The Intimate Act of Choreography

by Lynne Anne Blom, L. Tarin Chaplin

A comprehensive book that covers all aspects of choreography from the most fundamental techniques to highly sophisticated artistic concerns.  The Intimate Act of Choreography presents the what and how of choreography in a workable format that begins with basics- - time, space, force -- and moves on to the more complex issues faced by the intermediate and advanced choreographer -- form, style, abstraction, compositional structures, and choreographic devices. The format of the book evolved from the idea that improvisation is a good way to learn choreography.  This approach is in harmony with widely accepted dance philosophies that value the unique quality of each individual’s creativity.  After discussing a concept, the authors provide improvisations, and choreographic studies that give the student a physical experience of that concept.  The language is stimulating an innovative, rich in visual images that will challenge the choreographer to explore new directions in movement. The book is for serious dance students and professionals who are interested in both the practical and theoretical aspects of the art, dancers who are just starting to choreograph, and teachers who are seeking fresh ideas and new approaches to use with young choreographers.  (A Teacher’s Addendum offers suggestions on how to use the material in the classroom.)  It is a guide, a text, and an extensive resource of every choreographic concept central to the art form.

Genres: Nonfiction, Academic, Art, College, School

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

Reviews

[Leticia Supple · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm closing the chapter on this book. I started reading it faithfully, and came to (re)learn so much more about my dance. All of the things that apply to me as a writer also apply to me as a dancer. Except the observation is less about the whole picture, and more about certain parts: movement, texture, shape, space, mood, time. All about texture in movement, and texture in movement, and how the two are related.

As a bellydancer, it was extremely useful to me, in theory and philosophy. In practise, it's a bit more abstract, written as it is for the ballet dancer. That is, at the *moment* it is a bit more abstract. I know with certainty that as I grow into my choreography, different parts of this book will apply more closely, and that I will derive more and more from its pages. In general, this text is valuable to dancers of ALL creeds.

Even though this text is written with dance teachers in mind, as a student of the art of choreography, I have benefited enormously from it. Most especially from the chapter on not letting music dictate the dance to you. It's a really tough notion to get past, that one.

I have yet to try many of the suggested exercises in the book, but that will happen when I have more time to choreograph, and am not pushing myself towards performance choreography at short notice.

Highly recommend this work to all dancers. Best twenty-something-dollars I've spent in a long while.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Read for a class.) A pretty helpful look at various choreographic techniques and philosophies. At times, the authors were a little self-consciously "artsy" in the way that they expressed things, and the language became pretentious and unnecessarily...weird, for lack of a better word.

[Kalise]

I am debating on using this for the choreography class I will be teaching, so far it seems pretty good!

[Tania Gee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is the best book on choreography, not only for its ideas but also for its writing. Many other books are pretty dry reading material, this is always fascinating and insightful.

[Amy Danielson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous. A must read for any dancer, of any style!