2019/20 UMS LEARNING GUIDE Dorrance Dance: Myelination BE PRESENT
BE PRESENT 1 2019/20 Table of Contents
04 05 06 19 ATTEND THE DETAILS LEARN CONNECT
07 Why? 20 Being an Audience Member 09 Artist 23 Arts Online 11 Art Form 24 Recommended Reading 16 Performance 25 Writing About Live Performance 32 About UMS 33 Credits and Sponsors October 17-18 UMS SCHOOL DAY PERFORMANCE
Dorrance Dance: Myelination
Friday, February 21, 2020 // 11 am Power Center
BE PRESENT 3 Attend
Coming to your email Inbox!
Map and Driving Directions Logistical Details (drop-off/pick-up locations) Venue Information
734.764.2538 ——— UMS.ORG
BE PRESENT 4 The Details
ACCESSIBILITY We aim to maximize accessibility at our performances and below are details regarding this performance’s points of accessibility. If you have further questions, email [email protected] or call 734.615.0122.
The following services are available to audience members: • Wheelchair, companion, or other special seating • Courtesy wheelchairs • Hearing Impaired Support Systems
PARKING There is handicapped parking very close to the Power Center on Fletcher Street and in the parking structure behind the Power Center on Palmer Drive. The first three levels of the Palmer Drive structure have five parking spots on each level next to each elevator. There are a total of 15 parking spaces in the garage. VENUE ADDRESS Power Center, 121 Fletcher St, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBILITY The Power Center is wheelchair accessible and has 12 seats for audience EMERGENCY CONTACT NUMBER members with special needs. 734.764.2538
BATHROOMS ADA ARRIVAL TIME Compliant toilets are available in the green room (east corner) of the Power Between 10:30-10:50 am Center for both men and women.
TICKETS ENTRY We do not use paper tickets for School Day Performances. We hold school The front doors are not powered; however, there will be an usher at that door reservations at the door and seat groups upon arrival. opening it for all patrons.
FOOD CELL PHONES Food (including school lunches), drinks, and chewing gum are not allowed in We ask that all audience members turn off their cell phones during the the theater. performance.
BE PRESENT 5 Learn
Dorrance Dance
UMS.ORG ——— 734.615.0122
BE PRESENT 6 LEARN
Why? UMS EDUCATION ARTISTIC STATEMENT
Dorrance Dance is an award-winning tap dance company based out of New York City. The company’s work aims to honor tap dance’s uniquely beautiful history in a new, dynamic, and compelling context; not by stripping the form of its tradition, but by pushing it forward rhythmically, technically, and conceptually. The company’s inaugural performance garnered a Bessie Award for “blasting open our notions of tap,” and the company continues its passionate commitment to expanding the audience of America’s original art form.
Michelle Dorrance, the company’s founder and choreographer, advocates for tap’s acceptance in the academy and on the concert stage while recognizing its history and origins in the devastating conditions of slavery. “I think tap dance is an incredibly transcendent form,” says Dorrance. “It is born of some of the most oppressed people our country and culture has known and…finds its way to joy.”
Dorrance’s approach to choreography involves complex movements and frequent collaboration with musicians, other choreographers, and audio engineers. Upon awarding Dorrance a 2015 “Genius Grant,” the MacArthur Foundation wrote, “Dorrance maintains the essential layering of rhythms in tap but choreographs ensemble works that engage the entire body: dancers swoop, bend, leap, and twist with a dramatic expression that is at once musical and visual.”
UMS is thrilled to present the stunning intersection of movement, sound, rhythm, and music with Dorrance Dance.
