Undergraduate (BFA) Courses

DPB 1000–4999 (Ballet)
DPC 1000–4999 (Composition)
DPD 1000–4999 (General Dance)
DPM 1000–4999 (Modern)

DPB 1000–4999:

Ballet Vocabulary
DPB 1000 / 1 credit / Spring
A lecture course focusing on the knowledge of ballet nomenclature.

Ballet Technique I
DPB 1010 (Fall) and 1020 (Spring)
1.5 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long technique class that provides intermediate-level training for students in Level I ballet technique. Emphasis is placed on correct body alignment, awareness of musical phrasing and performance, knowledge of classical ballet vocabulary, and understanding of training principles. Placement audition required; placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPB 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Ballet Technique level.

Ballet Theory
DPB 1030 (Fall) and 1040 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
Emphasis on the basic techniques of classical ballet.

Ballet Technique: Advanced Pointe I/Freshmen
DPB 1400 / 1 credit / Every semester
Proper use of ballet technique while on pointe. Includes ballet barre warm-up and strengthening exercises at the barre and in the center, followed by classical phrases and/or variations.

Ballet Partnering (Pas de Deux)
DPB 1600 (Fall) and 1610 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Every year
The art of classical ballet partnering is studied and practiced to increase each dancer’s knowledge of the skills required to perform pas de deux.

Men’s Class/Variation
DPB 1655 (Fall) and 1665 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
A year-long class focusing on pirouettes, jumps, and the musical quality of male variations in dance.

Special Ballet Technique: First Year
DPB 1800 (Fall) and 1820 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
Classical ballet technique class for freshman dance majors.

Ballet Technique II
DPB 2010 (Fall) and 2020 (Spring)
1.5 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long technique class that provides advanced-level training for students in Level II ballet technique. Emphasis is placed on correct body alignment, awareness of musical phrasing and performance, knowledge of classical ballet vocabulary, and understanding of training principles. Placement audition required; placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPB 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Ballet Technique level.

Ballet Technique III
DPB 3010 (Fall) and 3020 (Spring)
1.5 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long technique class that provides advanced/professional level training for students in Level III ballet technique. Emphasis is placed on correct body alignment, awareness of musical phrasing and performance, knowledge of classical ballet vocabulary, and understanding of training principles. Placement audition required, placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPB 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Ballet Technique level.

Purchase Dance Company
DPB 3055 / Variable credits / Every year
Performance in a piece choreographed or staged by a guest artist, faculty member, choreographer, or rehearsal director in The Performing Arts Center, on tour, or in the Dance Theatre Lab. By audition only. Also offered as DPM 3055.

Ballet Technique: Advanced Pointe I
DPB 3530 (Fall) and 3535 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
A continuation of DPB 1400. Audition required.

Ballet Technique: Advanced Pointe II/Variation
DPB 3540 (Fall) and 3545 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
A continuation of DPB 3530 and 3535. Audition required.
Prerequisite: DPB 3535

Special Ballet Technique
DPB 3800 (Fall) and 3820 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
Classical ballet technique class; six semesters required (sophomore through senior year).

Ballet Technique IV
DPB 4010 (Fall) and 4020 (Spring)
3 credits (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
A year-long technique class. Placement audition required, placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPB 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Ballet Technique level.

Ballet Partnering II
DPB 4600 (Fall) and 4610 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Every year
The art of classical ballet partnering at the professional level, in preparation for performance.

Contemporary Off-Pointe Partnering
DPB 4620 (Fall) and 4630 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
An off-pointe partnering class that uses classical ballet partnering to explore more contemporary work. Material is not gender-based.

DPC 1000–4999:

Improvisation/Composition I
DPC 1010 (Fall) and 1020 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
A year-long course, required for freshman dance majors, taught through directed improvisation, lecture, and discussion. This course, which explores movement improvisational approaches and methodologies, is an entry into the creative trajectory that leads to composition and dance making. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.

