Sep 16 - Week 5 - Meeting 9 / Body: Mary Wigman's Expressionism

 

 

Review

 

Choreutics 

The Cube 

Trace Forms

Diagonal Movement Scales 

Kinesphere

Art Nouveau 

Elements of Dance: Space (levels, directions, focus, pathways, size)  

Breath patterning assists the coordination of the internal body that is vital in human movement. Functionally, every inhalation and exhalation is a complex event

Patterns of Body Connectivity

4 Components of Human Movement

8 Efforts

 

 

 

 

 

 I

 

Unit:Body

Theme: Mary Wigman' Expressionism

 

II

Introduction 

Today we will review Wigman's concept of body expression. Her ideas about the liberation of dance from traditional, predetermined steps by the utilization of improvisation and the honoring of an internal sense of motion, rhythm and expressive gesture grew in depth and sophistication as Wigman studied and collaborated with Rudolf von Laban from 1913-1919.(1) Mary Wigman (born November 13, 1886, Hanover, Germany—died September 18, 1973, West Berlin) was a German dancer, a pioneer of the modern expressive dance as developed in central Europe.

 

 III

Learning Objectives

• Understand the application of the idea of "dance discovering its own terms of expression" (1)
  
• Explain how "liberation from traditional, predetermined steps" helps the dancer to develop body expression
  
• Gain awareness of the possibilities that "honoring an internal sense of motion" brings to the dancer's expressive movement.
  
• Experience the body's inner "rhythm and expressive gesture" to develop your own sense of "depth and sophistication" when dancing
• Reflect on the work done in class

 

 IV

Main Lesson

  1

Warm Up

Alignment

Stretching

 

2

Review of Solos and Ensemble Phrases 

 

3

Video

(35:17)

 

 

4

 

Dance Expressionism

 

Expressive dance from German Ausdruckstanz, is a form of artistic dance in which the individual and artistic presentation (and sometimes also processing) of feelings is an essential part.

It was a revolution. It would be more expressive, and show more spirit and emotion and less virtuosity. The dance would be improvisational, uninhibited and provocative. Future spiritual and bodily reform movements expressed themselves in a new "natural" naked dance.

Schools for expressionist dance had special philosophies and emphases for dance, such as naturalness, breathing, tension / relaxation etc. It was often associated with floor contact, "weight" of dance movements, and experiments with music. Body and physicality were strongly emphasized. 

Rudolf Laban was a theoretical prominent figure who was based on metaphysical ideas and one of the pioneers of Ausdruckstanz in Germany. From 1913-1918, Laban operated a school for art on the colony Monte Verita in Ascona, Switzerland, which became a teaching centre for the new dance. Among his students were Kurt Jooss and Mary Wigman.

Mary Wigman was an important trendsetter as a dancer, choreographer and teacher. In her school in Dresden (opened in 1920) she taught Europe's premier aspiring dancer.

 5

Analysis

Students discuss among themselves Mary Wigman's ideas about dance. Using the question below as a prompt, they post they write about it and post their reflection on Discussion Board.

QUESTION 1

 

According to Mary Wigman; what are the two things a dance must always do?

V

 

 

 

Modern Dance 

 Andrew Solway

Read: Expression through Dance (Pages 4 & 5)

 https://www.google.com/books/edition/Modern_Dance/pvPwDI5q1xMC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=modern+Dance&printsec=frontcover

Solway, Andrew (2009). Modern Dance.  Heinemann Library

 

VI 

A Note to Remember 

Expressive dance from German Ausdruckstanz, is a form of artistic dance in which the individual and artistic presentation (and sometimes also processing) of feelings is an essential part. It is believed that it emerged as a counter-movement to classical ballet at the beginning of the 20th century in Europe, but recently some scholars and practitioners think it emerge naturally as a result of a need to express the body.

VII

Case Studies

 

1

Video

Analysis

Students discuss among themselves Mary Wigman's ideas about dance. Using the question below as a prompt, they post they write about it and post their reflection on Discussion Board.

QUESTION 2

 

What does the narrator mean when he says that "Wigman was able to transport moves simply with her movements"?