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Why? ONLINE: CONNECTING TO THE PERFORMANCE
Online: Getting to Know Michelle Dorrance
VIDEO: PBS NewsHour Profile
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Artist DORRANCE DANCE: FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
01 02 03 Michelle Dorrance, whose mother is a Dorrance Dance’s work aims to honor Dorrance premiered the original 16-minute version professional ballet dancer and teacher, tap dance’s uniquely beautiful history in of Myelination at New York City Center’s 2015 began studying ballet at the age of three in a new, dynamic, and compelling context, Fall for Dance Festival. Two years later, Dorrance Chapel Hill, NC. Dorrance quickly gravitated not by stripping the form of its tradition, developed a new, evening-length version of the towards tap and began performing with but by pushing it forward rhythmically, work featuring 12 company dancers, 8 musicians, her local tap ensemble at an early age. technically, and conceptually. The and original music by composers/musicians She later toured with the off-Broadway company’s inaugural performance Donovan Dorrance and Gregory Richardson. production of “Stomp the Yard” before garnered a Bessie Award for “blasting turning her focus to choreography. open our notions of tap” and the company continues its passionate commitment to expanding the audience of tap dance, America’s original art form. 04 05 Dorrance’s work Myelination comes from a biology term referring to the process of a myelin Michelle Dorrance promotes tap both in the sheath forming around a nerve, allowing nerve impulses to move more quickly. This concept academic world and in mainstream culture. manifests in the choreography, as Dorrance creates a dynamic road map of increasingly quick- Following her 2015 MacArthur “Genius” Award, footed movement that is just as musical as it is visually enticing. Beginning with fleeting Dorrance brought tap to mainstream audiences duets, the choreography morphs into energetic and powerful segments with the entire by performing her choreography on The Late ensemble of dancers delivering fast unison footwork. The choreography and music accelerate Show with Stephen Colbert. Dorrance even taught in tandem as the dancer’s musical footwork blends with an original musical accompaniment. Colbert a simple tap sequence to great success!
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Artist ONLINE: GETTING TO KNOW MICHELLE DORRANCE
Additional Resources: VIDEO: Dorrance Dance Show and Tell [1 hour 40 min lecture/demonstration]
VIDEO: “How tap dancing was made in America” by Vox Media
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Art Form TAP DANCE
ORIGINS OF TAP DANCE and Broadway brought performance opportunities to Tap dance originated in the United States in the African-American dancers, racism was still pervasive: early 19th century at the crossroads of African and white and black dancers typically performed Irish American dance forms. When slave owners took separately and for segregated audiences. Tap’s away traditional African percussion instruments, popularity declined in the second half of the century, slaves turned to percussive dancing to express but was reinvigorated in the 1980s through Broadway nd themselves and retain their cultural identities. These shows like 42 Street and The Tap Dance Kid. styles of dance connected with clog dancing from the British Isles, creating a unique form of movement Tap in Hollywood and rhythm. Early tap shoes had wooden soles, From the 1930s to the 1950s, tap dance sequences sometimes with pennies attached to the heel and became a staple of movies and television. Tap stars toe. Tap gained popularity after the Civil War as a part included Shirley Temple, who made her film tap of traveling minstrel shows, where white and black dance debut at age 6, and Gene Kelly, who introduced performers wore blackface and belittled black people a balletic style of tap. Fred Astaire, famous for by portraying them as lazy, dumb, and comical. combining tap with ballroom dance, insisted that his dance scenes be captured with a single take and wide EVOLUTION OF TAP DANCE camera angle. This style of cinematography became the norm for tap dancing in movies and television for 20th Century Tap decades. Tap was an important feature of popular Vaudeville variety shows of the early 20th century and a major Tap Today part of the rich creative output of the Harlem Tap continues to be an important part of American Renaissance. Tap dancers began collaborating with vernacular dance. Modern tap dancers are informed jazz musicians, incorporating improvisation and by the traditions, movements, and styles of their complex syncopated rhythms into their movement. predecessors while continuing to push the limits The modern tap shoe, featuring metal plates of their art form. Tap is also gaining long-deserved (called “taps”) on the heel and toe, also came into recognition on the concert stage, at major dance widespread use at this time. Although Vaudeville festivals, and in university classrooms.
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Art Form DANCE
MOVEMENT Choreography is the series or combination of movements that creates these fundamental patterns in time and space. Like words in a sentence, the individual movements are just as important as the product of their combination. In dance there are many different types of movement. Here are some options to explore as you think about dance.
TYPE DEFINITION
Sustained An even release of energy that stays constant, either fast or slow, but not both.
Percussive Sudden bursts of energy that start and stop quickly.
Swinging A drop of energy into gravity that sustains and follows through.
Suspended This is the movement at the end of a swing, before gravity takes over.
Collapse A sudden and complete release of energy, like fainting and either of the full body or a single body part.
