Dance Anthropology

Summary

Gain experience of different cultural approaches to dance, and how it helps define our humanity.

Explore dance as cultural practice from the perspectives of those involved as dancers, dance makers, teachers and audience members. By studying these perspectives, you will learn how different people around the world understand dance and how dance influences their value systems.

MA Dance Anthropology investigates dance from a non-Eurocentric perspective, placing the practices and values of the dancers into sociocultural and comparative understanding. At the heart of the programme is a focus upon ethnographic perspectives in dance to gain firsthand experience of different cultural approaches to dance practice. You will interpret your findings from the field in light of contemporary debates in dance anthropology.

The course is of particular interest to those who wish to study non-Western, folk, social or ritual dance practices, but the approach can be applied to ballet or Western theatre dance, too. This course provides a way to contextualise dance practice and deepen your understanding of dance and specific practices that help define our humanity.

The Department is home to the internationally recognised Centre for Dance Research, which foregrounds the research of dance as cultural and artistic expression as theatre performance and beyond. Through seminars, forums and conferences involving staff and international invited guests, the centre supports a compelling research culture. Students can also exit with PGCert and PGDip awards.

Careers

Graduates' career options are broadened to include roles such as a community dance practitioner, producer and curator of arts projects, teacher, or to continue into further study as an MPhil or PhD student.