SMC Core Curriculum Course Proposal Form
Electronically submit a copy of the course proposal form and attachments to
the Chair of the CCC. Please submit a separate copy of the proposal form for
each learning goal.
1. Name of Proposer: Dana Lawton
2. Email address: [email protected]
3. Department/Program of Proposer: Performing Arts
4. Name of Department/Program housing the course: Performing Arts
5. Name(s) of Program Director/Department Chair (if not the proposer): Cathy
Davalos
6. Course Acronym, Number and Title: 175/177 Dance Company III/IV
7. Semester(s) in which course will be offered: Every semester
8. How often is this course taught? Every semester
9. Course Prerequisites (if any): 75 Dance Company I/II
10. Unit Value of Course: 1. Or .25
11. Proper Audience for the course (delete those that don’t apply):
Freshmen x Sophomores
x Juniors x Seniors
12. The Learning Goals for which the course is being submitted
(Courses may apply for at most one Pathways to Knowledge goal, and for as many
Engaging the World goals as is appropriate. Please complete a separate proposal
form for desired goal.)

Pathways to Knowledge
Artistic Understanding – Both Artistic Analysis and Creative Practice
1)Course Syllabus
Saint Mary’s College
School of Liberal Arts
Department of Performing Arts
Dance Company
Performing Arts 175/177
PROFESSORS:
OFFICE:
OFFICE HOURS:
PHONE:
CLASS HOURS:
CatherineMarie Davalos and Shaunna Vella
LeFevre Theatre 5
Cathy: M W 10-12all others by appointment
Cathy: 631-4824
Advanced M W F 2:15-3:45
Welcome to the Saint Mary’s College Dance Company now in our 16thyear. This Dance Company is
the heart and soul of the dance program at Saint Mary’s College. You are the ambassadors to our
world on and off this campus. With this honor comes a tremendous responsibility to perform as
good citizens both on and off stage. Hopefully your engagement with this work comes from your
heart. Remember who you are and why you dance. It is the key to your personal success and
fulfillment. We are a strong company with a solid reputation. We have enjoyed many years of
choreography workshops with some of the Bay Area’s finest teachers and choreographers; and
several years of fabulous guest artist. This year our guest artist for the spring is Kara Davis. Look
for more news on the spring concert later.
Once again, we are confident that this year will be incredible. We also have a large dance company
with new and returning dancers who are strong and eager to dance. This dance company belongs to
all of us; it is a group effort. We must all work together toward the same goal. Rogelio Lopez will be
your concert director for the Fall show, Jia Wu will be your concert director for the Spring show,
Cathy Davalos will coordinate ACDF, and Dana Lawton will organize Works in the Works. This
semester we will continue our full company meetings on selected Wednesdays throughout the year.
This dance company is our pride and joy. Nevertheless, we are not flawless. We hope you will
approach us as soon as any problems arise with the work. We believe you are taking a technique
class to participate in a shared experience and to hear the knowledge of perception. We are the
facilitators of that; we are here to give you our observations. Feedback is part of being a dancer.
We are here to assist you with the improvement of your technique and performance. We assume
that you are here because you want to dance.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Dance Company is designed to give the dance student an opportunity to
experience working as a professional dancer with guest choreographers and faculty members of the
dance program. The work will involve training as a dancer through technique class, dance
conditioning, and choreography and performance or production and backstage crew. We will be
pairing dancers for peer mentoring the semester. We often ask Bay Area professional dancers to
work, train and perform with SMC students to enhance this experience. Students will meet threefive days a week for dance classes and rehearsals (additional hours will be necessary while in a
production week). During the beginning of the semester some students may develop material for
various concerts. See list of dates below.
Dance Program Goals:
The dance program at Saint Mary’s College strives toward excellence by:
 emphasizing a healthy attitude toward dance.
 developing efficient movement patterns that promote a healthy body.
 encouraging reflection both of the practice and the spirit.
 assisting the dancer in taking ownership of growth and change.
 teaching healthy life-style choices including nutrition and injury prevention.
 exploring the dancing body in relationship to the SMC community, the greater dance
community, and the world, thus placing dance within a larger context of ideas.
 requiring cross training of various dance styles, including technique, Somatics, and world
dance forms, in addition to recommending other disciplines within the performing arts.
 attending dance concerts of professional companies.
 offering peer mentoring and one-to-one faculty mentoring.
 supporting individual artistic choices to express individual thought, choreography, and
research to further develop creative and critical thinking.
 creating professionally trained dancers in a rigorous and positive environment.
Learning Outcomes for the advanced dancer
The student will:
 develop and nurture a positive relationship with dance.
 construct and recreate a sense of healthy and efficient movement patterns thus enabling
dance technique that promotes an understanding of alignment and proper body
mechanics.
 move to ones fullest potential with energy and vibrancy.
 understand musicality by listening to and embodying rhythm and phrasing.
 recognize movement dynamics thus allowing for texture, dimension, and variance in energy.
 practice the concept that technique and performance are wedded by radiating a performance
energy in class as well as on stage.
 understand the basics of the four main categories of Laban Movement Analysis (LMA):
body, effort, shape, and space including the basics of Bartenieff Fundamentals through
the patterns of total body organization which include: 1) breath, 2) core-distal, 3) headtail connectivity, 4) upper-lower connectivity, 5) body-half connectivity, 6) cross-lateral
connectivity, in movement practice and in writing.
 observe the dancing body in action in order to discuss the work on a performance level,
including Laban effort qualities and Bartenieff Fundamentals.
Letter writing assignment: Write your instructors Cathy and Shaunna a letter. Tell us about you, all
the things we know and do not know. What will help us better understand you? What goals do you
have for this semester? How was your summer? How is life at this moment? This is confidential; we are
the only sets of eyes to see this. Due August 29 or 31.
Grading Procedures:
Grading will be determined by several factors:
1. The quality of work performed by the student in class.
Dance class is a daily activity for the dancer. Students will train rigorously to develop musicality,
strength, flexibility and stamina. Performance techniques are included in dance class. Students will
also be challenged to grow and improve throughout the course of the semester. They will be
expected to behave as professional dancers both in class and at rehearsals. A student is visible the
entire time. We observe you both when you are dancing and not dancing. How much are you
engaged in the work? How connected are you to the peer mentoring process? Your peer mentoring
