The Department of Modern
Dance at the University of Utah has a history of excellence
that unites the world of academia with the world of professional
dance. Many alumni are working with international, national and
regional dance companies as dancers, choreographers, and artistic
directors. Others are teachers and administrators in high schools,
universities and professional studios.
Students from the University
of Utah Department of Modern Dance have been chosen to appear
on many of the American College Dance Festival's National Gala
Concerts. The department's performers and choreographers are also
consistently recognized for excellence at the regional festivals.
In 1988, the University of Utah was invited to represent the United
States at the International Festival of Dance Academies held in
Hong Kong.
This recognition is the result
of an experienced, dedicated faculty, with standards of professional
excellence, nurturing and challenging talented students through
a rigorous and demanding program of study. In addition to daily
technique classes and an extensive composition program, students
receive training in dance kinesiology, dance history, philosophy,
criticism, dance theatre and video production, music for dance,
teaching skills, dance repertory and improvisation. The undergraduate
program leads to a BFA degree and an MFA degree is offered at
the graduate level.
An
average of five fully produced performances and numerous informal
presentations each year give dance majors substantial performance
and choreographic opportunities. A variety of guest artists are
regularly invited to teach and choreograph for our dance majors.
In addition, students and faculty are encouraged to collaborate
with artists in other departments providing a rich creative environment.
The department's Performing
Dance Company provides a taste of the professional dance world
within the university setting. Members are selected by audition
twice a year and participate in a touring program that has taken
them across the United States, to Britain, to Asia, and to Australia.
Dancers from all parts of
the nation and from many foreign countries are drawn by the faculty's
philosophic commitment to the development of kinesthetic awareness,
theoretical understanding, creative ability and aesthetic sensitivity
in addition to technical accomplishment. It is the faculty's conviction
that such training not only prepares students to be vital and
exciting artists but also creative human beings committed to the
enrichment of society.
Department of Modern Dance Mission Statement
Mission
The mission of the University of Utah Department of Modern Dance is to promote student and faculty growth as professional dance artists, critical inquirers, and community members. The department is dedicated to contributing to the growth of the discipline of modern dance through research, teaching, and service of the highest caliber. Excellence, creativity, and professionalism are the department's keywords to igniting the imagination of this dance community.
Values
Excellence
Imagination
Integration
Professionalism
Passion
Tradition
Commitment
Collaboration
Individualism
Innovation
The Department of Modern Dance consistently ranks in the top three in the nation.
History of Dance at the University of Utah
The University of Utah's extensive
dance program is exceptional in that it has two cooperative yet
fully autonomous departments within the College of Fine Arts:
the Department of Modern Dance and the Department of Ballet. The
heritage of dance at the University of Utah began in 1892 through
a program developed by Maude May Babcock. Elizabeth R. Hayes was
appointed Director of Modern Dance in 1940 and soon after established
the dance major. Willam F. Christensen, a noted dancer, teacher
and choreographer who founded the San Francisco Ballet Company,
returned to his home state in 1951 to begin a ballet training
center at the University of Utah.
Graduates of the Modern Dance
Department perform with many national and international professional
dance companies including the two major Salt Lake based companies:
Repertory Dance Theatre and Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company. Repertory
Dance Theatre features an extensive repertory that reaches from
Isadora Duncan to the Post-Moderns. Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company
focuses on works by contemporary choreographers with varied points
of view and is renowned for innovative work in dance education
and performances for children. The artistic directors of these
companies have strong ties to the Department, having been former
faculty members or current adjunct faculty.
The Virginia Tanner Creative
Dance Program and Children's Dance Theatre is also housed on the
University of Utah campus with the company's artistic director,
Mary Ann Lee, teaching in the Department . The school trains students
ages 2 1/2 to 18 in creative and modern dance. Children's Dance
Theatre has been acclaimed nationally and internationally as a
unique force in the 
performing
arts.
The Departments are housed
in the Alice Sheets Marriott Center for Dance. The facility has
a 333 seat theatre, six dance studios, a smaller faculty studio,
academic classrooms, production workshops, a conditioning clinic,
student lounge, outside observation deck, and is one of just a
few facilities in the United States designed especially for dance.
Salt Lake City has a dynamic
dance community with many smaller companies and independent artists
working alongside the major professional companies. Many of our
students take advantage of the numerous perfoming opportunities
outside of the Dance Department as well as performing at the University.
Photos by Scott Peterson
To receive additional information for our BFA or MFA programs please visit this link or e-mail info@dance.utah.edu or write to:
Department
of Modern Dance
University of Utah
330 S 1500 E, Room 106
Salt Lake City, Utah 84112-0280
Phone: (801)
581-7327
FAX: (801) 581-5442
To view driving
directions click here
Follow this link for information on visiting Salt Lake City.
