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Open Access Publications from the University of California

Dance Major Journal

UC Irvine

About

Dance Major Journal was founded in 2010 in the dance department of the University of California, Irvine. It features writing focused on the interests, issues, experiences, and concerns of dance majors, aimed at sharing information, research, advice, and points of view.

DMJ welcomes conversational writing style, personal essays, new formats, humor, stories, and “answers for dance majors” (ways to explain to the outside world the value and facts of a dance education), as well as academically sound essays using clear language and lively prose.

Dance Major Journal 11

Dance Major Journal 11

Can Body Positivity and Dance Coexist?

Here are a few ways to cultivate empathy and understanding in a field where bodies are on display and constantly scrutinized

Reclaiming Black Spaces in Jazz Dance

Jazz has never been about who can do the most pirouettes into a side aerial, or making sultry faces to earn competition points--it has been a creative space for freedom and healing, and could be again.

Need a Day Off? Who Decided Dancers Don't?

Allowing for a "mental health day" off can prevent burnout, so it's time for the dance community to pay attention.

I am Queer and a Dancer

How taking Gender and Sexuality Courses shifted my perspective as a Dance Major

Dance for the Mind and Body...and for Medicine

An intersection between dance and health that needs to be further explored and utilized

You can't standardize salsa dance so that one (sexy) size fits all

What happens when a lively and adaptable dance form that embodies Latinidad for countless communities becomes a DanceSport?

I Couldn't Have a Future in Science without My Past in Dance

Bringing an art form and science together can provide innovative perspectives on the evolving biological world around us

Is it okay to tell a dancer their arms look like a dead chicken?

Insults not only show a teacher's inability to provide constructive advice, they can actually damage a student's love for dance

Are you Enough?

In the ballet world of ideal forms and mercilessly mirrored spaces, dancers can lose heart--but there are some teachers who use improvisation and individual empowerment strategies that can turn things around

The Worst Break Up: Falling out of Love with Ballet

When should you call it quits with your artistic soulmate? Maybe when the relationship turns abusive.

Is dance disrespected in media portrayals?

From ballerinas in movies and on TikTok, to models in pointe shoes, distortion can be harmful

Ballet: It's Not That Serious. It Was Never That Serious

A good-two-shoes ballerina becomes a rebel for the first time

Dangerous Disordered Eating Patterns in Dance Need to Change

When toxic diet culture and pressures in the studio come together, it's a recipe for disaster. Is there enough awareness? Enough resources?

Why Ballet Teachers Shouldn't Teach Hip Hop

You can't just have kids do any movement to a rap song and call it hip hop--it's a matter of respect

Struggles of a (former) Hip Hop Hater

New dance styles can be intimidating, but an emphasis on community helps dancers explore dynamic skills that increase their versatility

Why Dancers Should Start Thinking of Being a Rhizome

If you want to keep your creative inspiration and outlook fresh, maybe consider whether you grow like a tree, vertically and linearly, or a rhizome, which grows horizontally and keeps expanding to shoot up many nodes

Why every college student should take a dance class

If the idea is to educate global citizens ready to improve the world, then learning more awareness and empathy in a movement class can help

I gave the dancers the freedom to improvise...and they choreographed

Chaos onstage can be scary, especially when the choices seem almost limitless. Are ballet dancers trained to crave certainty and structure? Is all repetition bad?