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n universities everywhere, the Coronavirus has caused a need for changes to be made to class syllabi, course curriculum, and degree tracks. Pondering the question of whether or not students will be able to return to campuses come fall, what changes will remain permanent?

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In the Contemporary Dance department at Indiana University, major uncertainties and challenges have and will continue to be brought to light. In recent weeks, due to Coronavirus, my peers and I have expressed our concerns to this semester, for the fall, and for the future of dance to one another. We have experienced challenges in our new limiting environments. Pre-existing issues within our own department are now more pronounced than ever. How do we continue to dance through the summer? And the nature of dance is not suitable for a social distant society. I asked four of my peers from the IU Contemporary Dance sophomore class (who will remain nameless) to discuss some of those uncertainties with myself and each other.

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What are changes you have faced in dance classes in regard to your environment: space, family, technology?

 

N: The move to online classes and dancing in my house instead of a studio has been a bit of an adjustment… I have a dance room with hard floors and mirrors… But I know many of my peers don’t have a dance space in their homes.

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M: I’m now living at home with my [family], so space is often limited and, being in my house… I get distracted. Usually… when I go home it’s meant for a break… I feel like I should be relaxing so, I find it hard to be motivated in my classes.

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A: Motivation is really difficult. It doesn’t help that I’m not enjoying the way some of our dance professors are doing dance. But some of our professors I feel are utilizing time in class really well. As far as space goes, it’s difficult because the environment doesn’t really call for us to dance in the same way.

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S: Space is definitely an issue because I am limited to my bedroom and it has carpet.

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Some dance professors have very successfully shifted class to fit an online format. How has the shift in focus been successful? How has your focus shifted?

 

M: One of our professors in particular has been really successful at shifting to an online format... they have been able to relate to us and genuinely show an understanding for the difficulties of this transition… During their class we have really interesting and thought-provoking discussions. For example, they have prompted us about how to approach getting a job dancing after school. They’ve helped us focus… on important things beyond just [college]. We’re now more focused on what will benefit us in our personal growth and in our future careers. And they’ve made a concerted effort to let us know that they are here for us under any circumstances.

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What are some opportunities that you feel you’ve missed out on since moving online this semester?

 

N: A big thing for our entire dance major is the Senior Capstone show, which is every spring... We spend the entire semester learning and creating dances and going to rehearsals... In student life, classes can feel repetitive and we don’t get a ton of opportunities to perform, so I look forward to being able to perform... It’s really important because I think there’s a stigma with dance and art-based majors of ‘well you’re not doing anything hard.’ To be able to get on stage and see how much I’ve grown from year to year is really important for myself. I also think it’s important and fulfilling to be able to get on stage and show my family what I’m working hard for and what they’re paying for.

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In a major based heavily on movement, collaboration, and connection (physical, mental, emotional) with other people, how has this time of quarantine stunted your growth? Has the quarantine caused you to experience growth in new places?

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M: I feel like my technical growth has been stunted since many of us don’t have the space or facilities to move or a mirror or ballet barre or teacher for corrections. However, I think a unique opportunity for growth has been in choreography. We have been talking about how dance and video can go together since that is something that we will inevitably be doing more of in the dance world.

 

A: I have also felt a stunt in my technical growth. There are things in some of my classes that I can’t do because of the new, non-dance space that I am in. It is disheartening to not have that technical growth because I feel like this past semester, I had been having a lot of growth in that. But now I feel like… having conversations with our professor has opened up ideas I’ve never even thought about. It’s helped me consider different things I may want to be involved in in the future.

 

N: I look in the mirror and just feel like I’ve regressed in dance even though I’m giving it my all... I am a very visual learner. And although we are still getting that virtually, I feel that it is more difficult because everyone has terrible internet connection and all the lagging and kicking us off Zoom. And things in my home like my brother coming down interrupting my classes or my dad in the other room screaming on a conference call disrupt the focused environment, which we all had at school. It is just generally impossible to simulate the same benefits you get from being in person through an online medium. Especially in a major where the professors are so closely involved every single day. I feel in a way we are missing out on our education, or that important pieces of our education are being taken from us due to lack of stable internet. From the assignments we’ve now been given, I’ve been grading myself more harshly as a dancer. I am in my home, so I should feel comfortable and free to do whatever, but I’m not.

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There have been major adjustments in the dance world due to the pandemic that will continue long after this is over – what do you think, going forward, will be some changes that are made in how we teach, learn, and view dance?

 

N: It’s really difficult to know because everything that this pandemic is teaching us and telling us not to do is what we do in dance. As dancers we are so involved in physical contact with each other and our environments. It’s difficult to know whether we will be able to lay and dance on the floor or partner.

 

A: With all of our recent discussions about dance film, I think that will become more prevalent. It has been growing already over the past few years and I think that this pandemic will only expedite its growth. I think more and more dancers will want to explore how to present dance on screen. One of our professors has even pointed out that it is less expensive for people to view and produce art that way. Dance can be very inaccessible as far as cost. With people losing their jobs and losing funding, the screen may be a way for people to present their art.

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It is clear that this pandemic will affect our future semesters. How do you think the possible decrease in opportunities is going to affect how our major and degree map will change?

