Dance spaces

de Susanne Ravn, Leena Rouhiainen

Few books offer a contemporary view on how the relationship between movement and space can be tied to the descriptions and analyses of actual movement practice. Already owing to its embodied nature, dance is essentially spatial. It forms, produces, and takes place in space. It is thus no coincidence that dance studies have increasingly begun to address the complex issue of movement and space. Dance Spaces: Practices of Movement takes as its point of departure diverse conventions of, and perspectives on, practices and discourses in dance. It is strongly motivated by the fact that space continues to be explored and debated within dance practices and studies, as well as the human sciences more generally. This anthology links conceptual descriptions that concern space as process and in process to the undertakings of specific movement practices in dance. The contributions address how historical and geopolitical influences impact our understanding and practice of dance art. In them, the kinds of spaces and interrelationships, which different forms of dancing generate, are considered. The aspects of embodied space that dancing relies upon are likewise discussed. Through case examples, the book takes a closer look at how recent artistic practice in dance utilizes given environments and constructs space.