ABSTRACT

Many contemporary choreographers and artistic directors are interested in working with dancers who embody a wide range of movement styles. Laban/Bartenieff movement analysis (LMA/BF) is a comprehensive system for analyzing human movement. It is one of many tools to use in the classroom to help students acquire increased understanding of the balletic vocabulary. Using it in the ballet technique class broadens students' movement literacy. Sometimes providing feedback from one perspective works better for one dancer, while providing feedback from a different perspective works better for another dancer. This also teaches dancers to approach balletic movement from multiple perspectives. There are, in fact, many ways a codified movement sequence can be performed and interpreted. Using LMA/BF as a navigational tool teaches them to interpret and "color" the balletic steps in personal ways and to make conscious decisions about how to execute the technique phrases.