Writing a Critique of a Dance Performance
Format:
A critique is a statement of your point of view. Be specific with examples and descriptions to support your viewpoint. You should develop your ideas so that the reader can visualize and understand the dance as you observed the performance.
Preparation:
As you watch a dance try to do so without preconceptions of what you think should happen, allow yourself to respond. A critique has 3 elements: description, analysis, and evaluation. Use them and write the paper.
Description: should communicate how the dance looked and sounded. This is the gathering of information. Be aware of space, levels, shapes, rhythm, time and dynamics. Look for interrelationships among the movement, such as: repetition and variation on the movement theme, organization into clear sections, and the dance relationships of the dancers. How does the dance relate to the audience? Is the energy projected out or draws the spectator in? Is the dance narrative or non-narrative? What are the costumes, lighting, accompaniment, and stage atmosphere?
Analysis: determines style and the choreographer’s intent. Recognize whether the dance is ballet, modern, jazz, tap, or ethnic, etc. Many dances combine different styles. Determine the choreographer’s intent: 1) the idea that the medium of movement is the message and the materials are placed in an interesting and pleasing manner, or 2) does the movement tell a story or convey a message?
Evaluation: conveys how well the choreographer fulfilled his/her intent and the how and why of the viewer’s reactions. Note the element, fulfillment of the intent, and the viewer’s personal response. Outstanding individual performance can be indicated as well as enhancement or diminishment of the dancing, the lighting, the costumes, and the accompaniment to the dance itself. Be aware of your own biases and be specific in statements supporting your likes and dislikes.
A Few Tips:
BE SURE YOU READ YOUR PAPER AND REVISE – DON’T’ JUST HAND IN THE FIRST SPELL-CHECKED DRAFT.
Guidelines for Writing Dance Critiques
Title Page: /5 points
Name
Title of Performance
Class
Class Period
Date Submitted
2-Typed Pages / Double Spaced /5 points
Ticket & Program: /5 points
Opening Paragraph: /5 points
Company
Time
Location
Refers to Work by Title / Correctly Specifies Dancers Names: /5 points
Discusses Total Spectrum of Works /10 points
Description
Analysis
Evaluation
Verbalizes and Backs-up Opinions /10 points
Narrative Form / Grammar /5 points
TOTAL POINTS / 50
Format:
- Title page including your name, the title of the performance, class, class period, and date submitting paper. Also staple the program and tickets to the paper.
- Two typed pages, double-spaced, one-inch margins. Please use 12 point Times New Roman or Palatino fonts ONLY.
A critique is a statement of your point of view. Be specific with examples and descriptions to support your viewpoint. You should develop your ideas so that the reader can visualize and understand the dance as you observed the performance.
Preparation:
As you watch a dance try to do so without preconceptions of what you think should happen, allow yourself to respond. A critique has 3 elements: description, analysis, and evaluation. Use them and write the paper.
Description: should communicate how the dance looked and sounded. This is the gathering of information. Be aware of space, levels, shapes, rhythm, time and dynamics. Look for interrelationships among the movement, such as: repetition and variation on the movement theme, organization into clear sections, and the dance relationships of the dancers. How does the dance relate to the audience? Is the energy projected out or draws the spectator in? Is the dance narrative or non-narrative? What are the costumes, lighting, accompaniment, and stage atmosphere?
Analysis: determines style and the choreographer’s intent. Recognize whether the dance is ballet, modern, jazz, tap, or ethnic, etc. Many dances combine different styles. Determine the choreographer’s intent: 1) the idea that the medium of movement is the message and the materials are placed in an interesting and pleasing manner, or 2) does the movement tell a story or convey a message?
Evaluation: conveys how well the choreographer fulfilled his/her intent and the how and why of the viewer’s reactions. Note the element, fulfillment of the intent, and the viewer’s personal response. Outstanding individual performance can be indicated as well as enhancement or diminishment of the dancing, the lighting, the costumes, and the accompaniment to the dance itself. Be aware of your own biases and be specific in statements supporting your likes and dislikes.
A Few Tips:
- Be on the lookout for unsupported general statements like “This dance was very pleasing and beautiful to me. I liked it very much.” When you see such an unsupported statement, ask yourself “why?” and then fill in the rest of the paragraph to explain the point.