and your improvement grade will factor into your total technique grade.
2. Attendance.
The successful completion of this course depends on good attendance. Please be on time to class.
You may have two absences before your grade will be affected. You are given 100 points for
attendance for the semester. If you are absent twice, you will still have an A- in attendance, or 90%.
If you come in late or leave early two times it will be counted as one absence, -5%. If you come in
late to class do not assume you will be allowed to join the group. It depends on how far we have
progressed through the warm-up. If you need to watch a class, -1%, a worksheet will be given to
help facilitate your observations. Please turn it in at the end of the class. You will also be given
separate points to attend dance concerts. Dance concerts may overlap from other courses. If you
have more than 6 absences you will be asked to drop the course. Please see full attendance
policy below.
3. Rehearsal and Performance or Running Crew and Performance.
If you are in the dance company, you are expected to be performing in the fall
concert or helping backstage. A successful grade in this area means that you have
prepared well and you have made a commitment to the work. Your dedication is
imperative. You must not miss rehearsals and/or crew calls. Each choreographer
will provide you with the consequences of missing a rehearsal including losing the
privilege to be in the dance and/or future performances. How you work during
rehearsal and how you “perform” onstage or backstage will determine this grade.
Lateness to rehearsals, as well as lateness to tech rehearsals and performance calls
will affect this grade.
4. Midterm and Final
Two exams will be given to facilitate how well you have integrated the learning outcomes of this course.
The assignments will be given before the exam dates.
Grade Breakdown:
Your grade is averaged on the traditional scale: 90% =A, 80% = B, etc.
Quality of Work and Improvement:
100
Dance Concerts: 15 points each,
30
Attendance:
100
Fall Concert Participation or Performance:
100
Midterm and Final: 50 points each
100
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Saint Mary's College Dance Company
Calendar 2012-13
August 29, Dance Company Meeting and auditions, 12:45-2:00, Syufy Dance Studio
August 29, Performing Arts Department Mixer, 4:30-6:00, LeFevre Theatre
September14, senior project showing 3:45-4:45
September 21-22, Dance Company Retreat
September 28, senior project showing and ACDF audition, 3:45-4:45
October 6, SMC 150th Anniversary Performance, 10:00-6:00, various campus locations
7) October12, senior project showing, 3:45-5:00?
8) November 2, senior project showings, 3:45-5:00?
9) November 3, Dance Concert in SF, 8 pm, Deborah Slater Dance Theatre (w/ Rogelio)
10) November 10, Works in the Works, tech call 12-5 before the show, dancers only
11) November 10, Works in the Works,7:30 pm, Eighth Street Studio, Berkeley
12) November 12, Stageleft, Film by Austin Forbord, 7 pm
13) November15, Spring Awakening, LeFevre Theatre, 7 pm
14) November 19&20, dance load-in, hang and focus, lay floor for fall show
15) November 26-28,tech fall show, 5:00-10:00 pm?
16) November 29, 30 December 1, Dance Concert, 6 pm call
17) December1, dance company cast and Christmas Party, after concert
18) December 10, Senior Project Panels 2:15-6:15
19) January 26, Scholarship auditions, 10:00-4:00
20) March 13-17, ACDF, Scottsdale, AZ
21) March 23-April 1, Easter Break
22) May 4-8,Technical Rehearsals for Dance Concert on weekend days and in evening
during the week.
23) May 9-10, SMCDC Spring Dance Concert
24) May 22, Senior Send Off
Dance Program Attendance Policy
 If a course meets 2-3 times per week the student is allowed a total of six absences.
If a student misses class 6 times she/he must withdraw from the course. If the
student does not withdraw from the course, the student will receive a failing grade.
Classes with joint enrollment such as Dance Company and Workshop, are
considered one class with a total of six absences.
 If a course meets once a week the student is allowed a total of three absences. If a
student misses class 3 times she/he must withdraw from the course. If the student
does not withdraw from the course, the student will receive a failing grade.
 Lateness will affect the student’s overall grade. Students are expected to be in the
classroom/studio before or at the official start time of a class. Two tardies will be
counted as one absence.
 If a student is more than 15 minutes late it is considered an absence.
Student Disability Services: Student Disability Services extends reasonable and
appropriate accommodations that take into account the context of the course and its
essential elements for individuals with qualifying disabilities. Students with disabilities are
encouraged to contact the Student Disability Services Office at (925) 631-4358 to set up a
confidential appointment to discuss accommodation guidelines and available services.
Additional information regarding the services available may be found at the following
address on the Saint Mary’s website: http://www.stmarys-ca.edu/sds
Academic Honor: The College has approved the use of Turnitin.com technology. The
College’s policy requires all Collegiate Seminar students to submit essays to the
Turnitin.com database. Saint Mary’s College expects every member of its community to
abide by the Academic Honor Code. According to the Code, “Academic dishonesty is a
serious violation of College policy because, among other things, it undermines the bonds of
trust and honesty between members of the community.” Violations of the Code include but
are not limited to acts of plagiarism. See the following address for more information:
http://www.stmarys-ca.edu/student-life/student-involvement-andleadership/docs/student_handbook.pdf
2) Course Narrative
Dance taught in the studio is traditionally a 70/30 split between movement/verbal
instructions. While it is important for the instructor to give clear verbal instructions, most
of the learning occurs when the students are able to move and directly apply the
instructions and/or corrections to their own body. Emphasis on positive body image,
physical alignment, musicality, spacial orientation, and specific movement vocabulary are
all areas in which the instructor bases class material. The student who is able to apply these
concepts in their minds and then be able to transfer these concepts to their body is learning
the proposed outcomes.
Learning outcomes are assessed at both mid-semester and the end of term. Students learn
specifically choreographed dances in the discipline of study. Their final assignment is to
perform these dances for the teacher and fellow classmates on the last day of class. These
dances range from 1-5 minutes, depending on the genre of dance. This assignment acts like
as a comprehensive test, illuminating whether the student has been able to understand and
integrate the learning outcomes with regard to placement, musicality, spatial orientation,
movement vocabulary and wed it with performance quality and memorization of dance
steps.
3) Learning Outcomes for the advanced dancer
The student will:
 develop and nurture a positive relationship with dance.
This learning outcome is assessed through one on one mentoring and lectures regarding
body image. Students are asked at the beginning of each semester how they feel about
their bodies. This is revisited at mid-semester and the end of the term.