 

M: If we don’t have access to the same funds or if people don’t come to see shows because of the close proximity in theatres or if we can’t have as many people in class or we can’t use physical contact it’s going to be extremely difficult for us on the day to day. If you look at our major as a whole, the degree map is set up in a very specific order. Something has come in and disrupted it and I don’t know what’s going to happen. We are supposed to be choreographing this fall at the start of our junior year, but now we don’t know if we will get that opportunity in the same capacity as years prior. There is a lot of uncertainty. It’s really scary not knowing what I’m paying for in a degree. I don’t know what’s going to change and what’s going to stay the same.

 

N: As the sophomore class, we haven’t had a lot of opportunities to create or choreograph, other than student-run productions. I think this pandemic could change a lot of things for us. If we don’t come back to campus next year, that is going to impact what classes we are able to take and when we will have the opportunity to start choreographing for department shows. For a lot of dance, we are in close contact and breathing on each other. What if we aren’t allowed to touch each other or be close? Since the majority of our opportunities come in our junior and senior year in the program, we are definitely the guinea pigs coming back to establish a new normal post-pandemic. 

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So many things are changing in our department as a result of the pandemic. This is a good opportunity for other changes to be made. What are some of those changes that you would like to explore?

 

A: How can we provide accessible, effective education? Maybe our degree map shouldn’t be so specific... We need more range of opportunities where dancers are able to pursue whatever is best for their future goals. Depending on funding, I think it would be really beneficial to provide more diverse dance styles to students and bring in more guest faculty who are young and currently working in the dance world.

 

M: There needs to be more discussion about professional dance coming from someone who is currently working in the professional world of dance. Instead of strictly being told take this and choreograph like this, we need to be able to have more jurisdiction over what we want to master.

 

A: This will also call for a more diverse group of dancers. If we are more versatile and offer more opportunities for people to invest their energy into what they want, we will be more appealing to future students.

 

N: Another opportunity for change that I would like to take advantage of is more overlap between theatre students and dance students. Contemporary dance is technically in the same department as Theatre and Drama. Since we are a part of that, I think we should take advantage. It would be useful to have those skills. I am planning on taking a movement theatre class in the fall that I am looking forward to. I hope we are able to return to campus in the fall so that I have the opportunity to take it. 

 

S: I want to see an improvement in communication within both Contemporary dance and the Theatre and Dance department as a whole. As students in contemporary dance, we often end up being the ones who carry the message from professor to professor. If we could have more communication and organization within the faculty, I think that would help us a lot.

 

N: There is Student Advisory Board where you can talk to Linda and the student representatives from the department. But a lot of people don’t take advantage of that, which is an issue. 

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How do you anticipate staying mentally and physically in shape over the next few months when we have limited or no access to dance studios or public gyms and summer dance programs have been cancelled?

 

N: As of now I have been working out a lot because there is nothing else to do. When I am finished with my classes, I don’t want to just sit down and watch TV. I am missing the physical activity I was having while at school. I’ve been going on runs and walks because that’s all I can do. 

 

S: As dancers, we are very self-disciplined people. I’ve been exercising a lot more. I’ve been also trying to use quiet time to journal and check in with friends and family. I’m hoping that over the summer I we will all be able to see friends and family and when that happens, I think we’ll all be taking full advantage of that.

 

A: I will say that from this break I have a lot more energy. We put a lot of hours into dancing and rehearsals. I didn’t realize how much we did until I came home and would find myself just chilling or sitting around. But I’ve been walking and trying to get in a yoga or workout session frequently. And since I feel well-rested and motivated, I’m very productive and am able to get my homework done. Compared to being at school, I’ve realized that I’m always so exhausted while at school.

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What are some uncertainties that concern you?

 

M: Nothing is going to go back to the way it was. This is our generation’s 9/11. A lot of stuff is going to change after this. My anxieties come from the fact that I don’t know when that’s going to happen. There’s no end in sight. Some people are saying it will be a couple of months. Other people are saying 2 years. I don’t know what my life is going to be at the end of this. Right now we are supposed to be in college, learning about ourselves, and experimenting. And that’s being interrupted. That scares me because I don’t know what the next 2 years are going to be. I’m supposed to be a full-fledged adult in 2 years but I don’t know what it’s going to be like in two years or what I’ll have done in 2 years.

 

N: My uncertainty comes from how my family and I are going to survive this. How long will this be? I am out of a job. My sister’s also not working. My dad is working less. Are we going to have enough money to pay for my college or to keep getting groceries if this is everlasting?

 

A: This whole thing has just brought on this fear. The fear is reasonable. It is scary. But it’s sad that we’re all afraid.

 

S: My anxiety comes from the fact that there’s no control over the situation. I can control that I’m going to do my part and stay home. But there really is no control over when we can begin to figure out what the new normal is.

 

A: Throughout this I’ll catch myself just thinking of me me me me. My mom always tells me that we’re all going through this together. ‘It’s not just you that is missing out on an opportunity. Everyone is missing out on an opportunity.’ I think that’s something to keep in mind. It’s a cool mentality. It brings the whole world into a community. We are all going through the same things even if it is in a slightly different way.

 

N: IU has been doing cool things getting our athletes to endorse staying home. There’s a sense of community that we’re lacking right now but seeing how IU has involved our athletes and is helping us stay connected has brought back that sense of community. IU is home. The art world has also been doing a really great job of bringing people in and creating community. It even goes beyond the communities we were already a part of. There have been so many free online classes and performances offered through Zoom. I think that’s really great on our part.