- What are you first reactions and what do you remember most? Do not be afraid to be honest with your opinion, avoid being vague – “The dancers were good.” Remember you are viewing not reporting. There are no wrong answers.
- Narrow your thesis. Do not write a summary of every dance in the concert. Limit your writing to only the most important material. After seeing the concert, you may find that one or two works or something about the style of the choreographer in general is most interesting, evocative, provocative, intriguing, etc. – this is where you should center your writing. What interested you most? What made you feel the most? What made you most want to get up and move? These sorts of places will make the assignment more interesting for you to write, and more interesting for me to read.
- What to look for: while you watch the concert, it may be helpful to be aware of several possible issues on which you might focus your paper.
- Does this dance make me feel anything? – Good, bad, uncomfortable? Even if you don’t know why don’t discard the emotions or physical sensations your mind and body is feeling when you watch a dance. Do your best to describe them anyway. Sometimes, dance can evoke feelings directly, as if bypassing the brain. You may not ever truly understand where they come from but they are still worth addressing, even if only in the form of a question.
- Does the piece communicate to you? Look at the title, any program notes, the costumes, the lighting – does it seem as though it’s meant to tell a specific story or theme? Maybe not – consider that some dance work is not meant to be narrative and is for pure design, architecture, sculpture – something more abstract than a story. However, even in this case, it still may say something to YOU.
- Avoid looking for what you think the dance is supposed to mean, rather concentrate more on what it is to you. As for looking for “meaning”, I find it helpful to think that watching the dance is more like reading a poem than reading a play. Often choreographers use movement as a metaphor since it can not easily “say” things in the same kind of intellectual detail as words.
- The body of the paper: Start by sketching out your overall impressions, mixed with any historical or biographical context that seems relevant. Be clear here ** I don’t want you to write a research paper. Whatever background info you include should be used to help enlighten your own personal reflection, or illuminate meaning, or help you to understand or explain specifics from your own personal experience watching the concert. Stay focused on YOUR OWN EXPERIENCE. Then once you have an overview, tighten up your paragraphs by making only one point per paragraph. Start with a statement, opinion or response, and then use the rest of the paragraph to support that thought.
- Be subjective. Write in first person “I felt”, “I saw”, “this meant to me…” Avoid pretending that you are writing an objective observation of a factual event. Everything you see goes through your own private filter. Yes, there may be similarities in how people respond to common events, but I am most interested in what your personal experience is, not what you think is the norm of the common view. Just do you best to honestly offer your own perspective, both with the humility to recognize that others will have equally valid differing opinions, but also with the confidence that your take on it is just as good, or “right” as a New York Times critic.
BE SURE YOU READ YOUR PAPER AND REVISE – DON’T’ JUST HAND IN THE FIRST SPELL-CHECKED DRAFT.
Guidelines for Writing Dance Critiques
- The opening paragraph should include the name of the company, the time, and the location of the performance.
- Review the total spectrum of each work on the program (i.e. music or sound, lights, sets, costumes, etc.) and their relationship to the movement.
- Refer to each work by title when discussing it.
- Specify names of dancers where appropriate; never refer to performers on a first-name basis. (ex: Sally Smith, not Sally or Ms. Smith).
- Do not list the roster of performing artists.
- Verbalize your opinions, preferences, likes and dislikes, backed up with good logic and reasons why.
- Use narrative form, not outline form.
- Write a formal paper using correct, grammatical English (no abbreviations, contractions, etc.)
- Do not just describe what happened; state your opinions so the reader knows what you saw and how you felt about it.
- Do not look for hidden messages in every performance. Accept the work at face value. Some performances tell stories; others are based on line, form, and style.
- Proofread and made corrections before turning the critique in.
Title Page: /5 points
Name
Title of Performance
Class
Class Period
Date Submitted
2-Typed Pages / Double Spaced /5 points
Ticket & Program: /5 points
Opening Paragraph: /5 points
Company
Time
Location
Refers to Work by Title / Correctly Specifies Dancers Names: /5 points
Discusses Total Spectrum of Works /10 points
Description
Analysis
Evaluation
Verbalizes and Backs-up Opinions /10 points
Narrative Form / Grammar /5 points
TOTAL POINTS / 50