Pilates I
DPC 1300 (Fall) and 1350 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Every year
The authentic Pilates mat workout, a technique for core conditioning, for novice or entry-level students. This course is the basis for the Pilates method of body conditioning. The class sessions include work on the Pilates exercises and address the history, philosophy, and methodology of Joseph H. Pilates. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.

Pilates II
DPC 1310 (Fall) and 1360 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
The authentic Pilates mat workout for students with prior Pilates experience. This course is the basis for the Pilates method of body conditioning. In each class session, students work out; examine the history of the Pilates method and its creator, Joseph H. Pilates; discuss the six principles of the method and the importance of the Powerhouse; and incorporate the five elements of the mind. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.

Modern Composition II
DPC 2010 (Fall) and 2020 (Spring)
or
Ballet Composition II
DPC 2015 (Fall) and 2025 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long course, required for all sophomore dance majors, that explores basic compositional structures and movement development techniques. DPC 2015 and 2025 focus on formations in space specific to the ballet idiom. In the fall, students register for DPC 2009 (modern) or 2014 (ballet) and are then placed in one of the DPC 2010 or 2015 sections after the end of add/drop. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.
Prerequisite: DPC 1010 and 1020

Advanced Improvisation
DPC 2200 (Fall) and 2210 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
A continuation of DPC 1010 and 1020, this workshop focuses on increasing movement possibilities specific to each student. Concepts of body sequencing and thrust/counterthrust are combined with improvisatory techniques. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.
Prerequisite: DPC 1010 and 1020

Modern Composition III
DPC 3010 (Fall) and 3020 (Spring)
or
Ballet Composition III
DPC 3015 (Fall) and 3025 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long course, required for all junior dance majors. Deepens the choreographic skill set and intuitive awareness in students, preparing them for their junior composition project. The junior composition project is required to proceed to the senior project. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.
Prerequisite: DPC 2010 and 2020, or DPC 2015 and 2025

Modern Composition IV
DPC 4010 (Fall) and 4020 (Spring)
or
Ballet Composition IV
DPC 4015 (Fall) and 4025 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
A year-long course, required for all dance majors except those in the dance production concentration. Develops students’ unique artistic voice as they create group dances in varied styles in preparation for their senior composition project.
Prerequisite: DPC 3010 and 3020, or DPC 3015 and 3025

Participation in Senior Project
DPC 4890 / 1 credit / Every semester
Dancers in senior project productions. Evaluations and selection of participants are made by seniors with approval of the faculty Senior Project Committee.

Participation in MFA Project
DPC 4895 / 2 credits / Every semester
Dancers in MFA project productions. MFA students evaluate and select participants with approval of the faculty MFA Project Committee.

Senior Project (Performance Concentrations)
DPC 4990 / 6 credits / Every year
A year-long graduation requirement for the dance performance and ballet concentrations. Students must perform one repertory piece that reflects technical and artistic work offered at Purchase and one composition piece that demonstrates their ability to work with dancers, movement, music, and theatrical staging. In addition, a proposal, artistic statement, résumé, and professional photo are required. Consult the Senior Project Guidelines booklet for details.

Senior Project (Composition Concentration)
DPC 4990 / 6 credits / Every year
A year-long graduation requirement for the composition concentration. Students must create and present a maximum of 30 minutes of choreography that includes one solo, duet, or trio and two large group pieces. In addition, a proposal, artistic statement, résumé, and professional photo are required. Consult the Senior Project Guidelines booklet for details.

Senior Project (Dance Production Concentration)
DPC 4990 / 6 credits / Every year
A year-long graduation requirement for the dance production concentration. Students must complete two projects: (1) produce a senior project concert involving publicity and programming, scheduling rehearsals, producing the performance, designing or executing costumes, and designing lights for the concert; and (2) stage manage a senior concert. Sequence of projects is the student’s choice. A paper summarizing the project is also required.

DPD 1000–4999:

Dance Freshman Seminar
DPD 1030 / 1 credit / Fall
Freshmen dance majors are given an orientation to the campus and its services, such as health, counseling, and the library, and to the professional dance world. Includes an introduction to the resources and performance spaces in New York City, one of the major dance capitals of the world.

