Colby College Course Descriptions:
TD111 Articulating the Physical Addresses writing as process of discovery, expression of creative and critical thought, and embodied pursuit. Opinion, authorship, and identity are interwoven and grounded in the body. Through movement, experiential anatomy, and choreographic thought, explore the language of/from the body and understand the textual nature of written words, body, self, society, landscape, visual frame, and dance performance. Look at how choreographic thought informs writing. Translations between the visual and the visceral develop active, individual, confident, and vivid writing voices. No prior dance experience required. Four credit hours.
TD114 The Dance Experience A broad introduction to the field of contemporary dance including opportunities to experiment with studio practices (dance techniques and creative choreographic exercises) and to study and analyze the form's history and theory. No prior dance training necessary. Students with dance training are invited to enroll, understanding that technique will be taught at an introductory level but incorporating valuable exercises in contextualizing and discussing dance. At the end students will be able to demonstrate the fundamentals of contemporary dance movement, communicate (in verbal and written form) aesthetic ideas, and meaningfully engage in the creative research process. Four credit hours.
TD116 Ballet Forms Technique Lab An exploration of the principles of ballet including, but not limited to, technique, vocabulary, and history. Students will make the vital connection between theory and practice by demonstrating their knowledge of technique within the classroom and will recognize the benefits of risk-taking through theory, performance, and evaluation. They will understand the cultural history of ballet through independent practice and research, as well as synergetic discussion. Two credit hours.
TD117 Contemporary Dance Technique Lab: Beginning An introductory contemporary/modern studio course for students at the beginner or advanced-beginner level. It will address movement fundamentals from a variety of influences and their application in executing increasingly complex movement sequences. Students will develop deeper awareness, skill, confidence, and individuality in movement—a solid base for continued study in dance or one that can inform other creative pursuits from a more embodied point of view. Two credit hours.
TD117 Contemporary Dance Technique Lab: Intermediate In this studio practicum, students with prior dance experience at the intermediate or advanced level will develop greater facility with contemporary/modern dance practices. Students will increase efficiency of movement articulation at the joints, will increase ability to perform complex movement in a dynamic range of qualities, will make nuanced and subtle choices in performance, and will understand how to approach complex movement sequences as embodied investigations. Students will demonstrate increased flexibility, strength, coordination, and body connectivity. Two credit hours.
TD164 Performance Lab Series An applied laboratory course designed for students who have been cast in the annual Performance Lab Series production. Under the mentorship of theater and dance faculty and staff, students work in a team to collaborate in the practice and creation of new work, to apply problem solving and critical thinking skills to embodied investigations, and to engage in creative exploration in the formation of new performance work. Outcomes include understanding creative research as a rigorous, complex undertaking and cultivating a personal performance aesthetic incorporating individual choices and risks, both creatively and in performance. Nongraded. Prerequisite: Audition. One credit hour.
TD197 "Human/Nature" Lab Students will conduct creative research to generate performance material in response to scheduled events surrounding the 2015-16 humanities theme Human/Nature. This research will serve as the basis for and prerequisite to the Jan Plan course TD361, in which students will create an original dance/theater hybrid piece. Outcomes include understanding creative research as a rigorous, complex undertaking and cultivating a personal performance aesthetic incorporating individual choices and risks, both creatively and in performance. Nongraded. Human/Nature theme course. Prerequisite: Audition. One credit hour.
TD258 Improvisational Practices in Dance Approaches improvisation as a compositional, formal performance form and, metaphorically, as a means to open to the unknown, prepare to live in unpredictable environments, recognize options as they exist around us, imagine possible futures, and make clear choices. Students cultivate heightened awareness, develop a receptive, responsive bodymind—open, playful, daring, associative, resourceful, and able to craft choices based on instinct and design. Students remain in process and take risks nonjudgmentally, with courage putting those skills to the test in formal performances, carefully crafting each work as it emerges. Four credit hours.
TD262 Topics in Dance Performance/Production: Collaborative Company Experience Offers students the chance to learn and practice a range of dance production topics. Since content will vary, can be repeated once. Students will experience choreography as an unfolding process, creative research, and a collaborative endeavor. At the end, students will be able to demonstrate fundamentals of theatrical production, communicate aesthetic ideas, and collaborate with artistic team colleagues. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Four credit hours.
TD264 Applied Performance/Production: First-Year Dance Calling all first-year dancers and non-dancers interested in a modern/contemporary dance performance opportunity. A chance for students new to the Colby community (first-years and transfers) to experience the process of creating and performing a new repertory piece as part of the Fall Dance Concert. Auditions open to experienced dancers and those without prior experience, as the piece will have room to highlight both. Check the Theater and Dance website for dates and times. Nongraded. Prerequisite: Audition. Two credit hours.
