UMS Teacher Resource Guide - "Fondly Do We Hope...Fervently Do We Pray"

F O N D LY D O W E H O P E …

F E R V E N T LY D O W E P R A Y B I L L T. J O N E S / A R N I E Z A N E D A N C E C O M PA N Y

TEACHER RESOURCE GUIDE 2009 - 2010

UMS 09-10

1

SUPPORTERS

Michigan Council for Arts & Cultural Affairs University of Michigan

Anonymous Arts at Michigan Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund Bank of Ann Arbor Bustan al-Funun Foundation for Arab Arts The Dan Cameron Family Foundation/Alan and Swanna Saltiel Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan Consulate General of the Netherlands in New York Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art DTE Energy Foundation The Esperance Family Foundation David and Phyllis Herzig Endowment Fund Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP JazzNet Endowment W.K. Kellogg Foundation Masco Corporation Foundation Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, P.L.C. THE MOSAIC FOUNDATION (of R. and P. Heydon) The Mosaic Foundation [Washington, DC] National Dance Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts National Endowment for the Arts Prudence and Amnon Rosenthal K-12 Education Endowment Fund Rick and Sue Snyder Target TCF Bank UMS Advisory Committee University of Michigan Credit Union University of Michigan Health System U-M Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs U-M Office of the Vice President for Research Wallace Endowment Fund

2

UMS 09-10

This performance is funded in part by the MetLife Community Connections Fund of the National Dance Project, a program administered by the New England Foundation for the Arts; Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund; and the National Endowment for the Arts as part of American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius.

This Teacher Resource Guide is a product of the UMS Youth Education Program. Researched and written

by Liz Stover.

Special thanks to the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Leah Cox, Omari Rush, and Savitski Design for their contributions, feedback, and support in developing this guide.

F O N D LY D O W E H O P E …

F E R V E N T LY D O W E P R A Y B I L L T. J O N E S / A R N I E Z A N E D A N C E C O M PA N Y

BILL T. JONES artistic director

FRIDAY JANUARY 2 2

2010

4-6 PM POWER CENTER

Bill T. Jones at Lincoln Library , Photo: Russell Jenkins, courtesy of Ravinia Festival

TEACHER RESOURCE GUIDE

2009 - 2010

U M S Y O U T H E D U C AT I O N P R O G R A M UMS 09-10

3

TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Short on time?

If you only have 15 minutes to review this guide, just read the sections in black in the Table of Contents.

Those pages will provide the most important information about this performance.

ATTENDING THE PERFORMANCE 6 Attending the Show 8 Map + Directions 9 The Power Center

25 Artistic Elements of FDWH‌FDWP 26 The Set 28 The Costumes

BILL T. JONES/ ARNIE ZANE DANCE CO. 11 Company History 12 Who are Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane?

14 Meet the Dancers 16 Behind the Scenes 18 Artistic Influence

THEMES + IDEAS 31 Abraham Lincoln 33 Mary Todd Lincoln 35 The Civil War: A Timeline 38 The Second Inaugural Address ABOUT UMS + Text Exploration 58 What is UMS? 59 Youth Education Program ABOUT DANCE 60 How to Contact UMS? 41 Elements of Dance 43 Elements of Movement 44 Vocabulary of Dance

FONDLY DO WE HOPE...

FERVENTLY DO WE PRAY 21 The Work 22 An Essay

4

UMS 09-10

LESSON PLANS 47 Preparing for the Performance 48 Practicing Observation 50 Making a Photograph Come Alive 52 Performance Notes 54 More Resources 56 Bibliography

AT T E N D I N G T H E P E R F O R M A N C E

UMS 09-10 Photo: Paul B. Goode

5

D E TA I L S

AT T E N D I N G T H E S H O W We want you to enjoy your time with UMS! PLEASE review the important information below about attending the Youth Performance:

TICKETS TICKETS We do not use paper tickets

DOOR ENTRY A UMS Youth Performance

DURING THE PERFORMANCE At the

for Youth Performances. We hold school

staff person will greet your group at your

start of the performance, the lights well

reservations at the door and seat groups

bus as you unload. You will enter through

dim and an onstage UMS staff member

upon arrival.

the front doors of the Power Center,

will welcome you to the performance and

which faces Fletcher Street.

provide important logistical information. If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints (for instance, about your comfort or

ARRIVAL TIME Please arrive at the Power

USHER

the behavior of surrounding groups) please IMMEDIATELY report the situation to an usher or staff memer in the lobby.

Center between 3:30-3:50pm to allow you time to get seated and comfortable before

SEATING & USHERS When you arrive at

the show starts.

the front doors, tell the Head Usher at the door the name of your school group and he/she will have ushers escort you to your block of seats. All UMS Youth Performance

PERFORMANCE LENGTH 90 minutes

ushers wear large, black laminated badges

with no intermission

with their names in white letters.

DROP OFF Have buses, vans, or cars drop off students on Fletcher Street in front of the Power Center. If there is no space in the drop off zone, circle the block until

AFTER THE PERFORMANCE When the

space becomes available. Cars may park

performance ends, remain seated. A UMS

at curbside metered spots or in the visitor parking lot behind the power Center.

BEFORE THE START Please allow the

staff member will come to the stage and

Buses should wait/park at Briarwood Mall.

usher to seat individuals in your group in

release each group individually based on

the order that they arrive in the theater.

the location of your seats.

Once everyone is seated you may then rearrange yourselves and escort students to the bathrooms before the performance starts. PLEASE spread the adults throughout the group of students.

6

UMS 09-10

BUS PICK UP When your group is re-

SENDING FEEDBACK We LOVE feed-

ACCESSIBILITY The following services are

leased, please exit the performance hall

back from students, so after the perfor-

available to audience members:

through the same door you entered. A

mance please send us any letters, artwork,

• Wheelchair, companion, or other

UMS Youth Performance staff member will

or academic papers that your students

be outside to direct you to your bus.

create in response to the performance:

• Courtesy wheelchairs

UMS Youth Education Program, 881 N.

• Hearing Impaired Support Systems

AAPS

University Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1011.

PARKING There is handicapped parking very close to the Power Center on Fletcher Street and in the parking structure behind

AAPS EDUCATORS You will likely not

the Power Center on Palmer Drive. The

get on the bus you arrived on; a UMS staff

first three levels of the Palmer Drive struc-

member or AAPS Transportation Staf person will put you on the first available bus.

special seating

ture have 5 parking spots on each level

NO FOOD No Food or drink is allowed in

next to each elevator. There are a total of

the theater.

15 parking spaces in the garage.

WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBILITY The Power Center is wheelchair accessible and has 12 seats for audience members with

LOST STUDENTS A small army of volunteers staff Youth Performances and will be

PATIENCE Thank you in adavance for

ready to help or direct lost and wandering

your patience; in 20 minutes we aim to get

students.

1,300 people from buses into seats and will work as efficiently as possible to make that happen.

special needs.

BATHROOMS ADA compliant toilets are available in the green room (east corner) of the Power Center for both men and women.

ENTRY The front doors are not powered, LOST ITEMS If someone in your group

however, there will be an usher at that

loses an item at the performance, contact

door opening it for all patrons.

the UMS Youth Education Program (umsyouth@umich.edu) to attempt to help recover the item.

UMS 09-10

7

E. H U R ON S T

D RO P - O FF Z O N E

S TAT E S T

RA C KHA M

P OWER PA L M ER D R IVE

PA R K

drop-off zone.

WA S H TEN AW AVEN U E

a spot is free in the

F L ETC H ER S T

TH AYER S T

Circle this block until

E . LIB ERTY ST

HIL L M A L L PA R KIN G &

WILLIA M ST

N . U N IVER S ITY AVEN U E

CHURCH ST

MAP + DIRECTIONS This map, with driving directions to the Power Center, will be mailed to all attending educators three weeks before the performance.

