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A Kinesthetic Mode of Attention in Contemporary Dance Practice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 July 2015

Shantel Ehrenberg
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Abstract

In this article, original interview material, existing published accounts, and the author's own experience as a contemporary dancer are put in conversation to explicitly address a particular kinesthetic awareness, sensitivity, and curiosity valued and employed by a group of dancers in the practice of contemporary dance, which is referred to as a kinesthetic mode of attention. The research informing this article uses a phenomenological and sociological approach and discusses, in detail, what this mode of attending “is like,” how it is described in different ways by dancers, and how it might be developed and nurtured in training and working in the style of contemporary dance. An overarching aim of this work is to contribute to greater understanding and valuing of the nuances and particularities of kinesthetic intelligence in dance practices and to address the cognitive aspects of dancing.

Keywords

Attentioncontemporary dancekinesthesiakinesthetic awarenessproprioceptionpractice-based research
Type
Articles
Information
Dance Research Journal , Volume 47 , Issue 2 , August 2015 , pp. 43 - 61
Copyright
Copyright © Congress on Research in Dance 2015 

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