Dance

Five College Dance comprises the dance departments of our member campuses, with each offering its own distinctive program while collaborating as a uniquely rich inter-campus consortium with abundant possibilities for dance students.

We are hiring a Technical Director! See Announcements & Upcoming Events for details.

Boats Leaving, choreographed by Doug Varone, 2019 UMass Amherst Fall Faculty Concert. Photo by Derek Fowles.

Established in 1978, Five College Dance (FCD) is a creative and intellectual collaboration organized between the dance departments and programs at Amherst, Hampshire, Smith, Mount Holyoke Colleges and University of Massachusetts Amherst. We are a community of undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and visiting scholars and artists. We create and amplify access to rich, varied artistic and academic opportunities in dance.

On This Page

Mission:

Five College Dance advances embodied practice as a critical mode of inquiry, expression, and civic engagement across cultural and historical contexts. We cultivate new generations of artists, scholars, and practitioners to shape the field of dance and dance studies.

What We Do:

Our member dance departments and programs collaborate by:

  • Coordinating a shared undergraduate dance curriculum with diversely trained faculty and varied course offerings in dance technique, performance, composition and theory
  • Producing at least one major repertory project most years, open to all five college students
  • Providing performance opportunities on each campus for all five college students
  • Opening the great majority of campuses’ events, workshops, professionalization opportunities, masterclasses, residencies, symposia, and field trips to all five college students
A dancer dances in a middle of a circle of people squatting. Their arms are outstretched. The lighting is dark but the dancers exhibit lots of energy.

Our House, choreographed by Shakia Barron, 2018 Mount Holyoke Fall Faculty Concert. Photo by Charles Flachs. 

A group of dancers in colorful clothing are arranged in a clump on stage. They are mid jump with their heads and arms towards the right side of the image.

Reflect/Respond: A Limón Dance Legacy Concert at UMass Amherst, 2019. Photo by Derek Fowles. 

Five College Dance Provides

  • Production management and technical supervision for all FCD concerts, events, and auditions, as well as for any FCD contributions to the annual American College Dance Association conference.
  • Annual production workshop for students producing their own shows, plus additional production-related learning opportunities
  • Annual lecture by a major scholar and/or artist in the field
  • Annual concert with a faculty- and guest-choreographed work submitted from each school, featuring students from all campuses
  • News from the departments, FCD, and alumni
  • Masterclasses from professional dance artists on the UMass Center for Fine Arts season
  • Centralized communication hub (social media, listserv, website) to share with students and faculty dance-related events, professional opportunities, news, and programs from the campuses, FCD, the local community, and beyond
  • Coordination and facilitation of musician accompanists for most campuses’ technique classes
  • Photographing and archiving professional photos of FCD performances and events
  • Collaborations with non-dance departments/units and external arts organizations
  • Support for the work of individual departments, students, and faculty that benefit the consortium

Fall 2023 Dance Courses: Graduate Courses

Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times
DAN 521 01 Choreography/Creative Process Angie Hauser Smith College TU TH 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
DAN 540 01 History & Literature of Dance Smith College M 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM

Fall 2023 Dance Courses: Related Topics and Seminars

Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times
DAN 200 01 Dance Production Smith College
DAN 201 01 Dance Production Smith College

Fall 2023 Dance Courses: Movement and Rhythmic Analysis

Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times

Fall 2023 Dance Courses: Scientific Aspects of Dance and Anatomy

Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times
DAN 241 01 Scientific Foundation of Dance Chris Aiken Smith College TU TH 10:50 AM - 12:05 PM

Fall 2023 Dance Courses: Creative Studies: Choreography, Composition, and Improvisation

Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times
DAN 207 01 Intermediate Repertory Smith College W 4:10 PM - 6:10 PM; M 4:30 PM - 6:30 PM
DAN 207 02 Intermediate Repertory Smith College M W 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
DAN 219 01 Intermediate Contact Improv Chris Aiken Smith College W F 10:50 AM - 12:15 PM
DAN 252 01 Intermediate Dance Composition Smith College W 1:20 PM - 2:35 PM; M 1:40 PM - 2:55 PM
DAN 252 L01 Intermediate Dance Composition Smith College W 2:45 PM - 3:35 PM; M 3:05 PM - 3:55 PM
DAN 305 01 Advanced Repertory Rodger Fleming Blum Smith College TU TH 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
DAN 309 01 Advanced Repertory Angie Hauser Smith College W F 1:20 PM - 3:20 PM

Fall 2023 Dance Courses: Technique

Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times
DAN 101sf 01 T-Studio:Strength&Flexibility Smith College M W F 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
DAN 114 01 Beginning Contemporary Dance 2 Smith College W F 9:25 AM - 10:40 AM
DAN 119 01 Beginning Contact Improv Smith College M W 9:25 AM - 10:40 AM
DAN 120 01 Beginning Ballet 1 Smith College M W 10:50 AM - 12:05 PM
DAN 121 01 Beginning Ballet 2 Smith College TU TH 1:20 PM - 2:35 PM
DAN 130 01 Beginning Jazz Dance Smith College M W 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
DAN 133 01 Dance for Every Body Maddy Sher Smith College TU TH 1:20 PM - 2:35 PM
DAN 142wa 01 T-West African Dance Smith College TU TH 4:10 PM - 5:25 PM
DAN 144 01 Tango I Smith College M W 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
DAN 146 01 Hip Hop Dance Smith College M W 10:50 AM - 12:05 PM
DAN 215 01 Intermed Contemporary Dance 1 Angie Hauser Smith College TU TH 1:10 PM - 2:35 PM
DAN 219 01 Intermediate Contact Improv Chris Aiken Smith College W F 10:50 AM - 12:15 PM
DAN 222 01 Intermediate Ballet 1 Rodger Fleming Blum Smith College M W 9:25 AM - 10:40 AM
DAN 324 01 Advanced Ballet 1 Rodger Fleming Blum Smith College TU TH 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
DAN 327 01 Advanced Pointe Technique Smith College F 10:50 AM - 12:15 PM

Contact Us

Melinda Buckwalter

Melinda Buckwalter

Managing Director of Five College Dance

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