From the end of World War II through the 1950s, the American film industry produced many musicals, especially of the western and naval-themed variety. The iconic cowboy, frontiersman, and sailor figures in these film musicals express elements of the American character through posture and dance. Rugged individualism, improvisational ingenuity, expansionism, and the provider-protector ideal are all expressed through these singing, dancing figures. By appealing to patriotism, these western and naval musical films wrapped up the idealized social models that they presented in an attractive package. The social model that they presented was a conservative one—men were in the workplace as breadwinners and women in the home as homemakers and caregivers. This period coincides with the early years of the Cold War, a time of intense anxiety for many reasons. With the communist Soviet Union as its primary adversary, the United States was involved in a competition to maintain world superpower status. One point of anxiety hinged on shifting gender roles. While women had entered the workplace during WWII to assist in the war effort, they were expected to return to the domestic world of home and family when the men returned from the war. These western and naval musicals were a part of the popular culture of the era which counteracted shifting gender roles by presenting social models that were strictly delineated along gender lines. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Dance in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. / Spring Semester, 2009. / April 3, 2009. / Social drama, Oklahoma, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Anchors Aweight, On the Town, Calamity Jane, Annie Get your Gun, South Pacific / Includes bibliographical references. / Tricia Young, Professor Directing Thesis; Sally Sommer, Committee Member; Patty Phillips, Committee Member; Jennifer Atkins, Committee Member.

During the Progressive Era (1890-1920) instructors taught gymnastic and dance practices in American settlement houses. Developed by white, educated middle-class women, settlement houses offered these classes to reflect the "progressive ethos," which hinged on the idea of individual responsibility for the greater good of society. Dance offered a method of molding and regulating the immigrant body into good, progressive Americans. This examination focuses on four primary practices – physical culture/gymnastic body-strengthening exercises, ballroom dance, folk dance, and theatrical dance – in three settlement houses: Hull-House (Chicago, founded 1889), Greenwich House (New York, 1902), and Northwestern University Settlement (Chicago, 1891). The overlapping chronology of both the houses and the dance forms show the flexibility of the organization of the settlement house and the amorphous nature of the value system advocated by Progressive reformers. Settlement workers built ideal tenement houses throughout the United States, which provided ample space, ventilation, light and cleanliness, in an attempt to counter the negative effects of rapid modernization and industrialization at the turn of the twentieth century. They replicated these ideals in the dance presented there. The resulting practices at settlement houses embodied middle-class ideals of morality, refinement, respectability and appropriateness. Investigation of the sources, however, reveals that despite their good intentions, the settlement workers' Americanization of movement subverted the spirit of immigrant cultures. The role of settlement houses has not been analyzed in terms of what they declared as legitimate movement in establishing proper "Americanization." This study will therefore look more closely at and compare the inclusion of dance from the founding of the three settlement houses and trace their re-visions. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Dance in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. / Summer Semester, 2009. / April 24, 2009. / Progressive Era, Physical Culture, Ballroom Dance, Folk Dance, Modern Dance, Tap Dance, Jane Addams, Hull-House, Greenwich House, Northwestern University Settlement / Includes bibliographical references. / Sally R. Sommer, Professor Directing Thesis; Tricia Young, Committee Member; Patricia Phillips, Committee Member; Jennifer Atkins, Committee Member.

À travers ma thèse intitulée "Le Dj, médiateur de transferts culturels dans la Dance Culture. comment des cultures locales sont devenues globales", je mets en avant l'implication des DJs dans l'émergence des principaux mouvements musicaux formant la Dance Culture dans l'espace Atlantique.Dans le premier chapitre, je retrace l'émergence de la culture musicale jamaïcaine qui se trouve être à la base du DJing au sens créatif du terme.Dans le deuxième chapitre, je montre le développement des quatre mouvements phares qui forment la Dance Culture apparue sur la côte Est des États-Unis.Dans mon troisième chapitre, je parle de l'expansion de la Dance Culture en Europe en m'appuyant principalement sur les cas du développement de la House et de la Techno en Angleterre, en Allemagne et en France. / Through my thesis entitled "DJ, cultural transfers mediator in the Dance Culture, how local cultures became global", I put forward the DJs' involvement in the emergence of the main music movements which formed the Dance Culture in the Atlantic area.In the first chapter, I recall the Jamaican music culture's emergence which is on the basis of the DJing in the creative sense.In the second chapter, I show the development of the four main movements which formed the Dance Culture appeared in the East coast of the United States.In my last chapter, I speak about the expansion of the Dance Culture in Europa with the example of the House and Techno development in England, in Germany and in France.