Explosive A gathering of energy that is released as a burst of one huge sudden action, either of the full body or a single body part.
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Art Form DANCE
ELEMENTS The elements of dance — easily remembered with the use of the acronym BEST: Body, Energy, Space, and Time — can be helpful guides in watching or thinking about dance. (Cornett, C. (1999). The Arts as Meaning Makers. Pearson Education, Inc.)
BODY ENERGY SPACE TIME
Parts: Force: Level: Rhythm: Head, shoulders, elbows, hands, knees, feet, etc. Smooth or sharp Low, middle, high Pulse, beat
Isolation: Weight: Levels: Speed: Movements restricted to one area of the body Heavy or light The height of the dancer in relation to the floor. Pace, tempo, rate such as the shoulders, rib cage or hips When a dancer is at a low level, a part of his Strength: torso might touch the floor; when a dancer is at Accent: Shapes: Tight or relaxed a high level, he might be in the air or on his toes Light or strong emphasis Curved/angular, small/large, flat/rounded Flow: Direction: Duration: Actions: Sudden or sustained, bound Forward, backward, up, down, sideways Fast/slow, short/long (Non-locomotor) Stretch, bend, twist, rise, fall, or free circle, shake, suspend, sway, swing, collapse or Size: Phrases: (Locomotor) walk, run, leap, hop, jump, gallop, Large or small Dance sentences, patterns skip, slide and combinations Destination: Locomotor: Where a dancer moves Movements that occur in general space when a dancer moves place to place Pathways: Patterns we make with the body on the floor and Non-locomotor: in the air Movements that occur in a person’s space with one body part anchored to one spot and that are Focus: organized around the spine or axis of the body Where a dancer looks
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Art Form HISTORY: TAP MASTERS
Master Juba (ca. 1825–ca. 1852) was one of the only early black tap The Nicholas Brothers dancers to tour with a white minstrel group and one of the first to Fayard (1914-2006) and Harold (1921-2000) Nicholas had a film perform for white audiences. Master Juba offered a fast and technically and television tap career spanning more than 70 years. Impressed brilliant dance style blending European and African dance forms. by their choreography, George Balanchine invited them to appear in his Broadway production of Babes in Arms. Their unique style of Bill “Bojangles” Robinson (1878–1949) began dancing in minstrel suppleness, strength, and fearlessness led many to believe that they shows and was one of the first African-American dancers to perform were trained ballet dancers. without blackface. He adapted to the changing tastes of the era, moving on to vaudeville, Broadway, Hollywood Radio programs, and Gregory Hines (1946-2003) introduced a higher complexity of the television. Robinson’s most popular routine involved dancing up and improvisation of steps, sounds, rhythms. Hines’s dances were down a staircase with complex tap rhythms on each step. rhythmically involved and often strayed from traditional rhythmic meters.
Clayton “Peg Leg” Bates (1907-98) continued to dance with after Savion Glover (b. 1973) is best known for starring in the Broadway losing a leg in a cotton gin accident as a child. He danced in hit The Tap Dance Kid. Glover mixes classic moves like those of his vaudeville, on film, and was a frequent guest on The Ed Sullivan Show. teacher Gregory Hines with his own contemporary style. He has won Bates also frequently performed for others with physical disabilities. several Tony awards for his Broadway choreography.
Jeni Le Gon (1916-2012) was one of the first black women to become a tap soloist in the first half of the 20th century. She wore pants rather than skirts when she performed and, as a result, she developed an athletic, acrobatic style, employing mule kicks and flying splits, more in the manner of the male dancers of the time.
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Art Form TAP DANCE TERMINOLOGY
Tap dances are comprised of different combinations of basic moves. Read about some of these building blocks and try them out for yourself!
