Dance

Alysia Ramos, Associate Professor of Dance, Chair
Ann Cooper Albright, Professor of Dance (on leave 2022-23)
Talise Campbell, Visiting Assistant Professor of Africana Studies and Dance
Al Evangelista, Assistant Professor of Dance
Holly Handman-Lopez, Assistant Professor of Dance
Jennifer Shults, Visiting Instructor of Dance
TBD, Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance

Visit the department webpage for up-to-date information on department faculty, visiting lecturers, and special events.

The Dance Department encourages students to create, perform, and think about movement in a manner that is consonant with their experience in the other fine and liberal arts. The curriculum offers various approaches to the study of movement, from creation and performance to physical techniques, critical inquiry, and somatic studies.

Dance at Oberlin is characterized by its commitment to experimentation and to the creation of original work. Student, faculty, and guest artist choreography is presented throughout the year both in formal concerts and in our regular series of showcases. Outstanding resources for artistic collaboration with student and faculty directors, designers, composers, musicians, and video artists may be found in various other college departments and programs, such as theater, cinema studies, and studio art, as well as in the Conservatory of Music.

Movement classes are offered in a range of genres and levels in order to support the physical, intellectual, and imaginative process of becoming a dance artist. These courses serve all students, including those who wish to explore dance as part of their broader education, those pursuing dance in combination with related arts, and those who intend to enter the dance field professionally.

Students have the opportunity to explore somatic studies through courses that focus on alignment, movement integration, and meditative practice. The concentration in somatic studies offers an excellent preparation for a lifetime of personal health and work in a broad range of therapeutic fields.

The Dance Department also provides a focus in critical inquiry. These courses examine the historical contexts and theoretical frameworks of a variety of dance traditions while encouraging students’ intellectual curiosity and willingness to explore new ideas. The practice of research and writing about dance in its cultural contexts develops an appreciation of dance as both an artistic and a sociological phenomenon.

See information about Research, Internships, Study Away, and Experiential Learning (RISE).

Honors

In the second semester of the junior year, qualified students may be admitted to the honors program in dance. The honors project may be either a creative project in dance performance or choreography, or research in dance history, criticism, or theory resulting in a substantial written thesis. Any creative project also includes a significant research and written component. At the completion of the senior honors project, a panel consisting of the honors student’s faculty advisor and at least two other faculty members, including a faculty member from outside the department, will examine the student’s work. Applications and further information concerning honors work are available in the department office, Warner Center, and online.

Off-Campus Study

Before credit is awarded for off-campus study in dance, students must obtain tentative prior approval from the department chair and the Office of Study Away. After the study is completed, the student must supply evidence of satisfactory participation. A maximum of three courses of off-campus study may be applied to the dance major.

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Majors and Minors

Courses

Dance