abstract: Derived from the Greek word soma, meaning body, somatics is a field of movement methodologies designed to promote a greater sense of physical self-awareness through kinesthetic learning. Gaga Movement Language and Bartenieff Fundamentals, two methodologies based on somatic principles, offer unique processes to develop an individual’s movement vocabulary. By synthesizing Gaga Movement Language and Bartenieff Fundamentals with vocal pedagogy and vocal repertoire, singers can develop a kinesthetic awareness of their vocal technique that informs their artistic expression, movement vocabulary, and performance ability. This paper presents a model for a Voice Somatics Integration Lab (VSI Lab), geared toward voice performance majors and designed to bridge the gap between Gaga Movement Language, Bartenieff Fundamentals, and vocal pedagogy. The course will culminate in a performance of a song or aria that students have selected, staged, and choreographed in accordance with the lab curriculum, along with a brief three-to-five-minute presentation detailing their choreographic process. Complete with a detailed syllabus and lesson plans, the course will use movement philosophies and techniques to guide each student in developing their pieces. Ultimately, the VSI Lab will assist singers in more effectively blending the physical demands of staging and choreography with their singing technique and artistry. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Music 2020

The overall purpose of this study is to establish the baseline for a new line of research into the effective relationship between traditional jazz musicians and swing dancers in current social dancing environments. The study is a mixed-method study utilizing a qualitative study to understand and describe the values and performance practices of musicians who play for swing dancing plus a quantitative study to examine the preferences and behaviors of dancers. The study gathered data at four different Lindy Hop swing dance events throughout the Eastern United States. Part A of the quantitative section of the study gathered demographics data with an in-person survey form. Demographics data was analyzed with descriptive statistics and tested for significant interactions within the data. A total of 236 dancers participated with 1050 different dances being rated. Participants were closely divided into "leads" (n = 122) and "follows" (n = 112). Results from the demographics study showed a median year of 2009 in which dancers started dancing the Lindy Hop. They also had a median Level of Expertise of Intermediate/Advanced. Leads reported a higher Level of Expertise than follows. Dancers attend dances a median twice a week, and travel from four to eight times a year to Lindy Hop events. The four dance events differed significantly by Starting Year (p = 0.006), Level of Expertise (p < 0.001), Travel Frequency (p = 0.001). Part B of the quantitative section gathered ratings of individual dances using a dance log in which each participant rated six different dances along five metrics: Dance Rating, Song Rating, Song Familiarity, Partner Familiarity and Partner Skill level. The means and standard deviations for each of the booklets ratings are: Song Rating (M=3.94, SD=0.78), Dance Rating (M=4.01, SD=0.84), Song Familiarity (M=3.09, SD=1.47), Partner Familiarity (M=3.04, SD=1.50), and Partner Skill (M=2.96, SD=1.12). There was a moderate correlation (n=981) between Dance Rating and Song Rating of rs = 0.427. There was a moderate correlation of rs = 0.466 between Song Familiarity and Song Rating (n=1023), and of rs = 0.336 between Dance Rating and Partner Skill (n=979). All other correlations are weak. The qualitative section utilized interviews of four musicians from the Lindy Hop community that were transcribed to identify markers of influence and descriptive terminology and categorized into five themes: Musician Descriptors, Dancer Descriptors, Environmental Descriptors, Performance Practice Descriptors, and Community Descriptors. Musician Descriptors are variables based on the musician's background and experience. Dancer Descriptors identified factors pertaining to general dancer expectations. Environmental Descriptors center on factors involving the ballroom setting, such as size and audience proximity. Performance Practice Descriptors, the most extensive group describes the specific methods and variables involved in performing for dancers. Community Descriptors lists the ideological values, relationship types and phrases used to describe the swing dance community. In the discussion, each of these three sections are combined to present an overview summary of the demographics, patterns and practices of the Lindy Hop community with the purpose of creating a baseline upon which to base future research. / A Thesis submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. / Fall Semester, 2014. / November 10, 2014. / Jazz, Lindy Hop, Music Preference, Swing Dance / Includes bibliographical references. / Brian Gaber, Professor Directing Thesis; John Geringer, Committee Member; Kimberly VanWeelden, Committee Member; Frank Gunderson, Committee Member.

