Bringing history to life: pedagogical approaches to dance history in higher education

In ‘The Sense of the Past’ (1999) Shelley Berg argues that ‘[a]lthough the performance and analysis of masterpieces of dance repertory are central to the tradition of dance history, we have not fully explored the educational potential of the process of reconstruction and revival.’ (243) Fourteen years later, dance history is still primarily a lecture/seminar rather than studio-based branch of the discipline. This scholarly paper will introduce my use of reconstruction as a pedagogical approach to teaching dance history. I will argue that as choreography is primarily taught through embodied practice in the studio, an effective way to facilitate students to make connections between their choreographic practice and its historical heritage would be through the introduction of reconstruction work into the teaching of dance history. Using reflections on my own teaching practice, I will propose that reconstruction work here can bridge the gap between students’ experience of history in the lecture/seminar with their experience of choreography in the studio. My paper therefore combines the following conference themes: \ndeveloping choreographers and dancers in diverse settings and genres \napproaches to dance education and training \nissues around heritage, adaptation and re-versioning of dance works \n \nReference \nBerg, S. (1999). The Sense of the Past. In S.H. Fraleigh and P. Hanstein (Eds.), Researching Dance: Evolving Modes of Enquiry (pp. 225-248). London: Dance Books.