Graduating Presentations 2020: Six Point Convergence - "The Neapolitan Regional Lady Swimmers"
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Date of Defense
4-23-2020
Date of Graduation
4-2020
Department
Dance
First Advisor
Sharon Garber
Second Advisor
Jeremy Blair
Abstract
On its surface, "The Neapolitan Regional Lady Swimmers" follows an absurdist narrative of a synchronized swimming team at a beach party in Napoli. Just beneath this narrative, though, is a deep dive into gender expression and dynamics through the history of synchronized swimming, classical ballet, Argentine tango, and American swing dance. Taking on a fun, light-hearted tone, the work invites audiences to celebrate the multitude of gender expressions and traditions that exist through shape and movement. The dance is about 11 minutes and 45 seconds long and is performed by a group of ten dancers. Each of the four sections of the work explores its own individual movement genre in an attempt to subvert or satirize the historical gender traditions of the genre. This portfolio outlines and reflects on the creative processes that went into the development of this work, including modes of movement creation, historical research, music analysis, and theatrical design choices.
This work was set to premiere as part of a larger concert, Six Point Convergence, from April 9-11. This concert was coordinated entirely by the senior BFA class of the WMU Department of Dance, as part of the Graduating Presentations course. While the concert was canceled in response to COVID-19, this portfolio documents the beginnings of the production process, including scheduling, budgeting, production design, publicity, and programming up through the official cancelation of the concert on March 12. This portfolio offers only the documentation of what was to occur should the concert have gone on as planned and does not offer documentation pertaining to the cancellation of the event. Also included in the portfolio are documents pertaining to artistic professionalism that were developed through the process, including a resume, headshot, personal artistic statement, and artist biography.
Due to the suspension of in-person meetings and rehearsals, the work was never completed or performed as intended. Therefore, instead of an archival recording of the performance, the accompanying video (which was presented to the public via WMU Department of Dance's social media during the scheduled performance weekend) intersperses large clips of rehearsal footage along with explanations of the creative process and the historical significance of the movement choices in order to paint a picture of how the final work may have appeared.
Recommended Citation
Brighton, Will, "Graduating Presentations 2020: Six Point Convergence - "The Neapolitan Regional Lady Swimmers"" (2020). Honors Theses. 3232.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/honors_theses/3232
Access Setting
Honors Thesis-Open Access
Portfolio