Dance and Ethics: Moving Towards a More Humane Dance Culture

Dance and Ethics: Moving Towards a More Humane Culture is an introductory study of ethical issues as applied to the history and field of Western theatrical dance. It explores key ethical issues related to the dance field, including student-teacher and dancer-choreographer relationships, the creation and reception of choreographic work, the critical assessment of dance and dancers, and the presentation of systems and institutional infrastructures. The book is designed for undergraduate and graduate students in dance studies, American studies, performance studies, and cultural studies.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 264 pages
Publication date: 21 October 2022
Publisher: Intellect Books

Dance and Ethics: Moving Towards a More Humane Culture is an introductory study of ethical issues as applied to the history and field of Western theatrical dance. It is the first sustained work of its kind, inspired by the belief that there are serious issues to be illuminated by examining dance in relation to ethics and to the changing values in the dance world itself, especially as faced by young dancers entering the profession.
Since the 1960s and gathering momentum with the #metoo movement, scholars and practitioners, especially from the fields of dance education, somatics, and the realms of postmodern dance and ballet, have increasingly believed that attitudes and practices involving psychological, physical, and sexual mistreatment of students and dancers must be challenged.
Dance and Ethics examines key ethical issues related to the dance field, primarily within the United States, and how those directly impact different aspects of the lives of dance artists over the span of their careers. The issues discussed include the basic ethical choices facing a dance artist in terms of whether to care about ethics or separate art from morality; ethical issues involved in student–teacher and dancer–choreographer relationships; how ethical concerns relate to the creation and reception of choreographic work; ethical aspects of the critical assessment of dance and dancers; and ethical issues related to presenting systems and institutional infrastructures within the dance field.
While there is a clear bias towards greater humanism within the dance field, Naomi Jackson is sensitive to the variety of moral stances available in any given situation. Readers are invited to consider that ethical options exist other than those that are usually promoted, that while sometimes there are conflicts between ethical principles, that while ethical dilemmas are difficult to resolve, that while there is no single "right" answer to ethical questions, that while ethical decisions are often made in the context of complex social and cultural factors, and that while ethical considerations can be influenced by personal beliefs, values, and experiences.

Weight: 484g
Dimension: 169 x 244 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781789386134
Edition number: New ed