TD285 The Choreographic Process This introduction to dance-making examines the creative process focusing on physical language, dynamics, and spatial arrangements as possibilities for constructing meaning. We look at movement vocabulary as something that is invented, created personally, crafted carefully in time, space, dynamic arrangement, and relationship to other bodies, always holding the potential for surprise from inside and out. We explore movement ideas, construct and deconstruct movement phrases, discuss readings, choreography, processes, class studies, and roadblocks. Students will begin to discover individual, choreographic points of view and will learn about a diverse set of contemporary choreographers and their work. Four credit hours.
TD355 Applied Choreography Students with previous experience in contemporary choreography at the college level will create original works for formal performance through a rigorous creative process that includes feedback from faculty and peers, presentation of design concepts, and collaboration with student lighting designers. Course will address contemporary issues in dance including viewings of work by active, acclaimed, and emerging professional choreographers. Prerequisite: Theater and Dance 285, or 258 with permission of instructor. Four credit hours.
TD361 Advanced Topics in Performance: Human/Nature Continuing research conducted in TD164 in the fall semester, students create an original dance/theater hybrid performance piece with the potential for an off-campus tour. Working with advanced compositional, performance, improvisational, and other embodied practices, students will continue to explore concepts developed in the fall while cultivating an understanding of creative research as a rigorous, complex undertaking and cultivating a personal performance aesthetic incorporating individual choices and risks, both creatively and in performance. Interested students studying abroad in either the fall or spring semesters should contact Professors Coulter and Kloppenberg. Human/Nature humanities lab. Prerequisite: Theater and Dance 164 or audition. Three credit hours.
TD483, 484 Honors Thesis in Theater and Dance Majors may apply for admission in spring of their junior year. Requires research conducted under the guidance of a faculty member and focused on an approved topic leading to the writing of a thesis, an oral public presentation or performance, and a presentation in the Colby Liberal Arts Symposium. Prerequisite: Senior standing, a 3.25 grade point average, a 3.50 major average at the end of January of the junior year, and unanimous approval of the department. Three or four credit hours.
TD493 Senior Seminar This capstone experience offers students the chance to engage in seminar-level discussions on the history and aesthetics of performance and to further develop critical and analytical skills related to performance culture. Taught each year by a different member of the faculty who chooses the theme and identifies reading/viewings from a master list developed by the department. The structure includes: seminar-style discussions based on significant weekly readings/viewings; a professional preparation workshop; and peer-to-peer tutorial sessions wherein the reading/viewing material is chosen by the students (with the guidance of the professor) and the discussion is generated and moderated by the students (with input from the professor). Prerequisite: Senior standing as a theater and dance major. Four credit hours.
TD114 The Dance Experience A broad introduction to the field of contemporary dance including opportunities to experiment with studio practices (dance techniques and creative choreographic exercises) and to study and analyze the form's history and theory. No prior dance training necessary. Students with dance training are invited to enroll, understanding that technique will be taught at an introductory level but incorporating valuable exercises in contextualizing and discussing dance. At the end students will be able to demonstrate the fundamentals of contemporary dance movement, communicate (in verbal and written form) aesthetic ideas, and meaningfully engage in the creative research process. Four credit hours.
TD116 Ballet Forms Technique Lab An exploration of the principles of ballet including, but not limited to, technique, vocabulary, and history. Students will make the vital connection between theory and practice by demonstrating their knowledge of technique within the classroom and will recognize the benefits of risk-taking through theory, performance, and evaluation. They will understand the cultural history of ballet through independent practice and research, as well as synergetic discussion. Two credit hours.
TD117 Contemporary Dance Technique Lab: Beginning An introductory contemporary/modern studio course for students at the beginner or advanced-beginner level. It will address movement fundamentals from a variety of influences and their application in executing increasingly complex movement sequences. Students will develop deeper awareness, skill, confidence, and individuality in movement—a solid base for continued study in dance or one that can inform other creative pursuits from a more embodied point of view. Two credit hours.
TD117 Contemporary Dance Technique Lab: Intermediate In this studio practicum, students with prior dance experience at the intermediate or advanced level will develop greater facility with contemporary/modern dance practices. Students will increase efficiency of movement articulation at the joints, will increase ability to perform complex movement in a dynamic range of qualities, will make nuanced and subtle choices in performance, and will understand how to approach complex movement sequences as embodied investigations. Students will demonstrate increased flexibility, strength, coordination, and body connectivity. Two credit hours.
TD164 Performance Lab Series An applied laboratory course designed for students who have been cast in the annual Performance Lab Series production. Under the mentorship of theater and dance faculty and staff, students work in a team to collaborate in the practice and creation of new work, to apply problem solving and critical thinking skills to embodied investigations, and to engage in creative exploration in the formation of new performance work. Outcomes include understanding creative research as a rigorous, complex undertaking and cultivating a personal performance aesthetic incorporating individual choices and risks, both creatively and in performance. Nongraded. Prerequisite: Audition. One credit hour.