MAP

8

UMS 09-10

VENUE

THE POWER CENTER THE POWER CENTER for the Performing

was built to supply this missing link in

a new theater, realizing that state and

Arts grew out of a realization that the

design and seating capacity.

federal governments were unlikely to

University of Michigan had no adequate

provide financial support for the con-

proscenium-stage theater for the per-

In 1963, Eugene and Sadye Power,

forming arts. Hill Auditorium was too

together with their son Philip, wished to

struction of a theater.

massive and technically limited for most

make a major gift to the University. The

Opening in 1971, the Power Center

productions and the Lydia Mendelssohn

Powers were immediately interested in

achieved the seemingly contradictory

Theatre was too small. The Power Center

supporting the University’s desire to build

combination of providing a soaring interior space with a unique level of intimacy. Architectural features include two large spiral staircases leading from the orchestra level to the balcony and the well known mirrored glass panels on the exterior. The lobby of the Power Center presently features two hand-woven tapestries: Modern Tapestry by Roy Lichtenstein and Volutes (Arabesque) by Pablo Picasso.

The Power Center seats approximately 1,300 people.

POWER CENTER 121 Fletcher St Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Emergency Contact Number: (734) 764-2538 (Call this number to reach a UMS staff person or audience member at the performance.)

University of Michigan, Power Center

UMS 09-10

9

B I L L T. J O N E S / A R N I E Z A N E D A N C E C O M PA N Y

10

UMS 09-10

Photo: Paul B. Goode

ABOUT

C O M PA N Y H I S T O R Y THE BILL T. JONES/ARNIE ZANE

The company has distinguished itself

In 2007, Ravinia Festival in Highland Park,

DANCE COMPANY is currently celebrat-

through its teaching and performing

Ill commissioned the company to create a

ing its 25th anniversary season. The

in various universities, festivals, and

work to honor the bicentennial of Abra-

company was founded after 11 years of

under the aegis of government agen-

ham Lincoln’s birth. The company created

collaboration during which Bill T. Jones

cies such as the US Information Agency

three new productions in response: 100

and Arnie Zane (1948–1988) redefined

(in Eastern Europe, Asia and South East

Migrations (2008), a site-specific commu-

the duet form and foreshadowed issues

Asia). Audiences of approximately 50,000

nity performance project; Serenade/The

of identity, form, and social commentary

to 100,000 annually see the company

Proposition (2008), examining the nature

that would change the face of American

across the country and around the world.

of history; and Fondly Do We Hope…

dance. The company emerged onto the

The work of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane

Fervently Do We Pray (2009), the making

international scene in 1983 with the

Dance Company freely explores both

of which is the subject of a feature-

world première of Intuitive Momentum,

musically driven works and works using

length documentary by Kartemquin Films

which featured legendary drummer Max

a wide variety of texts (such as Reading,

entitled A Good Man, to be broadcast on

Roach, at the Brooklyn Academy of Mu-

Mercy, and the Artificial Nigger based on

PBS American Masters in 2011.

sic. Since then, the 10-member company

Flannery O’Connor’s 1955 short story,

has performed worldwide in over 200

The Artificial Nigger). The repertoire is

cities in 30 countries including Australia,

widely varied in its subject matter, visual

Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, Ger-

imagery, and stylistic approach to move-

many, France, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico,

ment, voice, and stagecraft. The company

South Africa, and the UK. Today, the

has been acknowledged for its intensely

Harlem-based company is recognized as

collaborative method of creation that has

one of the most innovative and powerful

included artists as diverse as Keith Haring,

forces in the modern dance world.

The Orion String Quartet, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Cassandra Wilson, Fado singer Misia, Jazz pianist Fred Hersch, Ross Bleckner, Jenny Holzer, Robert Longo, Julius Hemphill, and Peteris Vasks. The collaborations of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company with visual artists were the subject of Art Performs Life (1998), a groundbreaking exhibition at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minn.

UMS 09-10

11

PEOPLE

W H O A R E B I L L T. J O N E S + ARNIE ZANE? BILL T. JONES is the Artistic Director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company (BTJ/AZDC). Born in Florida in 1952, he was the tenth of 12 children.

His parents were farm workers. At age three, his family moved to Wayland in upstate New York. He became interested in movement and dance while attending college at Binghamton University in the 1970s, where he took classes in ballet and modern dance. It was there that he met Arnie Zane, a photographer, choreographer, and dancer.

Together, Jones and Zane created dances that drew on their physical contrasts: Jones black, tall, and fluid, and Zane white, short, and jagged. In 1978, they

Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane in Rotary Action (1982) Photo: Lois Greenfield, courtesy of Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company

moved to New York City, and in 1982 they founded the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane

the company and has choreographed for

individuals who “show exceptional merit

Dance Company, which they directed

many other dance companies. He has

and promise for continued and enhanced

together until Arnie Zane’s death of an

won many awards, including the 1994

creative work.” He won the Tony Award

illness related to AIDS in 1988. Jones has

MacArthur Genius Award, which awards

in 2007 for “Best Choreography” for the

since created more than 100 works for

a large sum of money to American

musical Spring Awakening.

12

UMS 09-10

“I danced because I FELL IN LOVE WITH MY SWEAT. But I wanted a type of sweat that was not the sweat of the athletic field or the locker room.

I wanted a POETIC SWEAT. I didn’t know what that was.

I was nineteen. I wanted to be great; I wanted to be BEAUTIFUL; I wanted to be loved.

And I LOVED what my body would say to me when I was dancing.”

- Bill T. Jones, from Speaking of Dance

ANTONIO BROWN

PETER CHAMBERLIN

S H AY L A - V I E J E N K I N S

Dancer

Dancer

Dancer

Antonio Brown is a native of Cleveland, Ohio. He

Peter Chamberlin, born in Augusta, Maine,

Shayla-Vie Jenkins, originally from Ewing,

began his dance training at the Cleveland School

trained at the North Carolina School of the Arts

New Jersey, began her dance training at the

of the Arts and received his BFA from The Juil-

and BalletMet of Columbus, Ohio, and graduat-

Watson Johnson Dance Theater and the Mer-

liard School in 2007 under the direction of Law-

ed from SUNY Purchase in 2007. Mr. Chamberlin

cer County Performing Arts School. In 2004,

rence Rhodes. Mr. Brown has been a member of

continues his movement exploration under the

she graduated with honors from Fordham

the Company since 2007 and is grateful to share

tutelage of Barbara Mahler and enjoys choreo-

University. In 2008, she was featured in Dance

his gifts and talents with the world.

graphing whenever he gets the chance. Mr.

Magazine’s “On The Rise”. Ms. Jenkins joined

Chamberlin joined BTJ/AZDC in 2007.

BTJ/AZDC in 2005.

ASLI BULBUL

TA L L I J A C K S O N

LaMICHAEL LEONARD, JR.

Dancer

Dancer

Dancer

Asli Bulbul is from Istanbul, Turkey. In 1997,

Talli Jackson was born and raised in Lib-

LaMichael Leonard, Jr. graduated from the

upon graduation from Mimar Sinan State Con-

erty, N.Y. He received his first training with

New World School of the Arts in Miami,

servatory, she moved to New York where she

Livia Vanaver at the Vanaver Caravan Dance

Florida. He joined the Martha Graham Dance

worked with various choreographers including

Institute in upstate New York. He received full

Company and danced lead roles touring

Joanna Mendl Shaw and Guido Tuveri. Ms.

scholarships from the American Dance Festival

nationally and internationally. He most recently

Bulbul joined BTJ/AZDC in 2001.

in 2006 and 2008, the Bates Dance Festival,

danced with the Buglisi Dance Theatre. Mr.

and the Ailey School. Mr. Jackson joined BTJ/

Leonard joined BTJ/AZDC in 2007.

AZDC in 2009.

