THE PROGRAM IN DANCE AT HAMILTON has both an educational and an artistic mission. It explores the power of human movement to express and communicate. It studies the rich cultural context in which dance takes place. And it celebrates the creation of performance art and the growth of the performer. Students in dance develop the tools with which to approach other disciplines with creativity and rigor. The demands and rewards of artistic performance encourage personal responsibility and empowerment, and they build a sense of community both within the creative ensemble and between performer and audience. Through classes, workshops, projects and productions, students are helped to find and develop their own voices and identities. More ...
Academic Program
PERFORMANCE AND RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES
At Hamilton, students of dance and theatre have diverse performance, choreography, directing and design opportunities. Auditions for main stage theatre productions are open to all students. Each year, faculty members and students produce two dance concerts choreographed by faculty members, two or three plays directed by faculty members, and as many as 10 productions directed, choreographed, designed, performed and produced by students. Students and faculty also participate in the national American College Dance Festival.
Student dance majors have taught and performed at local schools and art centers as well as with regional dance companies and summer theatres. Students interested in arts administration gain experience in the department box office and as house managers. Many theatre majors secure internships with summer theatres after their junior year. Theatre and dance students also participate in many outstanding programs abroad and have studied in such places as Sri Lanka, Nepal, India, Bali, Germany, London and Paris.
THE SENIOR PROGRAM
The Senior Program is a focused project, carried out under the close supervision of a faculty member. It draws together coursework and creativity, theory and practice. Each dance student choreographs and performs in an original work.
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RESOURCES
Hamilton offers a variety of classroom and performance facilities: Wellin Hall, Minor Theater, Blood Fitness and Dance Center, List Dance Studio and Beinecke Events Barn. In addition, the theatre and dance programs provide a range of specialized staging and design equipment as well as stock and computerized lighting systems in various production shops.
Dance is by definition inclusive and interdisciplinary. Courses, concerts and productions at Hamilton offer a broad perspective on the history and role of the performing arts and their place in different cultures. Students learn to recognize and honor difference and diversity as they are immersed in unfamiliar cultures in performance and study.
Close Interactions
In the classroom, in rehearsal and in tutorials, our program depends on collaboration between students and faculty members. The process of learning and making theatre always involves close interaction, sometimes one-on-one and sometimes in small groups. The result is a way of teaching and learning that transcends what is found on paper or in books; it engages the student’s entire being.
Well-Rounded Approach
Hamilton's program focuses equally on performance and scholarship. Each student receives a thorough grounding in performance, history, criticism and creative techniques in a classroom environment, then applies it. Formal and informal opportunities for performance abound.
Visiting Artists
The College sponsors two artists series — Classical Connections and Contemporary Voices and Visions — that bring renowned performers to campus. In addition to seeing the work of these guests, students participate in workshops, seminars and classes with the artists. Recent performers and master teachers have included Pilobolus, Dance Brazil, Feld Ballets/NY, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Anne Bogart, the Saratoga International Theatre Institute, Fred Curchak, Meredith Monk, Bread and Puppet Theater, the Joe Goode Performance Group and Sweet Honey in the Rock.
Dance is by definition inclusive and interdisciplinary. Courses, concerts and productions at Hamilton offer a broad perspective on the history and role of the performing arts and their place in different cultures. Students learn to recognize and honor difference and diversity as they are immersed in unfamiliar cultures in performance and study.
Close Interactions
In the classroom, in rehearsal and in tutorials, our program depends on collaboration between students and faculty members. The process of learning and making theatre always involves close interaction, sometimes one-on-one and sometimes in small groups. The result is a way of teaching and learning that transcends what is found on paper or in books; it engages the student’s entire being.
Well-Rounded Approach
Hamilton's program focuses equally on performance and scholarship. Each student receives a thorough grounding in performance, history, criticism and creative techniques in a classroom environment, then applies it. Formal and informal opportunities for performance abound.
Visiting Artists
The College sponsors two artists series — Classical Connections and Contemporary Voices and Visions — that bring renowned performers to campus. In addition to seeing the work of these guests, students participate in workshops, seminars and classes with the artists. Recent performers and master teachers have included Pilobolus, Dance Brazil, Feld Ballets/NY, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Anne Bogart, the Saratoga International Theatre Institute, Fred Curchak, Meredith Monk, Bread and Puppet Theater, the Joe Goode Performance Group and Sweet Honey in the Rock.
Dance is by definition inclusive and interdisciplinary. Courses, concerts and productions at Hamilton offer a broad perspective on the history and role of the performing arts and their place in different cultures. Students learn to recognize and honor difference and diversity as they are immersed in unfamiliar cultures in performance and study.
Close Interactions
In the classroom, in rehearsal and in tutorials, our program depends on collaboration between students and faculty members. The process of learning and making theatre always involves close interaction, sometimes one-on-one and sometimes in small groups. The result is a way of teaching and learning that transcends what is found on paper or in books; it engages the student’s entire being.
Well-Rounded Approach
Hamilton's program focuses equally on performance and scholarship. Each student receives a thorough grounding in performance, history, criticism and creative techniques in a classroom environment, then applies it. Formal and informal opportunities for performance abound.
Visiting Artists
The College sponsors two artists series — Classical Connections and Contemporary Voices and Visions — that bring renowned performers to campus. In addition to seeing the work of these guests, students participate in workshops, seminars and classes with the artists. Recent performers and master teachers have included Pilobolus, Dance Brazil, Feld Ballets/NY, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Anne Bogart, the Saratoga International Theatre Institute, Fred Curchak, Meredith Monk, Bread and Puppet Theater, the Joe Goode Performance Group and Sweet Honey in the Rock.
Dance is by definition inclusive and interdisciplinary. Courses, concerts and productions at Hamilton offer a broad perspective on the history and role of the performing arts and their place in different cultures. Students learn to recognize and honor difference and diversity as they are immersed in unfamiliar cultures in performance and study.
Close Interactions
In the classroom, in rehearsal and in tutorials, our program depends on collaboration between students and faculty members. The process of learning and making theatre always involves close interaction, sometimes one-on-one and sometimes in small groups. The result is a way of teaching and learning that transcends what is found on paper or in books; it engages the student’s entire being.
Well-Rounded Approach
Hamilton's program focuses equally on performance and scholarship. Each student receives a thorough grounding in performance, history, criticism and creative techniques in a classroom environment, then applies it. Formal and informal opportunities for performance abound.
Visiting Artists
The College sponsors two artists series — Classical Connections and Contemporary Voices and Visions — that bring renowned performers to campus. In addition to seeing the work of these guests, students participate in workshops, seminars and classes with the artists. Recent performers and master teachers have included Pilobolus, Dance Brazil, Feld Ballets/NY, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Anne Bogart, the Saratoga International Theatre Institute, Fred Curchak, Meredith Monk, Bread and Puppet Theater, the Joe Goode Performance Group and Sweet Honey in the Rock.
AFTER HAMILTON
Hamilton graduates who concentrated in Dance are pursuing careers in a variety of fields, including:
Assistant Professor, Ohio University
Assistant to the Director, Dance Division, The Boston Conservatory
Operations Officer, People’s Production House
Pediatric Residency Program Director, Children’s Hospital at Sinai
Psychotherapist, (private practice)
Senior Project Associate, Lincoln Center Institute for the Arts in Education