Toe: Strike the floor with the toe
Heel: Strike the floor with the heel
Heel Toe: Strike the floor with the heel, immediately followed by a strike of the toe
Brush: While standing on one leg, sweep the other leg across the floor (known as a “spank” when the free leg sweeps backwards)
Scuff: Similar to a brush, but hitting the floor with the heel instead of sweeping the shoe
Shuffle: The combination of two brushes
Flap heel: A brush with on to the heel at the end of the brush motion
Ball change: A transfer of weight from the front foot to the ball of the back foot
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Performance DORRANCE DANCE
“To be able to be a dancer and a musician at the same time, there’s nothing like it…There’s something organic in your biorhythms, your heartbeat. And to be able to demonstrate that inside of a moving form is phenomenal.” — Michelle Dorrance
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Performance DORRANCE DANCE
Dorrance Dance Myelination
Michelle Dorrance, artistic director and choreographer Friday, February 21, 2020 // 11 am Power Center
Founded in 2011 by MacArthur “Genius” Award recipient Michelle Dorrance, who has appeared with STOMP, Savion Glover, Manhattan Tap, and others, Dorrance Dance honors tap dance’s uniquely beautiful history in a new and dynamically compelling context, pushing it forward rhythmically, aesthetically, and conceptually. The New York Times called Dorrance “a brilliant conductor [who] pushes the boundaries of tap while exposing its true nature: that it is music.”
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Performance ONLINE: DORRANCE DANCE
Dorrance Dance will perform the piece Myelination at the School Day Performance. Watch this video to learn more about Michelle Dorrance’s creative process and the ideas behind the piece.
BE PRESENT 18 Connect
Being an Audience Member Arts Online Recommended Reading Writing about Live Performances About UMS
734.764.2538 ——— UMS.ORG
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Being an Audience Member AUDIENCE ETIQUETTE 101
• No talking, unless audience participation is requested by the performers. WHEN SHOULD I CLAP?
• Avoid fidgeting and moving around in your seat during the performance. The audience claps to welcome the performers as they come on stage. Slumping sideways blocks the view for audience members behind you, and extra movements can be distracting to your neighbors. The audience also claps at the conclusion of each piece on the program, but not between movements of a single piece. This can be • Do not take flash photography. The flash can be distracting to the tricky, because many musical works have several movements with performers on stage. pauses in between. A work’s movements will be listed in the program or announced at the performance. Not sure when the piece is over? Watch • Turn off and put away cell phones and other electronic devices. the conductor, who will lower their hands at the end of the piece. • If you need to cough during the performance, wait for the pause between movements of a piece or try to “bury” your cough in a loud When in doubt, it’s always safe to wait and follow what the rest of the passage of music. audience does.
• If you need assistance, please speak to a UMS usher.
• Most importantly, relax and enjoy the performance!
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Being an Audience Member ENGAGING WITH THE PERFORMANCE
Encourage your students to engage with and reflect on the performance GLOSSARY: ELEMENTS OF PERFORMANCE by asking these questions: Space – venue/building, stage, distance between objects
• How did the performance make you feel? Lighting – location of light, use of darkness, color, movement, light in the audience • What does this performance remind you of? Sound – sound created by voices or movements of performers and • What was the most memorable part of the performance for you? audience members, the location of the sound (behind the stage or • How does this performance relate to where you live? offstage), use of musical instruments or recorded music
• During the performance, close your eyes and imagine a “mind movie” Movement – movement of performers, images, objects, or audience using the performance as a soundtrack. What did you see in your mind? members; speed, size, or shape of movements
• Did the performance tell a specific story? People: • Dancers • Do you have any questions about the performance? • Actors • Musicians • Stage Crew • Ushers • Audience Members
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Connecting to Other Art Forms
IMAGE IMAGE INFORMATION DESCRIPTION CONNECTION/INTERPRETATION
Accession Dorrance Dance - Myelination In this woodcut, we see Number young women and men 1943.100 Founded in 2011 by MacArthur possibly dancing the jitterbug, “Genius “Award recipient a new dance at the time. Title Michelle Dorrance, Dorrance Artist Elizabeth Olds worked Harlem Dancers Dance honors tap dance’s during the Great Depression; uniquely beautiful history she was interested in Artist(s) in a new and dynamically highlighting racial injustice, Elizabeth Olds compelling context, pushing celebrating African Americans’ it forward rhythmically, cultural contributions, and Artist Nationality aesthetically, and conceptually. experimenting with artistic American (North American) UMS is thrilled to be presenting forms. We can imagine that Dorrance Dance again on the joy depicted in this print Object Creation Date our School Day Performance echoes the rhythm and energy 1939 series. Dorrance has appeared in Myelination. with STOMP, Savion Glover, Medium & Support Manhattan Tap, and a host of Woodcut on paper others. Dorrance is “a brilliant conductor [who] pushes Dimensions the boundaries of tap while 10 1/16 in x 14 ⅛ in exposing its true nature: that it (25.56 cm x 35.88 cm) is music.” (New York Times)
Credit Line Allocated by the U.S. Government Commissioned through the New Deal art projects
The artwork was provided by the University Of Michigan Museum Of Art to connect to the 2019/20 UMS School Day Performance series. UMMA has a long tradition of service to K-12 students and educators of Southeast Michigan. This work is currently on exhibition in the museum. For more information about the University of Michigan Museum of Art and their programs for youth, teens, teachers and schools, visit the UMMA website.