MEET THE DANCERS PEOPLE 14

UMS 09-10

I-LING LIU

ERICK MONTES

Dancer

Dancer

I-Ling Liu, a native of Taiwan, received her

Erick Montes, originally from Mexico City,

BFA from Taipei National University of the Arts

trained at the National School of Classical

in 2005. Ms. Liu joined BTJ/AZDC as an ap-

and Contemporary Dance. In 2002, he col-

prentice in 2007 and became a member of the

laborated with Stephen Petronio on projects

Company in 2008.

for Lincoln Center Out of Doors and Queens Theatre in the Park. Mr. Montes joined BTJ/ AZDC in 2003.

PA U L M AT T E S O N

JENNIFER NUGENT

Dancer

Dancer

Paul Matteson, originally from Cumberland,

Jennifer Nugent is originally from Miami,

Maine, has received undergraduate and

Florida. She enjoys creating dances and col-

graduate degrees from Middlebury and Ben-

laborating with Paul Matteson. Ms. Nugent

nington Colleges, respectively. Mr. Matteson

joined BTJ/AZDC in August 2009.Â

joined BTJ/AZDC in 2008.

W H AT T O W AT C H F O R : Who do some of the dancers represent throughout the performance?

Do these representations ever change, or do they stay the same?

UMS 09-10

15

PEOPLE

BEHIND THE SCENES Get to know the people who make the show happen!

BJORN G. AMELAN

LAURA BICKFORD

L I N D S AY J O N E S

Sculptor/Creative Director/Set Designer

Lighting Super visor

Sound Designer

Bjorn G. Amelan was the partner of fashion

Laura Bickford grew up in New York City and

Lindsay Jones has been involved in sound de-

designer Patrick Kelly from 1983 until his pass-

studied at the Performing Arts High School,

sign nationally and internationally. He has also

ing in 1990. He began collaborating with BTJ/

Feld Ballet, and the Joffrey Ballet. She gradu-

worked internationally in Austria, Zimbabwe,

AZDC in 1993. As the company’s resident set

ated from Smith College with a Bachelor of

South Africa, and Scotland, and with the Royal

designer, he has created décor for many works

Arts in Philosophy and Anthropology. Ms. Bick-

Shakespeare Company in Stratford, England.

and special presentations.

ford joined BTJ/AZDC in 2004.

JEROME BEGIN

S A M C R AW F O R D

Composer

Sound Super visor

Jerome Begin studied music composition at

Sam Crawford completed both his Associate

Ohio University with Dr. Mark Phillips and

of Science degree in Audio Technology and

studied piano and music for dance, both ac-

Bachelor of Arts in English at Indiana Univer-

companiment and composition, with André

sity in 2003. A move to New York City led him

Gribou. His works have been performed in the

to Looking Glass Studios where he worked on

United States, Korea, and Japan. Mr. Begin is

film projects with Philip Glass and Björk. He

on staff at The Juilliard School (Dance Division)

currently lives in Jersey City where he works

and also works as a composer, performer,

as a freelance live sound recording engineer

teacher, and dance accompanist in Brooklyn,

and plays banjo and bass guitar in the groups

New York, where he currently resides.

Stereofan and The Goodwill Orchestra.

CHRISTOPHER ANTONIO WILLIAM Composer/Cello

Christopher Antonio William Lancaster (Composer/Cello) is a composer and performing artist living in New York. His live and recorded music is created by the processing acoustic cello sounds through real-time samplers, audio effects, and filtering. He composes predominately for theater, dance, and his band The Black Sounds.

ERIC LAUNER Technical Director

WYNNE BENNETT

JAMYL DOBSON Actor

Piano

Wynne Bennett made her Kennedy Center debut at the age of 18. Ms. Bennett is currently working on a solo show involving laptop, piano, keyboard, drum machine, and film.

Eric Launer started a band after graduating high school. The next few years found Mr.

Jamyl Dobson’s New York City credits include

Launer behind the counter of a record store,

Romeo and Juliet, Ain’t Supposed to Die a

on the air as a radio DJ, and volunteering in

Natural Death, and the workshop of Fela!

music therapy at an outpatient treatment

with Bill T. Jones. Mr. Dobson received a BA

facility for mental health. Theater met him

from Temple University and an MFA from the

again when he was invited to join the techni-

University of Iowa.

cal department at The Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. Since then, Mr. Launer has continued his career as a technical director.

16

UMS 09-10

GEORGE LEWIS, JR.

LIZ PRINCE

JANET WONG

Composer/Guitar/Vocals

Costume Designer

Associate Artistic Director/Video Designer

George Lewis, Jr., is a Dominican born

Liz Prince has worked extensively with Bill T.

Janet Wong was born in Hong Kong and

songwriter and performer. In addition to his

Jones since 1990 designing for his company

trained in Hong Kong and London. Upon gradu-

composing credits with BTJ/AZDC, Isabel Lewis

as well as his productions at Boston Ballet,

ation she joined the Berlin Ballet where she first

(The Labor Union), and theater companies in

Berlin Opera Ballet, and Alvin Ailey American

met Mr. Jones when he was invited to choreo-

Copenhagen, Denmark, he plays rock and roll

Dance Theater. Ms. Prince received a 1990

graph for the company. In 1993, she moved to

music with his friends.

New York Dance and Performance Award for

New York to pursue other interests. Ms. Wong

costume design.

became Rehearsal Director of the company in 1996 and Associate Artistic Director in August

KYLE MAUDE Production Stage Manager

CLARISSA SINCENO

2006.

Singer

Kyle Maude has worked with Ballet Tech/Feld Ballets New York, The Royal Ballet School of Lon-

Clarissa Sinceno, a Harlem native, began at

don, Buglisi-Foreman Dance, and Lesbian Pulp-o-

the Harlem School of the Arts and went on

Rama! Ms. Maude joined BTJ/AZDC in 2003.

to undergraduate studies at North Carolina

D E A N P E R RY Head Carpenter

Dean Perry hails from Tampa, Florida and currently resides with his wife Jessica in Washington DC. He has worked on many theatrical productions on the east coast, and holds a BS in Business from the University of Florida. He is thrilled to be working in his first season with the talented people of BTJ/AZDC.

KRISTI WOOD Company Manager

Kristi Wood grew up in St. Louis, Missouri,

School of the Arts and Manhattan School of

and since moving to New York in 2000, has

Music. At 17, she performed at the Metropoli-

worked with New York City Center, Brooklyn

tan Opera. She has since performed at jazz

Academy of Music, The Juilliard School, the

clubs the Blue Note and Birdland.

School of American Ballet, and several Broadway and off-Broadway theaters. She worked as a set

ROBERT WIERZEL Lighting Designer

costumer on All My Children and America’s Next Top Model. Ms. Wood holds a BFA in Drama

Robert Wierzel has worked with artists in the-

from the Tisch Institute of Performing Arts at

ater, dance, new music, opera, and museums

New York University. This is her second season

on stages throughout the country and abroad.

with BTJ/AZDC.

He has a long history (21 years) with choreographer Bill T. Jones and his company. Mr. Wierzel is currently on the faculty of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

UMS 09-10

17

“Bill T. Jones has made dances with strong political messages, using talking and décor to help REPRESENT THE UNDERREPRESENTED: gays, blacks, those with HIV/AIDS, and others facing death.

In addition to being an activist and storyteller, Jones has increasingly focused on structuring BEAUTIFULLY CRAFTED group dances.

In them he combines his mastery at improvising lush, complex phrases with his DESIRE TO EXPLORE music, time, space, and movement.

Jones’s work ranges from CONFRONTATIONAL TO TENDER, intuitive to formal, narrative to abstract.

His work is animated by his own commandingly athletic and theatrical presence on stage and his ability to evoke a strong COMMITMENT from his company members.”