TD197 "Human/Nature" Lab Students will conduct creative research to generate performance material in response to scheduled events surrounding the 2015-16 humanities theme Human/Nature. This research will serve as the basis for and prerequisite to the Jan Plan course TD361, in which students will create an original dance/theater hybrid piece. Outcomes include understanding creative research as a rigorous, complex undertaking and cultivating a personal performance aesthetic incorporating individual choices and risks, both creatively and in performance. Nongraded. Human/Nature theme course. Prerequisite: Audition. One credit hour.
TD258 Improvisational Practices in Dance Approaches improvisation as a compositional, formal performance form and, metaphorically, as a means to open to the unknown, prepare to live in unpredictable environments, recognize options as they exist around us, imagine possible futures, and make clear choices. Students cultivate heightened awareness, develop a receptive, responsive bodymind—open, playful, daring, associative, resourceful, and able to craft choices based on instinct and design. Students remain in process and take risks nonjudgmentally, with courage putting those skills to the test in formal performances, carefully crafting each work as it emerges. Four credit hours.
TD262 Topics in Dance Performance/Production: Collaborative Company Experience Offers students the chance to learn and practice a range of dance production topics. Since content will vary, can be repeated once. Students will experience choreography as an unfolding process, creative research, and a collaborative endeavor. At the end, students will be able to demonstrate fundamentals of theatrical production, communicate aesthetic ideas, and collaborate with artistic team colleagues. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Four credit hours.
TD264 Applied Performance/Production: First-Year Dance Calling all first-year dancers and non-dancers interested in a modern/contemporary dance performance opportunity. A chance for students new to the Colby community (first-years and transfers) to experience the process of creating and performing a new repertory piece as part of the Fall Dance Concert. Auditions open to experienced dancers and those without prior experience, as the piece will have room to highlight both. Check the Theater and Dance website for dates and times. Nongraded. Prerequisite: Audition. Two credit hours.
TD285 The Choreographic Process This introduction to dance-making examines the creative process focusing on physical language, dynamics, and spatial arrangements as possibilities for constructing meaning. We look at movement vocabulary as something that is invented, created personally, crafted carefully in time, space, dynamic arrangement, and relationship to other bodies, always holding the potential for surprise from inside and out. We explore movement ideas, construct and deconstruct movement phrases, discuss readings, choreography, processes, class studies, and roadblocks. Students will begin to discover individual, choreographic points of view and will learn about a diverse set of contemporary choreographers and their work. Four credit hours.
TD355 Applied Choreography Students with previous experience in contemporary choreography at the college level will create original works for formal performance through a rigorous creative process that includes feedback from faculty and peers, presentation of design concepts, and collaboration with student lighting designers. Course will address contemporary issues in dance including viewings of work by active, acclaimed, and emerging professional choreographers. Prerequisite: Theater and Dance 285, or 258 with permission of instructor. Four credit hours.
TD361 Advanced Topics in Performance: Human/Nature Continuing research conducted in TD164 in the fall semester, students create an original dance/theater hybrid performance piece with the potential for an off-campus tour. Working with advanced compositional, performance, improvisational, and other embodied practices, students will continue to explore concepts developed in the fall while cultivating an understanding of creative research as a rigorous, complex undertaking and cultivating a personal performance aesthetic incorporating individual choices and risks, both creatively and in performance. Interested students studying abroad in either the fall or spring semesters should contact Professors Coulter and Kloppenberg. Human/Nature humanities lab. Prerequisite: Theater and Dance 164 or audition. Three credit hours.
TD483, 484 Honors Thesis in Theater and Dance Majors may apply for admission in spring of their junior year. Requires research conducted under the guidance of a faculty member and focused on an approved topic leading to the writing of a thesis, an oral public presentation or performance, and a presentation in the Colby Liberal Arts Symposium. Prerequisite: Senior standing, a 3.25 grade point average, a 3.50 major average at the end of January of the junior year, and unanimous approval of the department. Three or four credit hours.
TD493 Senior Seminar This capstone experience offers students the chance to engage in seminar-level discussions on the history and aesthetics of performance and to further develop critical and analytical skills related to performance culture. Taught each year by a different member of the faculty who chooses the theme and identifies reading/viewings from a master list developed by the department. The structure includes: seminar-style discussions based on significant weekly readings/viewings; a professional preparation workshop; and peer-to-peer tutorial sessions wherein the reading/viewing material is chosen by the students (with the guidance of the professor) and the discussion is generated and moderated by the students (with input from the professor). Prerequisite: Senior standing as a theater and dance major. Four credit hours.