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Arts Online: Explore and Discover SITES WE SUGGEST
UMS NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC MICHIGAN RADIO ums.org nyphil.org michiganradio.org
UMMA AMERICAN THEATRE PBS: PUBLIC BROADCASTING SERVICE umma.umich.edu americantheatre.org pbs.org
THE KENNEDY CENTER, ARTSEDGE DANCEMAGAZINE NEW YORK TIMES ArtsEdge.org dancemagazine.com nytimes.com
ANN ARBOR DISTRICT LIBRARY NPR: NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO aadl.org npr.org
2019-20 SCHOOL DAY PERFORMANCES: ARTIST WEBSITES
ISANGO ENSEMBLE DORRANCE DANCE dorrancedance.com/ isangoensemble.co.za/
CHINEKE! ORCHESTRA THE BELIEVERS ARE BUT BROTHERS chineke.org/ javaadalipoor.co.uk/babb
MARIACHI VARGAS DE TECALITLÁN orchestraoftheamericas.org/people/mariachi-vargas- de-tecalitlan/
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Recommended Reading
The following listing of literature for teens and youth was developed by the Ann Arbor District Library to connect to the 2019/20 UMS School Day Performance Series. All titles are in circulation at the library. For more information about the Ann Arbor District Library and their programs for youth, teens, teachers and schools, visit https://www.aadl.org.
KIDS Isango Ensemble: The Magic Flute Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán The Magic Flute, by Christopher Raschka The Best Mariachi in the World, by J.D. Smith Picture book Picture book This illustrated book for children retells the story of the Mozart opera, in which Everyone in Gustavo’s family is in a mariachi band — everyone except Gustavo, the noble Prince Tamino seeks the fair Pamina against a backdrop of the battle that is. They all play violins, trompetas and guitarrones. They all make wonderful between darkness and light. music in restaurants and at wedding parties. Gustavo would love to join the band, but he can’t play any of the instruments. What’s a wannabe mariachi to Baby Mozart: A Concert for Little Ears do? Follow Gustavo as he finds his place in the family mariachi band. CD Mozart’s The Magic Flute adapted for young listeners. Dorrance Dance Tot Tap: A fun-filled introduction to the world of tap dance for kids. Sing Me a Story: The Metropolitan Opera’s Book of Opera Stories for Children, DVD by Jane Rosenberg Learn basic tap dance moves in this instructional DVD for kids. Picture book An illustrated retelling of the plots of 15 well-known operas, including Tasha the Tap Dance Fairy, by Daisy Meadows The Magic Flute. Fiction book Part of the popular Rainbow Magic series, in this installment tap dance is used S is for South Africa, by Beverly Naidoo to help a fairy recover a missing item from an evil goblin. Picture Book This photograph-filled book presents an A to Z look at some of the people, Rap A Tap Tap, by Leo and Diane Dillon places, items, and customs of South Africa. Picture book Illustrations and rhyme describe the dancing of Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, one of the most famous tap dancers of all time.
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Recommended Reading
Continued.
