Abstract:
“Dance is for girls.” This is a stereotype I have heard my entire life, and it is typically used by
men to express condescension stemming from ignorance. While it is true that women make up
the majority of dancers in the field, this is no indication that dance is for the weak. Modern dance
is the only artform dominated by women; this research-based project looks at the intersection
between feminism and dance specifically, professional dance in the western world. Beginning
with ballet in the 1800s, right around the time of Mary Wollstonecraft’s Vindication of the Rights
of Women, ballet was controlled by the government, which in turn was controlled by men, who
used ballet to influence public perceptions. The dancers during this time acted merely as pawns.
Overtime, just as women began liberating themselves from men in society, women began to
liberate themselves from men in dance. New styles emerged, and eventually women and dance
became a common association. This work brings together the experiences of dancers’ past and
present to react to this shift. Through the research and choreographic process, a timeline for this
shift was established as women progressing from bodies, to dancers, and finally to creators.
Bodies to Creators is a compilation of solo and group work that exhibits how female dancers
have struggled, progressed, and in some ways stayed the same.