— Joyce Morgenroth, from her book Speaking of Dance

I N S P I R AT I O N

ARTISTIC INFLUENCE 18

UMS 09-10

UMS 09-10 Photo: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders

19

F O N D LY D O W E H O P E …

F E R V E N T LY D O W E P R AY

20

UMS 09-10

ABOUT

THE WORK CONTINUING THIS TRADITION of challenging, thought-provoking work, Mr. Jones has created a new evening-length work about Abraham Lincoln, Fondly Do We Hope...Fervently Do We Pray, which premiered at the Ravinia Festival and is now on tour. Commissioned by the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, Illinois, Fondly Do We Hope…Fervently Do We Pray has found Mr. Jones “leading with his own heart,” seeking a way to articulate, if not reconcile the view of Lincoln he had as a young boy growing up during the civil rights struggle and as a mid-life liberal artist who “has very few heroes.” The most ambitious project in the BTJ/AZDC’s 25-year history, Fondly Do We Hope...Fervently Do We Pray investigates the myriad meanings of Lincoln, rejecting accepted truth in favor of challenging (and celebrating) the lasting contributions of this great man. This dance-theater work investigates a handful of key moments from his remarkable life, allowing song and memory to transport the audience to an emotional and intellectual space beyond the boundaries of space and time. By envisioning the America that might have been had Lincoln completed the Reconstruction, Mr. Jones exposes the great distance between what is and what could have been.

UMS 09-10

21

READING

A N E S S AY F O N D LY D O W E H O P E … F E R V E N T LY D O W E P R AY

By Suzanne Carbonneau

IN HIS FIRST MONUMENTAL work of

Jones once again looks into the heart of

questions of an age sunder the body

dance-theater, Bill T. Jones addressed the

American darkness through a figure who

politic; on how history repeats itself; and

infernal contradictions at the heart of

has been both canonized and tarnished.

on how we experience history not only

America. His Last Supper at Uncle Tom’s

And once again, Jones has something

as fact but also as feeling. Jones employs

Cabin/The Promised Land revisited the

larger in mind than either hagiography

all the elements of theater to assemble a

torturous history of a revered cultural

or condemnation, employing the Lincoln

reverie about Lincoln that is also a con-

icon that had grown gangrenous over

myth to create a dream analysis of

templation about each one of us.

time. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 novel

America itself.

had argued the immorality of slavery and

In recognition of Jones’s ambition to span

The title, of course, comes from Lincoln’s

historical divides, Fondly Do We Hope

magisterial Second Inaugural, words

is a dance with history. Its conversa-

carved into the Lincoln Memorial, where

tion toggles between past and pres-

21st-century visitors still burst into tears

ent, between present and the future.

at the sight of Daniel Chester French’s

Appropriately for a work about mongrel

statue of a careworn Lincoln. He is our

America, the languages of Fondly Do We

peerless, timeless national hero, en-

Hope are polyglot—kinetic, visual, aural,

shrined in American myth as the man

textual. As he did in the Promised Land

who redeemed us from our foundational

apotheosis of Last Supper, Jones looks to

sin of racial slavery. Unlike George Wash-

the experience of the body as our shared

ington, who has been lost in historical

human condition across culture, across

distance as an Olympian figure, Lincoln

race, across time. “At the heart of the

a moral history of America.

appeals to our vision of the quintessential

piece,” says Jones, “are muscles, blood

American as a common man of noble ac-

and flesh.”

Nearly twenty years on, Jones revisits that

tion. He is, as Jones points out, our Great

decisive moment in American history.

Man and our Everyman. How then to

In his newest work of dance theater,

reconcile the complexities of the histori-

Fondly Do We Hope…Fervently Do We

cal record with this indelible myth?

its perennial relevance, is Walt Whit-

But as in Last Supper, Jones is not out

of the Body.” Jones employs his danc-

to present a straightforward version of

ers’ bodies—so lovingly catalogued by

history. Nor is this biopictorial theater.

Whitman in their particulars (“Leg fibers,

Fondly Do We Hope is something else

knee, knee-pan, upper-leg, under-leg”)—

entirely: a consideration of how the great

as the engine of the work. The perform-

was instrumental in turning Northern sentiment towards abolition, but the novel’s post-Civil War co-optation by Confederate apologists resulted in Uncle Tom becoming a synonym for “race traitor.” With characteristic fearlessness, however, Jones waded into this untouchable material, employing Stowe’s novel as a springboard for meditations on identity, hatred, sex, death, and religion. Jones’s work was simultaneously personal and political, and ultimately nothing less than

Pray, AbrahamLincoln is the catalyst for a rumination on the American conscience that embraces past, present, and future.

With this commission by the Ravinia Festival to mark the Lincoln bicentennial,

22

UMS 09-10

The lodestone text of Fondly Do We Hope, repeated three times to suggest man’s paean to human anatomy, “Poem

ers dance on a luxuriantly figured carpet

blood drawn with the lash, shall be paid

age. He cites her heartbreaking mad-

of words by Lincoln and his compatriots.

by another drawn with the sword”).

ness and grief as another. Jones links the

The movement is not intended to depict

story of Todd and her inability to cope

psychological situations nor to illustrate

The mix of voices in Fondly Do We Hope

this text. Rather, it exists as evocative

reflects the breadth of Lincoln’s influence

counterweight to the specificity of the

and influences: in addition to Lincoln’s

narration. This movement material—

own words, we hear Thomas Jefferson,

what Jones describes as “the DNA” of

the King James Bible, Frederick Douglass.

this work—is laid out at the opening by

But it is Whitman who speaks for Lincoln

a single performer, dancing to Whit-

from somewhere deep within his psyche.

man’s delirious celebration of our physical

Jones names Whitman as Lincoln’s

matter. Over the course of Fondly De We

“proxy” with good reason. Whitman

Traveling again to the present, Jones

Hope, Jones harvests this thematic inven-

himself declared a profound identification

stages diagrammatic histories of four

tory for boundless variations. Always,

with the President: “Lincoln is particu-

of our contemporaries as companion

Jones says, the movement is in “the

larly my man — particularly belongs to

biographies to those of Lincoln and

service of feelings and ideas.” Together,

me; yes, and by the same token, I am Lin-

Mary Todd. Taken together, these fel-

words and movement alchemize into

coln’s man: I guess I particularly belong to

low citizens suggest the diversity of the

something greater than the sum of these

him; we are afloat on the same stream —

American public. The biography of one

individual elements.

we are rooted in the same ground.” And

of them corresponds with the outlines

it is through Whitman, who famously

of Jones’s own life (“born in 1952”; “a

Music, too, is a central device that

proclaimed his communion with all living

family of fieldworkers”; “seven brothers

bridges Lincoln’s day with our own.

things in “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry,” that

and four sisters”; “a life in the theater”;

Contemporary compositions are inter-

Lincoln travels through time to speak

“his great grandmother, he thinks, was

spersed with 19th-century music drawn

directly to us. We belong to Lincoln, as

born a slave”). Ultimately, just as we did

from every level of society, suggesting

he belongs to us.

with Lincoln and Mary Todd, we come to

the complexity of Lincoln’s experience

upon the death of her husband, with the national disarray experienced at the loss of that same person. In this analogy, the Song of Solomon speaks for both personal and communal sorrow (“Set me as a seal upon thine heart. For love is strong as death”).

understand the poverty of the schematic

as frontiersman and person of hardwon

In acknowledgment that Lincoln is “a

cultivation. Traditional tunes, including

story that we tell ourselves, and more

“Annie Laurie” and the Lincoln favorite

importantly,a story that we tell our chil-

“Weevily Wheat,” along with the Ameri-

dren,” Jones presents us with faux-naïf

can spiritual “Since I Laid My Burden

schoolbook biographies of Lincoln and

Down,” nuzzle against European classical

Mary Todd. Jones believes that we cling

compositions. Befitting Lincoln’s person-

to this Great Man version of Lincoln as

ality and the tragedy of the war he over-

a model for how we might “make our

saw, this score is largely melancholic. The

peace with an insane and oftentimes

cemetery looms over a musical setting

unfair world.” But Jones believes that in

of a verse Lincoln particularly admired,

perpetuating these simplistic biographies,

Oliver Wendell Holmes’s “The Last Leaf.”