Chineke! Orchestra TEEN/ADULT The Walkabout Orchestra: Postcards from Around the World, by Chloé Perarnau Isango Ensemble: The Magic Flute Picture book The Magic Flute The orchestra have an important concert to play… but all of the musicians have DVD gone walkabout! Help the maestro and his faithful assistant track them down Directed by Ingmar Bergman, this Swedish film is a scintillating screen version using clues from their postcards from all over the world. Learn about all of the of Mozart’s beloved opera that showcases Bergman’s deep knowledge of music instruments in an orchestra as you find the musicians! and his gift for expressing it cinematically. This Criterion Collection film casts some of Europe’s finest soloists, and lovingly recreates the Baroque theater Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, by Andrea Davis Pinkney of Sweden’s Drottningholm Palace to stage the story of the prince Tamino and Biography his zestful sidekick Papageno, who are sent on a mission to save a beautiful The Coretta Scott King Award-winning biography that recounts the career of princess from the clutches of evil. Duke Ellington, the jazz musician and composer who, along with his orchestra, created music that was beyond category. The Magic Flute CD The Story of the Orchestra, by Robert Levine The London Philharmonic Orchestra plays Mozart’s opera. Nonfiction book This book, accompanied by a CD, allows you to listen while you learn about the Sunlight & Shadow: A Retelling of The Magic Flute, by Cameron Dokey instruments, music and composers who wrote the music in an orchestra. Fiction book A baby girl is born on the longest night of the darkest month of the year. When her father looks at her, all he sees is what he feared: by birth, by name, and by nature, she belongs to the Dark. So when Mina turns 16, her father takes her away from shadow and brings her into sunlight. In retaliation, her mother lures a handsome prince into a deadly agreement: If he frees Mina, he can claim her as his bride. Now Mina and her prince must endure deadly trials — of love, fate, and family — before they can truly live happily ever after.
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Recommended Reading
Continued.
The Operas of Mozart, by Robert Greenberg Hateland: A Long, Hard Look at America’s Extremist Heart, by Daryl Johnson Lecture DVD Nonfiction book A discussion of Mozart’s most important operas, including a 45-minute lecture An in-depth analysis of the current threat from domestic terrorism and its on The Magic Flute. growing menace. Johnson throws a stark light on the darkest segments of American society and offers suggestions for dealing with their violent threats. THE BELIEVERS ARE BUT BROTHERS Alt-Right: From 4chan to the White House, by Mike Wendling Radicalization: Why Some People Choose the Path of Violence, Nonfiction book by Farhad Khosrokhavar Media accounts to the contrary, the alt-right didn’t just burst out of nowhere Nonfiction book in 2016. They have been building their network quietly for years, using online In the wake of recent terrorist attacks, fears over ‘homegrown terrorism’ bulletin boards and social media to spread a toxic hybrid of technological have surfaced to a degree not seen since September 11, 2001. A sought- utopianism, reactionary philosophy, and racial hatred. Wendling traces the rise after commentator in France and a widely respected international scholar of of the movement and the evolution of its ideas, and he introduces us to some of radical Islam, Farhad Khosrokhavar has spent years studying the path towards its key figures. radicalization, focusing particularly on the key role of prisons. Mariachi Vargas De Tecalitlán Two Sisters: A Father, His Daughters, and Their Journey into the Syrian Jihad, by Åsne Seierstad 100 Anos de Mariachi Nonfiction book CD A riveting story of two sisters’ journey to the Islamic State and the father who tries Mariachi music from the past century performed by various artists and groups. to bring them home. Åsne Seierstad puts the problem of radicalization into painfully human terms, using instant messages and other primary sources to reconstruct a The Guilty, by Juan Villoro family’s crisis from the inside. This is a relentless thriller and a feat of reporting with Short story collection profound lessons about belief, extremism, and the meaning of devotion. A brilliant prize-winning collection of stories that beautifully and hauntingly describes Mexican culture and ways of life, by Mexico’s most important living writer.
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Recommended Reading
Continued.
Dorrance Dance Chineke! Orchestra
Tap Dance History: From Vaudeville to Film William Grant Still, by Catherine Smith DVD Biography This film explores the history of tap dance from its beginnings to the modern William Grant Still was dubbed “The Dean” of African-American composers day. Tap dance enthusiasts will especially enjoy the rare footage of tap dancing and was the first African American to conduct a major American symphony in films from the 1930s and 1940s. orchestra. He composed more than 150 works during his lifetime, including five symphonies and eight operas. What the Eye Hears: A History of Tap Dancing, by Brian Seibert Nonfiction book Ellington & the Modern Masters: Music of African-American Composers Tap is both dancing to music and dancing as music. We don’t just watch it; CD we hear its rhythms and feel them in our muscles and bones. Like jazz, tap was born in the United States. It’s a hybrid of jig and clog dancing from the Violin Concertos by Black Composers of the 18th & 19th Centuries British Isles and traditional folk dances brought from Africa by slaves. Brian CD Seibert’s history illuminates tap’s complex origins. He charts tap’s growth in the vaudeville circuits and nightclubs of the early 20th century, chronicles its I Got Thunder: Black Women Songwriters on Their Craft, by LaShonda Barnett spread to ubiquity on Broadway and in Hollywood, analyzes its post-World War Nonfiction book II decline, and celebrates its reinvention by new generations of American and A collection of interviews Barnett conducted with Black female songwriters international performers. and composers, discussing their processes for songwriting, composing, and performing.
