How do we write about dance?  In Deborah Jowitt’s article in Ann Dills and Ann Cooper Albright’s book Moving Histories/Dancing Cultures, she asks how one can write “beyond description: writing beneath the surface.” You can’t reduce dance to a synopsis – nor can you write only about a narration of movement in order to get at the heart of a dance.

For those of you who will see Batsheva this weekend, pick a dance you saw and write about what you saw.  You can use up to five paragraphs this time.  For those of you not going to Batsheva, go back to Veronique Doisneau and write about one of the pieces she dances — Swan Lake, Giselle or Points in Space.  Find when description is necessary and when you need to use metaphor.  Also think about how you might need to talk about narrative or abstract concepts.  But use the five paragraphs to convey your experience of watching dance.  There is no right way to do this – just find a way to convey what the dance makes you think and feel.