About twenty people, including artists, writers, scholars and educators from a range of forms and practices, came together on Saturday, May 9th, 2009, for a two-hour facilitated discussion led by Megan Andrews, Publisher/Founding Editor of The Dance Current magazine. The structured conversation worked through a series of five questions considering the future of critical discourse about dance in Canada.
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1- What do we think are the core elements in a robust critical ecology?
- having ways to articulate/negotiate boundaries and concepts; having the ability to wrestle with the question: what is dance?
- an awareness of frames of presentation, and the practice of different forms
- resources
- modelling & cultivating & practicing respectful statements of critical opinions & debate
- a diversity of voices, ages, practices, etc.
- knowledge about the history of critical reflection; tools for analysis, argumentation, etc.
- reflexive practices of writing that engage with context
- confidence
- collaborations, partnerships, networks, gatherings
- consciousness & questioning; the need for advocacy as an agenda in dance writing
- a social approach: dialogue; what do we include – exclude in identifying a "dance community"
- embracing and recognizing different ways of writing: artists' writing, historical, critical, journalistic
- connections with other forms of writing, other disciplines and other areas of interest
- understanding of the importance of editing
- consideration of issues of language translation
- awareness of the relationship of textual style to the dance
- education, knowledge of contexts
- empowering artists to write
- strategies to bridge within the community around learning to write
- documenting, archiving and preservation
- archiving the body of writing to make it accessible
- documenting/chronicling the art as it happens - a heightened awareness of word choice and the power of word choice
- awareness of readership: general readers, youth, scholars, artists, etc.
- strategies to bridge to the general public
- that there is the possibility of a career
- access points to the discussion
2- Where do we see potential?
- in modeling the culture / skills we seek
- in creating a culture of supportive risk-taking
- in multi media developments & “fit” of kind of writing to mode/medium of dissemination
- in the possibility of the articulate dancer/artist/writer
- in writer-reader-editor-groups at different scales and intimacies
- in mentorships – intergenerational & within generations
- in this type of gathering (the Reading Writing Dancing symposium as a whole), which moves us toward a community of dance writers – linked online and/or in person
- in the education system to cultivate knowledge & tools – critical analysis with reference to writing
- in online video as educational tool
3- What exists in the field already?
- magazines, resources, organizations;
- websites, journals, books, anthologies
- a symposium -- conferences – nascent conversation
- ad hoc zines
- dialogic reviews
- technology – internet
- education: elementary, high school, pre-pro, colleges, universities, undergraduate, graduate
- curricula: dance, dance writing
- writers – editors – readers- publishers
- types of writing
- the living body of knowledge – “intangible cultural heritage” – UNESCO
• Dance Collection Danse
• Soceity for Canadian Dance Studies
• The Dance Current
• York University + other universities / colleges
• MERGE
• Dancemakers
• Eponymous
• Dance Umbrella of Ontario + other dance management organizations
• Dancepassport
• Canada Dance Festival
• The Dance Centre (Vancouver)
• Arts Alive
• CDA – Research & Writing Standing Council
• Bibliotheque de la danse – Chorème
• UNESCO
• Dance International
• writers' personal blogs
• Dance And the Child International: proceedings / papers
• Canadian dance authors
• dance presenter networks
• Banff Centre - press and archives
• Trent University - archives
4- What's missing?
- awareness of specifics of languages, word choice, frames, with respect to different forms and practices
- awareness of the problems with “Canadian” insularity
- awareness of Canada’s dance reputation abroad
- knowledge of/awareness of dance with the other arts & social histories
- quality – of writer education, writing, editing, reader education, the dance-making itself
- education
- a culture of nourishing & valuing “our cultures”
- candidness in conversation
- peer-reviewed scholarly journal in Canada
- awareness of potential publics & how to engage them
- understanding of ethics, writer-editor relationships and editorial/journalistic practice
- exposure to dance and dance writing from abroad
- reader responses to writing
- international reference points/contexts as writers
- representation of diversity in the writing
- advocacy to mainstream media
- exposure and access; avenues of dissemination
- understanding of varied approaches & ways of thinking
- editorial support for dance and dance writing in the mainstream media
5- How do we cultivate - can we identify any - priorities?
- start small gatherings (discussion/reading groups) & large gathering; use technologies
- develop a network or list of contacts for a large community
- cultivate a writing/writer network
- establish a peer-reviewed scholarly journal
(*Thanks to Brittany Duggan, assistant to the editor, for typing up the notes from the roundtable meeting.)
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