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Writing About Live Performance With Your Students
A LETTER TO PERFORMERS Once the performance is done, have students write down their notes, Grade Level: Elementary School Students (K-5) observations, and reflections. They will use these notes to help them write their letters. Students will compose a personal letter to a performer from the School Day Performance. The student will write about their feelings, observations, and questions from the performance. With a teacher’s AFTER THE PERFORMANCE assistance, students may send these letters to the performers. Instruct students to write a letter to the performers. In completing this exercise, students should: BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE Discuss the following with your students: • Use standard letter-writing conventions (“Dear…,” “Sincerely,”) • Mention when and where the performance took place 1. Live Performances • Use the notes they took to share their experiences, observations, and 2. The Art Form questions with the performers 3. The Artist 4. Origin of the Art Form or Artist
DURING THE PERFORMANCE To help students organize their thoughts during the performance, encourage them to consider the following:
I Notice... I Feel... I Wonder...
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Writing About Live Performance With Your Students
TWO THUMBS UP: WRITING A PERFORMANCE REVIEW AFTER THE PERFORMANCE Grade Level: Middle and High School Students (6-12) Instruct students to compare their pre-performance notes to their post-performance observations and write a 2-3-page review. BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE Have students, in groups or as individuals, conduct background research Things to consider when writing a review: on the performance they will be attending. Students should research A critic’s job is to: and take notes on the following: 1. Share an experience – what did it feel, sound, look like? • Art Form 2. Provide context – a broader frame of reference around what • History of the Art Form happened to help the reader understand importance or • Terminology significance of the experience • The Artist 3. Evaluate – was it any good? • Comparisons to Similar Artists and Art Form A strong review answers these three questions: Some of this information may be found in this Learning Guide. For more 1. What is the artist trying to do? information on artists and art forms, follow the sources in the “Sites We 2. How well are they doing it? Suggest” and “Recommended Reading” sections of this Learning Guide. 3. Was it worth doing in the first place?
Before the performance begins, consider the following questions: Critics typically use two modes of thought when writing a review: • What expectations do I have for the performance? 1. Analytical – describing the grammar of the art, its execution and • Do I already have an opinion about what I will experience at the performance? interpretation by the performers, and its historical, cultural, and social relevance; using concrete language, terminology, and facts DURING THE PERFORMANCE 2. Impressionistic – describing the overall experience; using Ask students to take mental notes during the performance. As soon as abstract language, feelings, and emotions the performance ends, have students write down thoughts and words that come to mind related to the performance. Encourage students to take a strong stance on aspects of the performance, just so long as they can back up their argument with Encourage students to consider these prompts: evidence. If a student writes, “I didn’t like…” or “I particularly enjoyed…,” • What is striking to me? ask them to elaborate. • Is it vastly different from what I thought it would be? • Has the venue transformed into something else during the performance? How? • Are there images or ideas popping into my head? What are they? • Is there something about the performance I may remember forever? What made it so? • Is the audience quiet and drawn in to what is happening? Are they loud? Are they interacting directly with the performers? Are the performers directly interacting with the audience? BE PRESENT 29 CONNECT
Writing About Live Performance With Your Students
MORE WRITING PROMPTS FOR REFLECTION, EXPLORATION, AND DISCOVERY:
• What was your overall reaction to the performance? Did you find • How did the style and design elements of the production (e.g., sets, the production compelling? Stimulating? Intriguing? Challenging? costumes, lighting, sound, music, if any) enhance the performance? Memorable? Confusing? Evocative? Bizarre? Unique? Delightful? Did anything in particular stand out to you? Why? Meaningful? Explain your reactions. • What was your favorite musical selection from this performance? • What themes of the play especially stood out in production? What Why? themes were made even more apparent or especially provocative in • During the performance, imagine a story or movie playing out in your production/performance? Explain your responses. mind, set to the music or action on stage. After the performance, write • Is there a moment in the performance that specifically resonated with a story based on the narrative you imagined. you either intellectually or emotionally? Which moment was it, and • All of these performances involve one or more performers on stage at why do you think it affected you? any given moment. Which performer did you relate to the most? Why? • Describe the pace and tempo of the performance (e.g., slow, fast, varied). Did it feel like the pace of the production maintained your interest throughout? Were there any moments in which you felt bored, rushed, lost, or confused? What elements of the work or interpretation led you to feel this way? • Was there a moment during the performance that was so compelling, intriguing, or engaging that it remains with you in your mind’s eye? Write a vivid description of that moment. As you write your description, pretend that you are writing about the moment for someone who was unable to experience the performance.
