PATHFIT 4: Intro to Dance

• PATHFIT 4 focuses on physical activities toward health and fitness through dance.

Introduction to Dance

• Rhythm links the universe to human experience through sound as music and movement as dance.
• Dance is rhythmic body movement, often with music, used to express ideas/emotions, release energy, or seek joy.
• Origins from a natural impulse, it becomes an expressive art by skilled performers.

Brief History of Dance

• Pre-Historic Era: Dance functioned as a ritual and for storytelling purposes.
• Medieval Period: It had religious significance in certain regions, but faced disapproval in certain areas.
• Renaissance: Flourished, which resulted in the development of formalized styles and types like ballet.
• Modern Era: Dance evolved into various genres including modern, jazz, and hip-hop to reflect changing cultural contexts.

Dance and Music

• They served as partners in rituals, creating unity through rhythm and expression.
• Both artforms share a strong connection through rhythm.
• Roots are planted in human history, originating during early eras as part of rituals, like appeasing nature or rites of passage.
• Ancient Civilizations: Cultures integrated dancing into events like ceremonies, myths, and plays.

Dance as Ritual

• Temple Rituals: Dancing before gods considered an important element in most ancient civilizations
• Egypt: Priests/priestesses perform stately actions, and women dance to express grief at funerals.
• Greek Shrines: There were games at Olympia, inaugurated.
• Choros: The performance was originally a dance, where it was performed in a circle, and honored a god.
• India: Formal hand movements by priestesses in Hindu temples are termed Bharata Natyam.

Dance as Ecstasy

• Dance has been associated with expression and heightened emotions, often with rhythmic music and celebratory substances.
• Ancient Greece: There were Dionysiac dances.
• The Bacchae by Euripides: It immortalizes crazed women whose fury leads them to commit a tragic murde

Dance as Entertainment and Display

• Ancient Egyptian paintings from around 1400 BC demonstrate scantily clad dancers and musicians, reflecting pleasure in this life and afterlife.

Rhythm

• Rhythm is measurement of movement/variation with regular recurrence/alternation of elements like sounds, beats, and patterns.
• Rhythm appears in songs and musical instruments.
• Rhythm appears since dancers move together with tempo of the music.
• Rhythm can appear in visual designs like art, architecture, and sculptures.

Dance

• Dance refers to rhythmic body movements, commonly done to music to communicate, and includes structured movements.
• Expression of Emotions: Dance is an instrument for speaking and conveying feelings using physical movements.
• Rhythmic: It involves the flow/succession of movements.
• Musical Accompaniment: Most require music; some may use tapping, bells, or natural instruments.
• Dancing denotes full body engagements with proper projection of the face to involve the needed emotion. The end result relies on facial expression.

Phases of Dance Education Program

• Phase 1: Awareness and Appreciation focuses on fundamental techniques to have a technical preoficiency. It involves body coordination, rhythm, alignment.
• Phase 2: Skill Development emphasizes learning the movements, and techniques for certain dance forms. It includes body coordination, rhythm, alignment, and technical proficiency.
• Phase 3: Creative Expression encourages using dance as a way of storytelling, emotional expression, and creativity.
• Phase 4: Performance and Presentation prepares and showcases dance routines, emphasizing stage presence and performance. This phase builds confidence, collaboration, audience engagement, and critical dance evaluation.

Elements of Dance

• Major Elements: body, action, space, time, energy.
• Minor Elements: dynamics, relationships, structure, context.
• Body: An instrument of dance Includes posture, shapes, movements.
• Action: These are the movements and gestures performed.
• Space: The surroundings or place where the dance is happening
• Time: Tempo, rhythm, and timing of the dance
• Energy: The quality of movement used
• Dynamics: The intensity and variations in movements
• Relationship: Interaction between dancers, relationship between performers, and audience.
• Structure: Organization of movements within a dance plan
• Context: The backdrop of the dance with a cultural, societal, or historical reference.

Various Forms of Dance

• Ballet: Originated in Italy’s Renaissance, refined in France and Russia. Elegance, precision. Dancers do structured movements, commonly tell stories through sequences.
• Modern Dance: Began end of 19th century/early 20th century against classical ballet, self-expression. Uses fluid/natural movements to focus on emphasizing connection to the ground.
• Jazz: It stems from the early 20th century in African American music. It is high energy movement, syncopated, sharp, and lyrical jazz style.
• Social/Ballroom Dance: Originated in the European /Latin American aristocratic courts. Includes Waltz, Tango, Salsa, and Cha-Cha. It is often done at social gatherings.
• Hip-Hop: Began during the 1970s as a part of hip-hop culture in the Bronx, New York. It consists of breaking, popping, freestyle rhythm used in competitions and demonstrations.
• Popular Dance: trendy/viral styles popularized via movements, videos, media and cultural factors.
• Line Dance: Rooted in Western folk dances with repetitive steps performed in rows/lines during events.
• Festival Dance: Celebrates during religious festivals like Sinulog, Carnival Samba, or Flamenco, and celebrates local cultures with lively movements and costumes.
• Folk Dance: Represents cultures; celebrations with traditions like Tinikling, Irish Step Dance, or Kathak.
• Interpretative/Contemporary Dance: Blends modern, ballet, and theatrical movements, using abstract movements and innovative choreography.

Dance form characteristics

• Origin and influence on movement and purpose.
• Popular dance: Trend-based, influenced by media Includes simple participation.
• Line Dance: Country dance, movements, structured and accessible with group participation.
• Festival Dance: Tied to traditions, is commonly performed at religious festivals and colorful.
• Folk Dance: Uses cultural movements and steps with community gathering settings.
• Contemporary/Interpretative Dance: Mixed styles, fluid, and often personal expression used in innovative movement.

Reasons Why People Dance

• For enjoyment
• As a profession
• As a form of ritual, praise and worship to God
• For socialization

Performance Task

• The teacher will group the students for a 3-5 minute dance routine
• The dance will be approved by the instructor and based on either popular or line dance.

Scoring Criteria

• Execution & Technique, Synchronization & Timing, Energy & Expression, Choreography Execution and Audience Engagement & Confidence will judge on the quality.
• Scoring:
• 90 - 100 points: Outstanding Performance
• 80 - 89 points: Very Good Performance
• 70 - 79 points: Good Performance
• 60 - 69 points: Needs Improvement
• Below 60 points: Unsatisfactory Performance