Dance Program Mission Statement
The mission of the UT dance program is to foster creativity, connection and collaboration. The program offers a robust liberal arts experience with a distinctive focus in preparing students to become leaders in the field of dance education within a commercial and community dance context.
The curriculum is built around the praxis of brain-compatible dance education, a teaching methodology developed by Anne Green Gilbert. This methodology encourages the development of a student who can utilize creativity, critical-thinking and collaboration to become a masterful dance artist and educator. Students will learn how to apply these skills in various capacities and settings, including private studios, community dance programs and in serving diverse populations. Successful students who graduate from the program have presented creative and pedagogically-sound scholarly research at local and national conferences and dance festivals. They have also gone on to pursue careers in commercial dance performance and competition dance adjudication. There is also strong foundational preparation for further study at the graduate level.
To achieve a level of rigor and technical proficiency within a commercial dance context, students enroll in multiple dance technique courses, a pedagogy series, composition and choreography, dance history, anatomy and kinesiology, and dance production as part of a well-balanced liberal arts curriculum. The required capstone course serves as a springboard for interdisciplinary dance career applications. The resulting culminating project emphasizes the practical application of what each student has gained through their learning experiences within the program and the University.
In addition to the students’ scholarly work in dance education, they are given a creative environment in which to explore choreography and performance. Utilizing their intellectual curiosity and embodied practices, we empower students to make tangible, meaningful experiences through multiple performance opportunities at the University and within the Tampa Bay area. They learn to observe, assess and critique their work as well as the work of others in a meaningful, ethical, and equitable context. Through these processes they work with peers, faculty and community dance artists to more deeply understand what it means to be a diverse and interdisciplinary creator, leader and communicator in the field of dance.
All audition material should be submitted using the SpartanStart Portal (students will receive access to their SpartanStart Portal once they apply to UT).
To be considered for performance-based scholarships, auditions must be submitted by March 1.
All auditions for the dance program will be accepted digitally or in person at an official admissions open house date.
Requirements for Video Submission
- 10 minute ballet barre to include combinations in: pliés, tendus/degagés, rond de jambe, frappé, fondu/ developpé. Across the floor: battements front and side, pirouettes (parallel or turned out), grade jeté/ saut de chat
- 1-1.5 minute modern or contemporary solo
- 1-1.5 minute solo in another style of your choice (optional)
Contact Susannah LeMarquand at slemarquand@ut.edu with dance audition questions.
Topics of Study
- Technique classes focusing on commercial and contemporary dance preparation
- Dance Pedagogy Fundamentals
- Dance History
- Dance Improvisation
- Composition and Choreography
- Dance Anatomy, Kinesiology and Injury Prevention
- Dance Production
- Teaching Methods in Dance
- Teaching Methods for Community and Diverse Populations
Career Opportunities
- Establishing community dance programs
- Preparing for graduate work in various dance fields
- Opening a dance studio
- Performance opportunities through audition for local theme parks and cruise ship entertainment
Experiential Learning Opportunities
- In-residence workshops with established dance artists
- Workshops with former students currently working in the fields
- Interaction both on- and off-campus working with children and adults with developmental disabilities and other diverse populations
- Spring Dance Concerts
- Evening of Experimental Dance and Spring Arts Continuum (site-specific performance and choreography)
- Student-choreographed Dance Happenings
- Internship opportunities with local community dance programs
- Teaching dance at local studios
Students who have declared a dance major must successfully pass a second-year evaluation/review, which is administrated in the spring semester of the second year of study (or, for transfer students, after 60 credit hours are earned).
Watch Dance Documentary: Choreographic Research of the Brain
Scholarships
Qualifications:
- New entering student (fall term entry only)
- An applied understanding of body knowledge and movement vocabulary
- Completed admissions application and acceptance for full-time study
- Declared Major in Dance
- Unweighted high school GPA of 3.0
- Maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.8 or above
For more information, contact:
Susannah LeMarquand, Dance Program Director
The University of Tampa
401 W. Kennedy Blvd
Tampa, FL 33606-1490
(813) 253-6322
.jpg "Susannah LeMarquand")