TIME | 29 September 2011, 4pm onwards
LOCATION | CSAFE Seminar Room, , Dunedin
SPEAKER | Ali East
As a choreographer and educator my interest for a number of years has been concerned with Dance’s possible contribution to a more inter-connected and inter-relational way of understanding and of living in the world. In this presentation I explore some of Dance’s attributes as a research partner and question the readiness or willingness of established research groups here at the University of Otago to invite Dance in. In the process I offer insights on the potential role of Dance within transdisciplinary research from various key academic researchers and educators across campus with whom I held informal ‘conversations’. These disciplinary boundary crossings or encounters (Luhman 1995), in themselves, provided fertile and creative ground for potential future trans-disciplinary engagement.
Ali (MPhEd) is a dancer, choreographer and educator at the University of Otago, New Zealand. For over thirty years she has been developing tertiary dance curriculum and in 1989 established New Zealand’s first contemporary dance qualification. She teaches courses in choreography, somatic education and community dance. Her performance work reflects her interest in eco-political themes and in cross-disciplinary collaborative process. Current research interests include: the development of an ecologically based pedagogy for the teaching of Dance Studies; and dance ethnography. She has presented at conferences internationally and published a number of articles. Her book ‘Teaching Dance as if The World Matters’ is soon to appear in print. For more information, please contact .