Imagine the (Im)possibilities: The Role of Constraints on Dance Creativity
Date
2018-08-28
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University of Delaware Library, Museums & Press
Abstract
This essay considers the role of constraints on creativity in dance. I introduce a choreographic research project, Three Bodies, based on the Pythagorean Three-Body Problem. I ask, what are the possibilities inherent in dance when creativity is constrained by a particular problem space? An important goal of this essay is to build on Patricia Stokes (2005) research on creativity from constraints. Using a practice-based research method, I show how this artistic case study “makes research” as a theoretical inquiry into human creativity and the role of constraints. I present two historically significant case studies of creative choreographers—Balthasar Beaujoyeulx and Merce Cunningham from the Italian Renaissance and the modern 20th century eras, respectively—who used constraints on movement invention and compositional structure to advance the art of dance. I consider lessons learned from these cases, and consider them in light of the choreographic challenge of the Three-Body Problem. I conclude with thoughts about the role of constraints on dance creativity in art-making and education.
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Citation
Warburton, E. (2018). Imagine the (Im)possibilities: The Role of Constraints on Dance Creativity. Dance: Current Selected Research, 9.