we are obscuring the true nature of our

Death even seeps into Mendelssohn.

relationship with the past. We have only

Passages from Whitman’s searing “The

to look to the character of Mary Todd,

And just as importantly, what are the

Wound-Dresser” are heard as oratorio

for example, to recognize the value in a

issues that shaped Lincoln’s thinking and

within Mendelssohn’s score, reminding

more considered analysis. As she did in

that forge our own? Jones looks to the

us that Lincoln’s assassination followed

Lincoln’s life, Todd holds a central place

Lincoln-Douglas Debates for the marrow

upon mass slaughter. A companion

in Fondly Do We Hope. Jones points to

of those ideas that divided Americans

oratorio from Lincoln’s Second Inaugural

Todd’s obsessive acquisitiveness as a pro-

in the mid-nineteenth century. Slavery,

is similarly death-soaked (“every drop of

found metaphor for our own unhinged

the boil that would shortly burst into the

biography, which focuses on the “facts” of a life but ignores its resonances, contradictions, reverberations. We begin to see that this approach does injustice to all its subjects—Great Man or the least among us. But still, Jones has made us consider how our own stories intersect with history. He asks: Do we face great questions in our day equivalent to the conflagration over slavery? What is the work still to be done? Who will do that work?

UMS 09-10

23

Civil War, was the inescapable sub-

Jones understands that his own rela-

ject of those arguments. With precise

tionship with history is too fraught, too

calibration, Jones distills the Lincoln-

labyrinthine to allow himself to offer us

Douglas positions to their essences, while

pieties or platitudes in place of the frus-

introducing a more raucous discourse

tratingly imperfect and genuinely great

touching on the issues of our own day. In

Lincoln. Recognizing that Lincoln was a

pairs, the dancers engage these debates

man of his time—some of Lincoln’s earli-

with richly abstracted and virtuosic move-

er declarations about gradual abolition or

ment that Jones describes as “pitched

racial inferiority can be shocking—Jones

and performed in such a way that it’s

admires Lincoln all the more for his ability

as if the dancers were orators.” That is,

to grow and change, to become a great

the dancers do not act out the text, but

man. The choreographer declares that

they do move to its cadences, pauses and

at the end of his journey in making this

emphases.

work, he finds himself genuinely moved

The simple visual design of the work, conceived by Bjorn Amelan, embodies a

by Lincoln. “In some ways,” says Jones, “I think I love him more than I ever did.”

complex metaphor. An imposing cylindri-

At the conclusion of Fondly Do We

cal volume echoes a central movement

Hope…Fervently Do We Pray, we are

image in which the dancers circle the

accorded what Jones calls “cautious

stage in a cloudlike formation. Jones calls

hopefulness” about Lincoln’s legacy.

this “The Maelstrom,” a reference to a

Adapting Whitman’s example of imag-

fabled oceanic whirlpool that terrorized

ining ourselves into the future, Jones

the 19th-century imagination. The Mael-

leaves us with the biography of a person

strom is, of course, a visual metaphor

just coming into life. We hear from this

for the great tumult of the Civil War,

descendant a hundred years hence, as

just as it is, Jones says, an apt symbol for

he nears the end of his days—as far from

our contemporary “undeclared cultural

us in time as is Lincoln. And in 2109, this

war.” Amelan’s spare set also features

speaker is left with the same questions

columns that simultaneously suggest the

about us that we have of Lincoln, expe-

White House, grand antebellum planta-

riencing an identical desire “to believe in

tions, and the birthplace of democracy

great men and great women.” What will

in ancient Greece. This décor creates a

this citizen of the future see in us when

continually evolving arena for the projec-

he looks back? What will we have done

tion of spectral images that link past and

in answering the great challenges of our

present. In her video of phantom figures

day? Will he find us—as Lincoln grew

from the 19th century, Janet Wong con-

to be—led by the “better angels of our

jures a ghost-world whose inhabitants

nature”?

shadow the contemporary ensemble, just as Whitman had projected himself into the future.

In the end, Jones insists that Fondly Do We Hope is not intended as a history lesson. On the contrary, he cites its claims on history as “glancing and ambivalent.”

24

UMS 09-10

ABOUT

ARTISTIC ELEMENTS O F F O N D LY D O W E H O P E … F E R V E N T LY D O W E P R AY

DANCE

ACTING

VIDEO

This is a modern dance company, but

The actor in the piece you will see is often

There is also video in this piece. Sometimes

it uses all kinds of movements, includ-

speaking text and not acting as if he were

the video is meant to be watched alone.

ing ones that many people do every day.

in a play. The text he is speaking is drawn

At other times, it is shown while many

Examples of dance styles include modern,

from many famous writers and think-

other things are going on. The video is

ballet, hip hop, jazz, and ballroom.

ers, including Abraham Lincoln, Stephen

non-narrative, meaning it doesn’t have a

Douglas, William Shakespeare, and poet

story. Rather, it operates poetically, sug-

Walt Whitman.

gesting ideas and feelings.

MUSIC

The musicians in this work both write and

S TA G E D E S I G N

perform their parts. Some of the musicians play several instruments and there

The stage is designed to make you feel like

are many musical styles that they draw

you are entering another world, the world

from, including jazz, classical, heavy metal,

of this piece. Stage designs can be very

folk, and rock and roll. Because this piece

obvious, like a set of the inside of a house.

is about the Civil War period, some of the

This is designed to be more abstract. It

music is drawn from that period of time

does not represent anything in particular.

(1850–1860).

It includes curtains, columns, and a small stage built over some of the seats in the audience.

W H AT T O W AT C H F O R : What kinds of feelings does the music evoke at the different parts of the performance?

What is the actor’s purpose throughout the performance?

UMS 09-10

25

ABOUT

THE SET THE SET IS MADE UP of an oval floor on the main stage and a smaller oval “satellite� stage connected by a walkway. An oval traveler track hangs over the main stage from which white curtains are hung. The material is in four sections, 2 opaque and 2 translucent. They can close off the stage or be arranged in different configurations. They can also be used as projection surfaces.

There are also six white classical columns that will be arranged into various configurations.

Photos: Courtesy of Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company

26

UMS 09-10

W H AT T O W AT C H F O R : Notice the configurations of the six columns throughout the performance.

What might each configuration represent?

How are the two stages used differently?

UMS 09-10

27

ABOUT

THE COSTUMES The costumes for Fondly Do We Hope‌Fervently Do We Pray were designed by Liz Prince.

Pages 28-29 include original sketches of the costumes.

28

UMS 09-10

Photos: Courtesy of Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company

W H AT T O W AT C H F O R : Notice the color of the costumes.

What do you think each color represents?

UMS 09-10

29

THEMES + IDEAS

30

UMS 09-10

Photo: Russell Jenkins/Ravinia Festival]

H I S T O RY

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

THE SON OF a Kentucky frontiersman,

should say. My mother, who died in my

Lincoln made extraordinary efforts to

Abraham Lincoln had to struggle to live

tenth year, was of a family of the name

attain knowledge while working on a

and learn. Five months before receiving

of Hanks....My father...removed from

farm, splitting rails for fences, and keep-

his party’s nomination for President, he

Kentucky to...Indiana, in my eighth

ing store at New Salem, Illinois. He was

sketched his life:

year....It was a wild region, with many

a captain in the Black Hawk War, spent

bears and other wild animals still in the

eight years in the Illinois legislature, and

“I was born Feb. 12, 1809, in Hardin

woods. There I grew up...Of course when

as a lawyer rode the circuit of courts for

County, Kentucky. My parents were

I came of age I did not know much.

many years. His law partner said of him,

both born in Virginia, of undistinguished

Still somehow, I could read, write, and

“His ambition was a little engine that

families—second families, perhaps I

cipher...but that was all.”

knew no rest.”