 

-------------------------------

 

2

VIDEO - LINK

Harold Kreutzberg

 

Analysis

Students discuss among themselves Mary Wigman's ideas about dance as illustrated in Kreutzberg's work. Using the question below as a prompt, they post they write about it and post their reflection on Discussion Board.

QUESTION 3


In this video Harald Kreutzberg, Wigman's student and dance partner, dances the expressionist piece Dispute with God. Why can we call this dance piece expressionist?

 
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VIII

Dance Expressionism and Abstraction 

Group Work

 

 Activity 1

Music for Class 

 

 Abstract Expression of Emotions

After watching this piece choreographed by Wigman (in the video above), choose a theme for the group in which you use expressionism as a tool for your phrase to develop.

 

Activity 2

 

Pedestrian  Movement randomly across the floor. Directions and levels, posture

 

Movement across the floor using releve, diagonal step, turn out feet

 

Experience spirals individually, (standing to the floor and vice versa, then across the floor, them with expressionist poses

 

Experience spirals in duets in one spot and then across, then with expressionist poses

 

Experience spiral in trios and groups (show Wigman's video in # 4,  to illustrate the potential of the exercise). End with expressionist poses.

 

Activity 3

 

Go to your groups and create an 8 moves phrase using expressionist moves as explored in class

 

 

 

 

 

IX

Dance Expressionism and Abstraction 

Solo Work

Activity 4

 Abstract Expression of Emotions

 

Create a dance/movement phrase using each one of the emotions listed below.

1. Vanity
2. Surprise
3. Greed
4. Sadness
5. Hate 
6. Happiness
7. Fear
8. Love 

 

POST YOUR DANCE/MOVEMENT PHRASE  ON DISCUSSION BOARD.

 X

Journaling

 

XI

Glossary

XII

Sources

1. Mary Wigman: German modern dance pioneer, performer, choreographer, teacher. https://dance.washington.edu/people/mary-wigman

XIII

Students' Work

 

Savannah Bray

1) According to Mary Wingman two things a dance must always do is express emotion and reveal. You have to be able to express your inner emotion during a dance and reveal the meaning behind the dance.

2) The narrator means when he says that "Wigman was able to transport moves simply with her movements"  that Wigman can make the audience feel more emotional and can feel the dance more through power and expression through her movements. 

3) We can call this dance piece expression because it uses a dramatic and exaggerated movement to convey the inner emotions of a dancer. 

Liliana Li

Assignment #3: Mary Wingman’s Expressionism

Question 1:
According to Mary Wigman, a dance must always express an internal sense of motion
and rhythm, and it must honor expressive gesture. She believed that true dance should come
from within the dancer, rather than following traditional, predetermined steps.

Question 2:
When the narrator says that "Wigman was able to transport moods simply with her
movements," he means that she could express emotions and feelings purely through the way she
moved her body, without needing music, words, or traditional dance steps. She believed dance
didn’t need any music, “...because it is not the melodies which create the mood behind the
dances”. It is said she could directly translate her emotions to movement, and there was no
deeper meaning than that. Her movements alone were powerful enough to make the audience
feel the atmosphere or mood she wanted to convey, but with an own personal meaning for each
individual experiencing the performance.

Question 3:
We call Dispute with God an expressionist dance piece because Kreutzberg uses his body
and movements to show deep emotions around inner conflict, rather than telling a clear story
with traditional dance steps. The focus is on expressing feelings like anger, desperation, and
struggle through powerful gestures, tension, and dramatic motion, which are key elements of
expressionist art. Kreutzberg doesn’t display any physical or emotional pain, but his soul is felt
in suffering all the way before surrendering to God in the end, not as a realization, but rather as if
he was left with no choice.

 

Sophia Talamas

1. According to Mary Wigman, a dance must always express and reveal. It should express inner emotions and reveal something essential about the human experience.

2. When the narrator says "Wigman was able to transport moves simply with her movements," they mean that Wigman could deeply move or emotionally affect the audience through the power and expression from her movements alone.

3. We can call Dispute with God an Expressionist dance piece because it uses dramatic, exaggerated movements to convey intense inner emotions and psychological struggle.