Documenting Dance: A Video Production Guide for Choreographers
DPD 1070 / 2 credits / Every semester
In the first semester, students learn the basic tools of video production and how they apply to archiving, grant proposals, and promotional materials. The second semester is devoted to creating dances for the camera and the application of nonfiction filmmaking techniques to documentation of the choreographic process.

Anatomy for Dancers
DPD 1250 / 3 credits / Spring
A lecture course, required for freshman dance majors, in which students study the skeletal structure, muscles, tendons, and ligaments; movement range in joints; and injury care, cure, and prevention through the principles of Swedish massage.

Music I
DPD 1650 (Fall) and 1660 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long course covering the basic elements of music: melody, harmony, and the relationship of musical and dance rhythm. Basic notation skills. Functional emphasis on relating music to dance. Required for all freshman dance majors.

Topics in Music
DPD 1655 (Fall) and 1665 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
A year-long eclectic exploration of music’s many dimensions as they relate to the professional dancer. Such concepts as line, symmetry, balance, form, tension and release, and force of gravity serve as a bridge between the two disciplines. Landmark musical works are studied, as well as the way various choreographers have approached them. DPD 1655 focuses more on fundamental musical skills (e.g., rhythm, score reading, harmony), while DPD 1665 pursues broader philosophical issues (e.g., the idea of narrative, antinarrative, texture, and historical style). Offered as SOA 1300 and 1301 for students in other disciplines.

Dance Production I
DPD 1710 (Fall) and 1720 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long course, required for all freshman dance majors. An introduction to basic dance production techniques, including lighting, sound/recording, stage management, and running crew. Involves classwork and crew assignments on dance productions. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.

Acting
DPD 1850 / 2 credits / Every semester
An introduction to the core elements of the actor’s craft with the goal of developing sensitivity, awareness, and spontaneity on stage. Awareness of the body, voice, mind, and soul is heightened through improvisations, exercises, monologues, nontextual and scene work, and in-class performances. This course builds on the dancers’ work of physical articulation and incorporates a deep attention to psychological intention, character, and emotion. No previous experience required; open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.

Western Dance History I and II
DPD 2060 and 2070
2 credits (per semester) / I: Fall; II: Spring
A survey of Western theatrical dance. The roots of the ballet in Renaissance Italy and France through 20th-century developments in ballet and modern dance are studied as our cultural heritage. Required for all sophomore dance majors. Offered as SOA 2260 and 2270 for students in other disciplines.

Music II
DPD 2650 (Fall) and 2660 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
An in-depth exploration of historical style and the elements of music. Fall: Musical masterworks from the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic eras, with an analysis of their compositional techniques, along with examples of choreographic works and approaches especially suited to the music cited. Spring: Musical masterworks from the 20th and 21st centuries. The approaches covered include Impressionism, Expressionism, atonality, folk- and jazz-inflected works, Cubist and Dadaist movements, neoclassicism, midcentury experimentalism, indeterminacy, electronic, minimalism, and the influence of world music.
Prerequisite: DPD 1650 and 1660

Dance History in Music, Performance, and Choreography
DPD 3110 (Fall) and 3120 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
A year-long course that examines the elements of 20th- and 21st-century choreography historically, musically, and aesthetically through videos, library research, research papers, and discussion.

20th- and 21st-Century Performance
DPD 3330 (Fall) and 3331 (Spring)
2 credits (per semester) / Every year
Examines the elements of 20th- and 21st-century performance through videos, library research, research papers, and discussion.
Prerequisite: DPD 2060 and 2070

Music III
DPD 3650 / 3 credits / Special topic (offered irregularly)
Enables dancers to communicate effectively about music; review scores and recordings; select music for choreography; and increase the musical sensibility of their dancing. Fundamental elements of music across multiple cultures are tied together, and music from the 20th century to the present is explored in the context of important choreography. Student read/perform rhythms in single and mixed meters. Offered as SOA 3300 for students in other disciplines.
Prerequisite: DPD 2650 and 2660

Junior Project
DPD 3880 / 1 credit / Spring
An evaluation of juniors in all dance concentrations, designed to prepare students for their senior projects. Requirements include: completion of a junior credit audit and a written junior project proposal; preparation of one composition piece, to be presented to the faculty; a performance; and completion of a crew assignment. Required for all junior dance majors.

