B8729 - DANZA DI COMUNITÀ (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student holdes an overview of the main theoretical elements and practices of Community Dance in its international and Italian declinations. S/he also gains methodological tools to design Community Dance projects. In terms of skills, this knowledge provides students with tools for critical analysis of Community Dance projects in the fields of application by age groups, as well as operational tools in the design field.

Course contents

The course provides a historical overview of experiences and artists who have explored the community-based role of dance, right up to the emergence of the discipline in Great Britain and Italy at the end of the 20th century. In the framework of the Italian context of local research, Franca Zagatti’s Laban-inspired theoretical and practical approach is introduced; this will be adapted for various contexts of intervention (educational, social, artistic, healthcare, etc.) and for different age groups.

A comparison will be made between the professional roles within the field: practitioners, danzeducatorә®, and artistә, each with methodological approaches, choreographic and performative practices characterised by specific aesthetics and project designs.

Workshop activities will be complemented by the viewing and analysis of community dance projects, to understand the various stages of their conception, implementation and evaluation.

Readings/Bibliography

Franca Zagatti, Persone che danzano. Spazi, tempi, modi per una danza di comunità, Ephemeria, Macerata 2026

Franca Zagatti, Danza educativa. Principi metodologici e tracce operative, Ephemeria, Macerata 2021

Rita Maria Fabris, Danza, partecipazione e comunità per la promozione della salute intergenerazionale: il caso di Torino | Ballo 1945_Grande Cammino Popolare di Virgilio Sieni, in Alessandro Pontremoli, Alessandra Rossi Ghiglione, Rita Maria Fabris, Viola Zangirolami, Performing Arts, Well-Being e Salute di comunità, Roma, Bulzoni 2025, pp. 329-374.

Franca Zagatti, Le parole per dirsi: verso un lessico condiviso della danza di comunità, «Danza e Ricerca. Laboratorio di Studi, Scritture, Visioni», 10, 2018, pp. 349-369. https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.2036-1599/8756 2018 [https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.2036-1599/8756%202018]

Teaching methods

Lectures are face-to-face and consist of phases of explanations, reading of textual materials, analysis of audiovisual materials, questions, discussion and group work.

The course includes educational workshop trips and theoretical and practical sessions with professionals in green spaces and exhibition venues.

Assessment methods

The exam consists of an oral test with open-ended questions on the topics covered in class and on the recommended reading list.

Active participation in classroom discussion and working groups is an element of evaluation for those who attend.

The aim of the oral exam is to assess the student’s ability to apply their knowledge and to make the necessary logical and deductive connections. Final mark scale:

Substantially comprehensive knowledge of the topics covered in the course, ability to make independent choices regarding critical analysis and making connections, full command of specialist terminology, and the ability to argue a case and engage in self-reflection → 30–30L;

Knowledge of a wide range of topics covered in the course, ability to make independent choices regarding critical analysis, command of specialist terminology → 25–29;

Knowledge of a limited number of topics covered in the course and the ability to analyse independently only on purely
practical matters, expressed in correct language → 20–24;

Knowledge of a very limited number of topics covered in the course and an ability to analyse that emerges only with the help of the lecturer, expressed in generally correct language → 18–19.

Students with learning disorders and\or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

Slides, audiovisual materials, web sources, cooperative learning, questionnaire, learning materials on Virtuale, TEAMS platform, educational workshops trips, meetings with artists and scholars.

AI can be a useful tool to support independent study by providing further insights.

Office hours

See the website of Rita Maria Fabris