UMS 09-10

31

He married Mary Todd, and they had

As President, he built the new Reublican

morial in Washington, DC: “With malice

four boys, only one of whom lived to

Party into a strong national organization.

toward none; with charity for all; with

maturity. In 1858 Lincoln ran against

Further, he rallied most of the northern

firmness in the right, as God gives us to

Stephen A. Douglas for Senator. He lost

Democrats to the Union cause. On Janu-

see the right, let us strive on to finish the

the election, but in debating with Doug-

ary 1, 1863, he issued the Emancipation

work we are in; to bind up the nation’s

las he gained a national reputation that

Proclamation that declared forever free

wounds....”

won him the Republican nomination for

those slaves within the Confederacy.

President in 1860.

On Good Friday, April 14, 1865, Lincoln

Lincoln never let the world forget that the

was assassinated at Ford’s Theatre in

Lincoln warned the South in his Inaugural

Civil War involved an even larger issue.

Washington, DC, by John Wilkes Booth,

Address: “In your hands, my dissatisfied

This he stated most movingly in dedicat-

an actor who thought he was helping

fellow countrymen, and not in mine, is

ing the military cemetery at Gettysburg:

the South. The opposite was the result,

the momentous issue of civil war. The

“that we here highly resolve that these

for with Lincoln’s death, the possibility of

government will not assail you....You have

dead shall not have died in vain—that this

peace with magnanimity died.

no oath registered in Heaven to destroy

nation, under God, shall have a new birth

the government, while I shall have the

of freedom—and that government of the

most solemn one to preserve, protect and

people, by the people, for the people,

defend it.”

shall not perish from the earth.”

Lincoln thought secession illegal, and was willing to use force to defend Federal law and the Union. When Confederate batteries fired on Fort Sumter, South Carolina, and forced its surrender, he called on the states for 75,000 volunteers. Four more

House, his casket was viewed by millions as it was carried on a special train back to Illinois. He was buried May 4 in Oak Ridge

military triumphs heralded an end to war.

Cemetery in Springfield.

In his planning for peace, the President

Biography used with permission from

was flexible and generous, encouraging

www.abrahamlincoln200.org.

Southerners to lay down their arms and join speedily in reunion.

The spirit that guided him was clearly that

four remained within the Union. The Civil

of his Second Inaugural Address, now

War had begun.

inscribed on one wall of the Lincoln Me-

W H AT T O W AT C H F O R : Who dances as Abraham Lincoln?

UMS 09-10

morning. Following a funeral at the White

Lincoln won re-election in 1864, as Union

slave states joined the Confederacy but

32

President Lincoln died at 7:22 the next

H I S T O RY

MARY TODD LINCOLN

EARLY YEARS: 1818–1838 Born in

Among the prized values of the Todds

SPRINGFIELD COURTSHIP AND

1818, Mary Todd Lincoln lived in

was a commitment to education for

MARRIAGE: 1838–1861 In 1838, Mary

Lexington, Kentucky, for 20 years. Her

daughters as well as sons. Mary ben-

Todd left the social life of Lexington to

father, Robert Smith Todd, became

efited from this aspiration; an excellent

live in her sister’s home in Springfield,

a wealthy merchant and Whig party

student, she learned the basic curricu-

Illinois. Such independence for young

leader. Her mother, Eliza Parker Todd,

lum of reading, writing, and arithmetic

women was unusual for the times. But

also descended from an affluent fam-

at John Ward’s local school. When she

Mary despised her stepmother. Her

ily, died in 1825. Thus began a series

was fourteen, she attended an all-girls

beloved sister Elizabeth had set up a

of deaths that marred Mary’s life.

boarding school on the outskirts of

household in the rapidly growing new

Her mother succumbed to puerperal

Lexington. There, her studies expanded

capital. In her sister’s and brother-in-

sepsis (“the childbed fevers”) after the

to include languages and the traditional

law’s home she met Abraham Lincoln,

birth of her seventh child in 12 years.

sewing and stitching. She continued to

an aspiring Whig politician and state

Robert Todd quickly replaced his first

be a superior student, acclaimed for her

legislator. Other men, mostly politicians

wife with a stepmother Mary hated.

performances in plays and her profi-

like Senator Stephen Douglas, courted

Nine household slaves served the large

ciency in French.

the attractive Mary Todd. Dances,

Todd family in an elegant brick home

sleigh-rides, and railroad expeditions

in Lexington.

UMS 09-10

33

brought the young people of the new

dressed, she presided over receptions

put her in touch with her dead sons and

capital together.

and soirees. She also visited wounded

husband. Then in 1871 Tad died of pleu-

soldiers in Washington hospitals and

risy in a Chicago hotel.

It was the gangly Lincoln whom she

raised money for the former slaves who

favored and married in 1842. Then fol-

flocked into the city during the Civil War.

lowed Mary Lincoln’s domestic years—

Her contributions to our national history

the birth of her four sons (and the death

emerged from her understanding of the

of her beloved Eddie in 1850 from

significance of the White House as a sym-

tuberculosis), the management of her

bol of the power of the Union. She also

home, and her support of her husband’s

recognized the extent to which social

emerging political career. She was unusu-

gatherings in the Red and Gold Rooms

ally ambitious for what she called “our

provided opportunities for foreign diplo-

Lincoln party.” An excellent hostess,

mats, congressmen, military leaders, and

she invited important politicians to the

common soldiers to meet the president.

Lincoln home. When Lincoln was elected

But amid such triumphs Mary Lincoln lost

president in 1860, he hurried home, call-

her son Willie to typhoid fever in 1862.

ing out “Mary, Mary, we are elected.”

Then her husband died from an assassin’s

FIRST LADY: 1861–1865 Mary Lincoln’s

bullet in April 1865.

four years in the White House began

WIDOWHOOD: 1865–1882 A devas-

with the Confederate attack on Fort

tated Mary Lincoln now began her years

Sumter and ended with her husband’s

of wandering. Leaving Washington for

death. At a critical moment in the na-

Chicago, she was accompanied by her

tion’s history she expanded American

eldest son, 23-year-old Robert, and her

understanding of a First Lady’s role. She

youngest son, 12- year-old Tad. But she

oversaw expensive, much-needed and

was unable to afford a home in Chicago.

tasteful improvements to the White

She took Tad to Germany where he

House. She organized receptions that

attended school in Frankfurt. She trav-

made the White House a center of

eled to European spas. She sought out

social and political importance. Elegantly

spiritualists, believing that mediums could

W H AT T O W AT C H F O R : Who dances as Mary Todd?

34

UMS 09-10

Four years later, her son Robert Lincoln directed legal efforts to have her committed to a private mental institution outside of Chicago. Never insane, she remained in the asylum only four months. But Mary Lincoln was convinced that her son would try to send her back to an institution. So she fled to Pau, a city near the Pyrenees in southern France. She lived there alone for four years. Eventually, her declining health forced her to return to the United States, where she lived quietly with her sister Elizabeth Edwards in Springfield until she died on July 16, 1882 from a stroke. She was 63 years old.

Biography used with permission from www.abrahamlincoln200.org.

H I S T O RY

T H E C I V I L WA R : A T I M E L I N E 1859

1860

1861

OCTOBER 16–18

NOVEMBER 6

J A N U A RY 9

John Brown, in an attempt to amass arms for a

Abraham Lincoln is elected President, with Han-

Star of the West, an unarmed merchant vessel se-

slave insurrection, attacks the federal armory and

nibal Hamlin as his Vice President.

cretly carrying federal troops and supplies to Fort

arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.