Independent Study in Dance Production
DPD 3900 / Variable credits / Every semester
Independent studies designed to develop skills in lighting, stage management, rehearsal direction, etc. Open to students in other disciplines with permission of instructor.
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor

Senior Seminar
DPD 4885 / 1 credit / Fall
A seminar for dancers in preparation for their transition into the professional field. Lectures include guest speakers who address relevant issues in career building.

DPM 1000–4999:

Modern Dance Technique I
DPM 1010 (Fall) and 1020 (Spring)
1.5 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long technique course that provides intermediate-level training for students in Level I modern technique. Students improve and reinforce technical proficiency, artistic growth, and performance skills. They also build and retain a movement range and vocabulary that demonstrates an increase in strength, agility, flexibility, and endurance through classical and contemporary modern dance techniques. Placement audition required; placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPM 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Modern Technique level.

Contact Improvisation
DPM 1330 (Fall) and 1331 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Every year
Introduces dancers to the fundamentals of contact improvisation technique and explores contact improvisation as a dance and performance practice in duet, group, and solo form.

Modern Partnering
DPM 1510 (Fall) and 1520 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Every year
Explores the movement ranges of modern partnering, trust, and the physical expertise required through choreographed combinations mastered weekly in class.

Somatic Practice for Dancers
DPM 1550 / .5 credit / Every semester
Somatic practice for dancers, including Continuum, the Feldenkrais Method, Alexander Technique, yoga, and massage therapy.

Special Modern Technique: First Year
DPM 1800 (Fall) and 1820 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
Class in modern/contemporary dance technique for freshman dance majors.

Modern Dance Technique II
DPM 2010 (Fall) and 2020 (Spring)
1.5 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long technique course that provides advanced-level training for students in Level II modern technique. Students improve and reinforce technical proficiency, artistic growth, and performance skills. They also build and retain a movement range and vocabulary that demonstrates an increase in strength, agility, flexibility, and endurance through classical and contemporary modern dance techniques. Placement audition required; placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPM 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Modern Technique level.

Modern Dance Technique III
DPM 3010 (Fall) and 3020 (Spring)
1.5 credits (per semester) / Every year
A year-long technique course that provides intermediate/professional-level training for students in Level III modern technique. Students improve and reinforce technical proficiency, artistic growth, and performance skills. They also build and retain a movement range and vocabulary that demonstrates an increase in strength, agility, flexibility, and endurance through classical and contemporary modern dance techniques. Placement audition required; placement by faculty. In the fall, students register for DPM 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Modern Technique level.

Modern Repertory
DPM 3050 (Fall) and 3060 (Spring)
.5 credit (per semester) / Every year
Students work under the direction of faculty and/or guest choreographers on repertory material designed for this course. Content includes artistic interpretation, style, musicality, and coaching relevant to the movement presented weekly and developed throughout the semester.

Purchase Dance Company
DPM 3055 Refer to DPB 3055 for description.

Special Modern Technique: Upper Level
DPM 3800 (Fall) and 3820 (Spring)
1 credit (per semester) / Every year
Class in modern/contemporary dance technique; six semesters required (sophomore through senior year).

Modern Dance Technique IV
DPM 4010 (Fall) and 4020 (Spring)
3 credits (per semester) / Special topic (offered irregularly)
A year-long technique course. Placement audition required; placement by faculty. Two semesters of Modern Dance Technique IV are required for BFA dance performance students. In the fall, students register for DPM 1230 and are then assigned to the appropriate Modern Technique level.

Updated March 6, 2013

Updates
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