College of Arts & Humanities
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/1611
The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations.
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Item Mi Vida, in Rhythm: Resistance and Integration of an Afro- Honduran Immigrant in The United States Through Tap Dance(2024) Lanza Ruiz, Gerson Noé; Portier, Kendra; Dance; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This article focuses on Mi Vida, in Rhythm, which premiered on October 12, 2023, at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. This performance is an autobiographical account of my experience immigrating from Honduras to the United States. At the heart of this production lies the art of storytelling, brough to life through the combination of live music, dance and spoken word. The performance draws heavily from the experiences of Afro-descendant peoples in Central America and the United States. It is steeped in the cultural traditions of the Garifuna, an afro-indigenous people of Honduras, incorporating their language, dance forms of resistance, and everyday choreography. The performance aims to capture the evolution of communication tactics, identity, and coping mechanisms of Afro Latinoe/xs as we navigate the challenges of realizing the American dream.What follows are brief personal accounts that serve as guide to essential artistic discoveries that sparked my curiosity. These curiosities eventually mold my artistry in percussive dance, particularly tap dance. With that, I formally analyze specific segments in Mi Vida, in Rhythm, that serve as reservoir of knowledge for movement and sound exploration. Ultimately my scholarly research dwells in three different topics; First the term Blackness as descriptive of one's ethnicity, race, or both, and the movement practices unique to their demographic and diasporic thread. Second, the understanding of historic privileging of Eurocentric perspectives within higher education. Third, the necessity to highlight Afro-Latinoe/ experiences and dance forms within dance curriculum. The article concludes by highlighting my contributions as an artist, instructor, and creative collaborator steeped in the artistry of bodily percussion practices and the intersectionality of Black cultural terrain and immigration paranoia.Item FALL MFA DANCE THESIS CONCERT 2023: AN IMMERSIVE WORLD(2024) Jn.Baptiste, Shartoya Rochelle; Kachman, Misha; Theatre; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This thesis seeks to describe the scenic design process for The Fall MFA Dance Thesis Concert (FMFA) choreographed by Javier Padilla and Gerson Lanza at the University of Maryland - College Park, School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies through research, documentation, photographs, and other design materials. Some of the following materials included in this thesis were used as tools to convey the scenic design to the choreographers and the production team: research images, sketches, photographs of the 1⁄4" scale white and colour models, a complete drafting packet, paint elevations, a properties list, and book. Photographs from the production and a written reflection on the design process are also included.