Sumter, is fired upon by South Carolina artillery at

DECEMBER 20

the entrance to Charleston harbor.

As a consequence of Lincoln’s election, a special convention of the South Carolina legislature votes to secede from the Union.

J A N U A RY 9 – F E B R U A RY 1 Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas follow South Carolina’s lead and secede from the Union.

J A N U A RY 2 9 Kansas is admitted as a state with a constitution prohibiting slavery.

F E B R U A RY Delegates from six seceded states meet in Montgomery, Alabama, to form a government and elect Jefferson Davis President of the Confederate States of America.

MARCH 4 Abraham Lincoln is inaugurated as the sixteenth President of the United States.

APRIL 12–13 Fort Sumter is bombarded and surrenders to South Carolina troops led by P.G.T. Beauregard.

UMS 09-10

35

1 8 6 1 (cont.)

1863

1862

APRIL 15

F E B R U A RY 6

J A N U A RY 1

Lincoln declares a state of insurrection and calls

General Ulysses S. Grant captures Fort Henry, Ten-

Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation,

for 75,000 volunteers to enlist for three months

nessee. Ten days later he accepts the “uncondi-

which declares that slaves in the seceded states

of service.

tional and immediate surrender” of Fort Donelson.

are now free.

These victories open up the state of Tennessee for

A P R I L 1 7 – M AY 2 0

Union advancement.

Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina secede from the Union.

J U LY 1 – 3 The Battle of Gettysburg is fought in Pennsylva-

M AY 3 1 – J U N E 1 , 1 8 6 2

nia. General George G. Meade compromises his

During the Battle of Seven Pines in Virginia, Robert

victory by allowing Lee to retreat South across

APRIL 19

E. Lee takes over command of the Confederate

the Potomac.

Lincoln orders a blockade of all Confederate ports.

army from the wounded Joseph E. Johnston.

APRIL 20

AUGUST 20

Violent riots erupt in New York City in protest of

Colonel Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the

Horace Greeley of the New York Tribune publishes

the draft.

United States Army.

The Prayer of Twenty Millions, a plea for Lincoln to

J U LY 1 3 – 1 5

liberate slaves in the Union.

M AY 2 9 Richmond becomes the capital of the Confederacy.

AUGUST 29–30 The South is again victorious at the Second Battle of Manassas.

NOVEMBER 19 Lincoln delivers his Gettysburg Address, in which he reiterates the nation’s fundamental principle that all men are created equal.

J U LY 2 1 Confederate forces win a victory at the First Battle of Manassas. Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson earns the nickname “Stonewall” for his tenacity in the battle.

SEPTEMBER 17

NOVEMBER 23–25

The Battle of Antietam, Maryland, exacts heavy

After three days of battle, the Union victory

losses on both sides.

at Chattanooga, Tennessee, opens the way for Union advancement into the heart of the

SEPTEMBER 22 President Lincoln issues the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.

NOVEMBER 7 General McClellan receives Lincoln’s order relieving him of command of the Army of the Potomac.

36

UMS 09-10

Confederacy.

1865

1864

1 8 6 5 (cont.)

MARCH 10

J A N U A RY 3 1

M AY 1 0

Newly commissioned to the rank of lieutenant

Congress passes the Thirteenth Amendment,

Jefferson Davis is captured and taken prisoner

general, Ulysses S. Grant is given official authority

which abolishes slavery throughout the

near Irwinville, Georgia.

to command all of the armies of the United States.

United States.

M AY 5 – 6

MARCH 4

In New Orleans, terms of surrender are of-

The Battle of the Wilderness in Virginia is the first

Lincoln is inaugurated as President for a

fered to General E. Kirby Smith, commander

of a bloody series of month-long engagements

second term.

of the Trans-Mississippi Department. His

M AY 2 6

between Grant and Lee.

acceptance on June 2 formally ends Confeder-

APRIL 3 JUNE 28

Union troops occupy Richmond.

JUNE 30

Lincoln signs a bill repealing the fugitive slave laws.

APRIL 9 Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of North-

J U LY 1 1 – 1 2

ate resistance.

ern Virginia to Grant at Appomattox.

Confederate forces under Jubal Early probe and

All eight conspirators are convicted for the assassination of President Lincoln; four are sentenced to death.

Timeline courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution (www.

fire upon the northern defenses of Washing-

APRIL 14

ton, D.C., throwing the Capital into a state of

John Wilkes Booth shoots President Lincoln at

high alert.

Ford’s Theater; Secretary of State William H.

si.edu) and used with support of its mission for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.

Seward is stabbed and wounded in an assas-

NOVEMBER 8

sination attempt inside his Washington home.

Lincoln is reelected President, with Andrew Johnson as Vice President.

APRIL 15 Lincoln dies, and Andrew Johnson is inaugu-

DECEMBER 21

rated as President.

Savannah falls to Sherman’s army without resistance. Sherman gives the city to Lincoln as a

APRIL 26

Christmas present.

John Wilkes Booth is shot in a barn in Virginia and dies.

UMS 09-10

37

H I S T O RY

THE SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS

BY PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 4, 1865

as to myself; and it is, I trust, reasonably

but one of them would make war rather

At this second appearing to take the oath

satisfactory and encouraging to all. With

than let the nation survive; and the other

of the presidential office, there is less

high hope for the future, no prediction in

would accept war rather than let it per-

occasion for an extended address than

regard to it is ventured.

ish. And the war came.

On the occasion corresponding to this

One eighth of the whole population

four years ago, all thoughts were anxious-

were colored slaves, not distributed

ly directed to an impending civil war. All

generally over the Union, but localized

dreaded it—all sought to avert it. While

in the Southern part of it. These slaves

the inaugural [sic] address was being

constituted a peculiar and powerful

delivered from this place, devoted alto-

interest. All knew that this interest was,

gether to saving the Union without war,

somehow, the cause of the war. To

insurgent agents were in the city seeking

strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this

to destroy it without war—seeking to dis-

interest was the object for which the

solve [sic] the Union, and divide effects, by

insurgents would rend the Union, even

negotiation. Both parties deprecated war;

by war; while the government claimed

there was at the first. Then a statement, somewhat in detail, of a course to be pursued, seemed fitting and proper. Now, at the expiration of four years, during which public declarations have been constantly called forth on every point and phase of the great contest which still absorbs the attention, and engrosses the energies of the nation, little that is new could be presented. The progress of our arms, upon which all else chiefly depends, is as well known to the public

38

UMS 09-10

no right to do more than to restrict the

therein any departure from those divine

territorial enlargement of it. Neither party

attributes which the believers in a Living

expected for the war, the magnitude,

God always ascribe to Him? Fondly do

throughout Fondly Do We Hope…

or the duration, which it has already at-

we hope—fervently do we pray—that

Fervently Do We Pray. They include:

tained. Neither anticipated that the cause

this mighty scourge of war may speed-

of the conflict might cease with, or even

ily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it

Lincoln’s Address to the Washington

before, the conflict itself should cease.

continue, until all the wealth piled by the

Temperance Society of Springfield, IL

Each looked for an easier triumph, and a

bond-man’s two hundred and fifty years

(2/22/1842)

result less fundamental and astounding.

of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until

Both read the same Bible, and pray to

every drop of blood drawn with the lash,

Lincoln’s House Divided Speech

the same God; and each invokes His aid

shall be paid by another drawn with the

(6/16/1858)

against the other. It may seem strange

sword, as was said three thousand years

that any men should dare to ask a just

ago, so still it must be said “the judg-

God’s assistance in wringing their bread

ments of the Lord, are true and righteous

from the sweat of other men’s faces;

altogether”

but let us judge not that we be not judged. The prayers of both could not be answered; that of neither has been answered fully. The Almighty has his own purposes. “Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!” If we shall suppose that American Slavery is one of those offences which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that

With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up

T E X T E X P L O R AT I O N There are many excerpts of texts

Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address (3/4/1861) Lincoln’s Address at Sanitary Fair (4/18/1864) Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address (3/4/1865)

the nation’s wounds; to care for him who

Frederick Douglass’s “Colonization”

shall have borne the battle, and for his

from The North Star

widow, and his orphan—to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and last-

Declaration of Independence

ing peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.