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About UMS
UMS EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY UMS was selected as one of the 2014 recipients of the National Medal of Arts, the nation’s highest ENGAGEMENT DEPARTMENT public artistic honor, awarded annually by the president of the United States at the White House to those who have “demonstrated a lifetime of creative excellence.” The National Endowment for the Arts STAFF oversees the selection process.
MATTHEW VANBESIEN One of the leading performing arts presenters in the country, UMS is committed to connecting UMS President audiences with performing artists from around the world in uncommon and engaging experiences. With a program steeped in music, dance, and theater, UMS presents approximately 60-75 performances and TERRI PARK Interim Director of Education and over 100 free educational activities each season. Community Engagement At UMS, diversity is embraced as both a powerful educational resource and a guiding value for all our CHRISTINA MOZUMDAR work. Our educational philosophy is dedicated to multidisciplinary artistic and educational experiences Education and Community that represent a range of cultural traditions and viewpoints. Understanding our similarities and Engagement Manager differences informs our culture, our values, and helps us navigate the world. By learning together, we can discover something new and extraordinary about each other. Throughout our K-12 Education MADDY WILDMAN Season, we invite educators and students to celebrate diversity in order to inform, strengthen, and Education and Community unite us as a community. Engagement Manager
LEONARD BOPP KRISTIN HANSON Student Staff
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About UMS 2019/20 SCHOOL DAY PERFORMANCES
Isango Ensemble: The Magic Flute Thursday, October 17 // 11 am Friday, October 18 // 11 am Power Center
The Believers Are But Brothers
Isango Ensemble: The Magic Flute Thursday, January 23 // 11 am Friday, January 24 // 11 am Arthur Miller Theatre
Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán Thursday, February 13 // 11 am Hill Auditorium
The Believers Are But Brothers Dorrance Dance: Myelination by The Other Richard Friday, February 21 // 11 am Power Center
Chineke! Orchestra Thursday, April 23 // 11 am Hill Auditorium
Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán
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Thank You! CREDITS AND SPONSORS
WRITTEN & RESEARCHED BY UMS YOUTH EDUCATION PROGRAM SUPPORTERS ($5,000 OR MORE): Sean Meyers UMS is grateful to the following donors for establishing permanent endowment funds or making annual contributions of $5,000 or more between July 1, 2018 and April 15, 2019 to support Youth Education Programs. Their generosity makes it EDITED BY possible for over 7,000 K-12 students and educators to connect with artists in creative learning experiences through the arts. Terri Park
Additional Information provided by Grace VanderVliet (UMMA) and Elizabeth The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation University of Michigan Pearce (Ann Arbor District Library)
Anonymous Mary R. Romig-deYoung Music Appreciation Fund
Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan Prudence and Amnon Rosenthal K-12 Education Endowment Fund DTE Energy Foundation Richard and Norma Sarns David and Jo-Anna Featherman U-M Credit Union Arts Adventures Program David and Phyllis Herzig Endowment Fund
Richard and Lillian Ives Endowment Fund
The Mardi Gras Fund
Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs
Michigan Medicine
National Endowment for the Arts
New England Foundation for the Arts
PNC Foundation
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