Researcher Spotlight

In this interview with Lucy Eaton, we ask her some questions about her passion for research in the area of dance education. Lucy’s article Dialects of Contemporary Dance in Sydney, Australia: Identification and Response will be published in the next edition of Illuminate. 

1. What is your role in the College?

I am the Secondary Dance Co-ordinator here at Pymble.

2. What course have you been studying?

I have recently completed the Master of Arts in Education (Dance Teaching), a 3-year (part-time) course offered through the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) and ratified by the University of Bath.

3. What was the topic of your thesis? Can you describe it in about 100 words?

I could barely describe it in 15,000 words! The research was a short-practice led examination of disparities in contemporary dance education in Sydney’s private sector, looking at challenges resulting from a lack of regulation and standardisation in pre-professional training using a cast of ten female contemporary dancers as the sample group.

The study investigated the impact of geographic location on teaching and learning across four Sydney Local Government Areas, exploring how regional dialects, symbols, and language can affect movement. The idea was that each dancers’ body carries these imprints of experiences, recreating affectations or flourishes and reinventing movement vocabulary with each performance. It also examined the use of codified modern dance techniques in addressing movement affectations.

In the end, findings suggested that tailoring modern dance techniques to address regional dialects can improve pre-professional dance training outcomes, with teacher awareness of student context enhancing technique and performance and bridging the gap between education and industry standards in contemporary dance training. It sort of affirmed the Ouroboros-style in which contemporary dance evolves.

4. What led you to study with an overseas university?

There are limited tertiary pathways in Australia for dance-specific post-graduate study. There are even (comparably) limited undergraduate opportunities in dance. The RAD is a global institution which so many dancers engage with from the beginning of their training. I think that the course being offered anywhere is great, but to be mentored by staff at the RAD at this level is really significant. I liked working alongside dance teachers from across the world; it was interesting how unified we felt.

5. People don’t always think of dancers as having an academic pathway. What has drawn you in this direction?

In part, the very fact that dance isn’t considered to be a legitimate academic pursuit is what drove me to study it at this level. The dance industry is not a perfect meritocracy – I feel a deep need to defend the art form that I love so much as being a valid career path, and academia is one way to show that credibility. I have a bit of a supply-demand view of the paths currently available to us. It’s important that dancers and dance teachers actively take up space in academic institutions and engage with opportunities when and where they arise.

While dance is undeniably an art, the body is the toolkit. I think understanding the anatomy, physiology and biomechanics of the movement is imperative to creating great art. I have such respect for what my students do in class (meeting the physical, psychological, emotional and creative demands) and I’d like to reflect their value of dance education in my own practice. I strongly believe that nothing is more worthy of thought, reflection and future-focused research than the physical and emotional experiences of the students in my care.

I think that the dance studio is an underrated workspace in terms of how delicate it can be; it’s no small task to push young people to their physical and cognitive limits in a room full of (sometimes) competitive peers. It’s commonplace to expect teachers to maintain currency, engage in professional development and improve themselves and that should be the expectation for dance teachers, as well. In dance, where there is no textbook and the teacher’s knowledge and/ or experience directly correlates to the safety of a student, the quality of their experience in the studio and the content a cohort learns, holding ourselves to a high educational standard is absolutely necessary.

6. How has the process of conducting your research and reflecting on the findings influenced your teaching and practice?

Developing postgraduate research through interrogation of my own practice was equally challenging and rewarding. I think I am considering the teaching and learning process to be more reciprocal than instructional. I know that this give-and-take pedagogical style has been at the forefront of program design in a classroom setting for some time, but skill acquisition in the studio context is not usually framed this way. As a result, my passion for the artistry and athleticism in dance education has been refocused.

7. Have you had a chance to share your research with colleagues or students?

I have just shared an excerpt of my research within an issue of the Pymble Institute’s Illuminate. It’s both exciting and daunting to have my work read by a broader audience.

8. What do you see as your next steps?

I would love to undertake a PhD next. I have owned a dance company since 2013 called Dance Dr., where a huge amount of my professional work took place, and I’d love to eventually be able to say I am a dance doctor!

The findings of my research have breathed new life into the way I design movement and I look forward to creating choreography with more nuanced consideration of the dancers and their histories in the process.