One of the most important roles of the online instructor is to insure successful teaching by keeping students' interactions and discussions focused on topic, adding knowledge and expertise, and maintaining group harmony. Therefore, the success of online learning depends on the instructors' ability to acquire new competencies, rather than mastering the technology. Despite the growth in online instructor competency related studies, there is a lack of research regarding the instructors' roles and competencies from the distance learning students' perspective. This study was an attempt to explore distance learning students' perceptions of the roles and competencies defined by experts in the field. A comprehensive list of roles, outputs, and competencies of online instructors were provided to the students in order to rate the importance of each role and competency. It was the purpose of this study to compare the findings of this study with the findings of pervious studies. The population of this study included all distance learning graduate students (n = 328) currently enrolled in the School of Information Studies at Florida State University. Forty-two percent (n = 140) of the original student population of 328, completed and submitted the online survey. Roles and competencies were ranked by their importance; ranking was also achieved by taking the average of competency means across roles and competencies. Results for the top ten competencies in overall importance, based on highest mean rating are: Content Knowledge, Facilitation (discussion) Skills, Organizational Skills, Planning Skills, English Proficiency, Presentation Skills, Interpersonal Communication Skills, Learning Styles and Theory, Teaching Strategies/models, Skills with Internet Tools for Instruction. xiii The findings also determined that when compared to previous competency studies, there was a significant difference between students' perceptions and experts' perceptions regarding the most important online instructor competencies. Experts rated social competencies (interpersonal communication skills) number one in the list of top ten most important online instructor competencies; on the other hand, students rated intellectual competencies (content knowledge) number one in their list of top ten. However, both experts and students concurred regarding managerial competencies, because both rated at least four managerial skills in the list of top ten competencies. Distance learning students' responses indicated that instructors should give careful attention to the development and improvement of their intellectual, social, managerial, and technical roles and competencies. The importance of paying attention to the technical and managerial roles, in addition to intellectual and social competencies of the online instructor, were emphasized as critical factors for the success of discussion and interaction in the online environment. This dissertation has helped bridge the gap between the perceptions of distance education experts and distance learning students by providing a comprehensive list of important online instructors' roles and competencies. Due to the rate of change in technologies used to deliver instruction and related changes in higher education, it is recommended to do another study to identify more roles and competencies. This study should be expanded to include the perceptions of students in different disciplines and other countries. / A Thesis Submitted to the College of Music in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Music. / Summer Semester, 2005. / May 22, 2005. / African Diaspora, Cultural Memory, Communicative Memory, Identity, Memory, Collective Memory / Includes bibliographical references. / Frank Gunderson, Professor Directing Thesis; Dale Olsen, Committee Member; Michael B. Bakan, Committee Member.

This thesis is a study of the functions of music and dance in Zumba classes held at the Forest Meadows Park community center in Tallahassee, Florida. It examines how music and dance are the generative mechanisms of communitas in this cultural space. Within the context of that exploration, this study analyzes the larger social and economic forces that surround these classes as a result of the mass-mediated Zumba phenomenon. As a multimillion dollar corporation, Zumba benefits by promoting the embodiment and creative appropriation of exotic cultures. Zumba's musics are used to create a generic image of primarily Latin peoples that idealizes them as sensualized beings, and this idea contributes to the exoticism of generic styles such as "Latin music." While engaging with this idea, I argue that this commodified Zumba experience is not an exploitative mechanism. Zumba does not intend to misrepresent various world cultures for its own gain, and that is not the experience of the Zumba practitioners at Forest Meadows. Rather, this creative appropriation is an empowering mechanism that is attained, in part, through mimetic representation wherein the copy—the Zumba culture—can gain the power of the original. In gaining this representative power, Zumba becomes an opportunity for participants to engage with a fabricated notion of "Latinness" that ultimately leads to feelings of empowerment, self-confidence, and equality. Those sentiments, which blossom from Zumba's exotic element and schizophonic mimetic representation, support the development of communitas. At the most basic level, music and dance are the generative mechanisms of that communitas experience; therefore, this study analyzes how these music and dance styles facilitate this experience. / A Thesis submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music. / Spring Semester 2016. / April 11, 2016. / Community, Dance Exercise, Ethnomusicology, Exotic, Mimesis, Zumba / Includes bibliographical references. / Frank Gunderson, Professor Directing Thesis; Michael B. Bakan, Committee Member; Hannah Schwadron, Committee Member.

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A Monologue is an Outrageous Situation! How to Survive the 60-Second Audition explains how to successfully tackle the "cattle call" acting audition with a sixty-second monologue. Through Q&As, tips, director's notes, and a glossary full of outrageous actions meant to inspire the actor into truly connecting with the piece, this book shows actors where and how to find a monologue, edit it, and give the best audition possible. / https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu_books/1259/thumbnail.jpg

Performing the work of William Shakespeare can be daunting to new actors. Author Herb Parker posits that his work is played easier if actors think of the plays as happening out of outrageous situations, and remember just how non-realistic and presen - tational Shakespeare’s plays were meant to be performed. The plays are driven by language and the spoken word, and the themes and plots are absolutely out of the ordinary and fantastic-the very definition of outrageous. With exercises, impro - vi sations, and coaching points, Acting Shakespeare is Outrageous! helps actors use the words Shakespeare wrote as a tool to perform him, and to create exciting and moving performances. / https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu_books/1271/thumbnail.jpg