I am the performances that we will witness. I must tell you that I am thrilled by what this department, these faculty members, staff members, and students mean to the liberal arts education that we are able to deliver in Trinity.  I am inspired by all that my colleagues in this department have… read more »

Call for Papers! Contemporary Ballet: Exchanges, Connections and Directions

An SDHS Special Topics Conference at the Center for Ballet and the Arts, New York University, and the Department of Dance, Barnard College, Columbia University May 20-21, 2016  Call for Papers Contemporary ballet is undoubtedly a recognizable genre for most dancers. It is identifiable and it appears to be flourishing. But, what is contemporary ballet? Does it need classification and definition so that we can historicize this moment in dance? The 2015 issue of Conversations… read more »