construct and recreate a sense of healthy and efficient movement patterns thus enabling
dance technique that promotes an understanding of alignment and proper body
mechanics.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested
and can show improvement in this specific area, and is assessed visually by both the
instructor and the student when the students are able to move and directly apply the
instructions and/or corrections to their own body.

move to ones fullest potential with energy and vibrancy.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested and
can show improvement in this specific area where the student begins to dance bigger and with
more energy.

understand musicality by listening to and embodying rhythm and phrasing.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested and
can show improvement in this specific area where the student is able to follow the count
structure of the music and apply to choreography to specific counts in the music.

recognize movement dynamics thus allowing for texture, dimension, and variance in energy.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested and
can show improvement in this specific area when the student learns that all movement in dance
has the capacity to be executed with different physical energy.

practice the concept that technique and performance are wedded by radiating a performance
energy in class as well as on stage.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested and
can show improvement in this specific area by performing a choreographed dance for the class.

understand the basics of the four main categories of Laban Movement Analysis (LMA):
body, effort, shape, and space including the basics of Bartenieff Fundamentals through
the patterns of total body organization which include: 1) breath, 2) core-distal, 3) headtail connectivity, 4) upper-lower connectivity, 5) body-half connectivity, 6) cross-lateral
connectivity, in movement practice and in writing.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested
and can show improvement in this specific area by written papers with regard to
specific choreography and how the LMA principles apply.

observe the dancing body in action in order to discuss the work on a performance level,
including Laban effort qualities and Bartenieff Fundamentals.
This learning outcome is assessed at both mid-term and end of term. Students are tested
and can show improvement in this specific area by watching dances on stage and write
a paper with regard to the choreography in performance and how the LMA principles
apply.