Walt Whitman’s The Wound-Dresser

Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address is in the public domain.

Walt Whitman’s Poem of the Body

He gives to both North and South, this

Walt Whitman’s Crossing

terrible war, as the woe due to those by

Brooklyn Ferry

whom the offence came, shall we discern Song of Solomon from the King James Bible Book of Revelation from the King James Bible

UMS 09-10

39

ABOUT DANCE

40

UMS 09-10

Photo: Russell Jenkins/Ravinia Festival]

ABOUT

ELEMENTS OF DANCE ANYONE CAN PARTICIPATE IN DANCE. You do not necessarily need years of practice or special classes to enjoy it. Dance has been a part of human lives since the beginning of history, sometimes as a part of ceremonies or rituals, other times to create a performance for other people, and even for people to just have fun and socialize. Below are a few of the reasons people dance today.

Dance gives people the opportunity to express their feelings, culture, and values through body movement. Every type of dance, from break dancing to ballet, tells a story about the society and time in history that it comes from. Dance is one of the few things that cultures all over the world from all time periods have in common, so it is able to express individual cultures and the human qualities we all have in common at the same time.

There are four words that can be used while describing dance: body, energy, space, and time. By talking about these four elements, dance artists find it easier to communicate in words what is normally expressed only with movement. While performing, they use physical, outward movement to show other people what they feel emotionally inside.

During a dance performance, more goes on than just a dancer expressing him or herself on stage while the audience passively watches. Seeing dance is an active experience. While you watch the dancers, think about the way they are moving and how they might be feeling. Think about how the dancers feel about each other, and how their movement helped you understand that. The key to watching dance is to imagine that you’re living in the dancer’s body, that you are actually doing the moves that you see.

drawing loops, a hip jutting out straight to the side, or the head swooping down and up through an arc. The range of these movements can vary from so small

ENERGY Energy choices may reveal

SPACE “Where?” is a question about

emotional states. For example, a power-

space and spacing. Choices about use of

the reach of the dancer or the size of the

ful push might imply aggression or

space include such variables as position

dance area. There are countless variations

confidence depending of the intent and

or place, size or range, level, direction,

and combinations of ways that move-

situation. A delicate touch might reflect

and pathway. Here are some examples

ment can occur in space.

affection and timidity or perhaps preci-

of space choices applied to actions: the

sion and skill. Some types of energy can

dancer might choose to move or pause

be described in words; others spring from

at any specific place in the dancing area.

the movement itself and are difficult to

A skip could be in any direction such as

label with language. Sometimes differ-

diagonally forward and toward one side

ences in the use of energy are easy to

of the room. A twist might be high in the

perceive; other times these differences

air or low to the ground or in between.

TIME “When?” is a question about

can be quite subtle. Variations in move-

A run or turning action could be in place

time or timing. Choices about time in-

ment flow, force, tension, and weight

or perhaps travel a certain distance along

clude such things as duration, speed, di-

can be combined in many ways and may

a particular pathway. The pathway might

visions of time (e.g., beats and intervals),

communicate a wide spectrum of human

be curved, straight, zigzagging, or mean-

timing of accents, and rhythmic patterns.

emotional states.

dering. The dancer’s movements can also

as to be almost invisible, to as large as

trace pathways in the air as in an elbow

UMS 09-10

41

Timing choices are applied to actions.

is based upon a universal experience:

Here are some examples: a twist could

the rhythms and movement of the hu-

be gradual or quick. A stop might be

man body. At a party, at home, or even

suddenly followed by a pause. Leap-

on the street, most of us have felt the

ing might speed up, slow down, or be

urge to dance. Whether it is hip-hop,

paced by even beats. A series of sitting,

swing, salsa, meringue, foxtrot, waltz, or

standing, and stretching actions could

twist, we all know a style of dance.

occur with an even pace taking a short or a long time. Such actions could be accented with pauses at regular intervals or occur sporadically. Bending, jumping, and shaking actions might be arranged in a rhythmically patterned sequence.

Rising and curling might ride on the

In dance we take in, synthesize, and transmit our ideas and feelings about life through our bodies. Dance is a medium for learning about oneself and one’s world. It is truly a universal artas all humans relate to body movement and the

DANCE INSTRUMENT The art of dance takes place through the dancer.

Human beings are both the creators and the instruments. The physical manifestation of the dancer’s ideas and feelings is the living, breathing human body. In dance, the body is the mobile figure or shape: felt by the dancer, seen by others.

rhythm of breathing.

need to communicate with each other.

The body shape is sometimes relatively

As we dance, we sense our bodies and

still and sometimes changing as the

There are endless possibilities for timing

the world around us. We learn how and

dancer moves in place or travels through

one’s movements; timing variables such as

where our bodies can move, expanding

the dance area. Whether moving or

speed, duration, accents, and rhythmic pat-

our movement possibilities and enjoy-

pausing, dancers are alive with inner

terns, simple to complex, can be applied to

ing our sense experience as we dance.

movement, feelings and thoughts.

actions in many different combinations.

Dance is a vehicle for understanding life experience giving dynamic form to our thoughts and feelings. It symbolizes our thoughts and feelings kinesthetically.

Dance is a unique form for communicating. As we manifest our experience of life in dance, we send out messages

ARTISTIC MEDIUM Movement

through our bodies. We can appreciate

is the artistic medium of dance, just as

The dancer moves with energy through

these messages ourselves, and others

sound is the artistic medium of music.

time and space. But then, who doesn’t?

can receive them. Dancecommunicates

The movement of human beings includes

Are we always dancing every moment

in ways that words cannot.

a wide range, from large and obvious

IS ALL MOVEMENT DANCE?

we are alive? Or are there some special

to so small and subtle that it appears to

features that lead us to call some of our

be stillness. Periods of relative stillness

movement experiences dance? It does

are as effective and essential in dance

seem that in dance, people tend to be

as are silences or rests within music. The

more consciously involved in their move-

movement vocabulary of modern dance

ment, taking particular enjoyment or interest in their body.

PRACTICE Sometimes, dance is

crawl, stop, rise, jump, fall, bend, hold,

an audience. In those cases, no matter

shake, stand, walk, twist., turn, bal-

what the style, dancers must train their

ance, roll, stretch, slide, leap, jiggle, pull,

bodies and their imaginations to be

push,kick, hover, reach and hang.

vocabulary of their movement language through classes, rehearsals, and perfor-

is spoken through the movement of the

mances. The elements of their practice

human body. It tells stories, expresses

are the basic building blocks of dance.

emotions, and creates images. All dance

42

UMS 09-10

of many possible actions are run, hop,

designed to be performed and seen by

more expressive. Dance artists extend the

LANGUAGE Dance is a language. It

is made up of human actions. A few

ABOUT

ELEMENTS OF MOVEMENT ANOTHER WAY TO THINK about the key elements of movement and dance is to remember the pneumonic “BEST”: body, energy, space, and time. These components drive all movement: pedestrian (everyday movement), athletic, the movement of animals, as well as dance in all its variety. These elements are constantly woven together to create an unbroken fabric, but the threads can be separated for a clearer understanding of the art form.

Photo: Russell Jenkins/Ravinia Festival]

BODY B O D Y PA R T S : Head, shoulders, arms, hands, back, rib cage, hips, legs, feet, muscles, bones, joints, heart, lungs (breath)

ENERGY QUALITIES: Swinging, sustained (smooth), percussive (sharp), vibratory (shaking) DYNAMICS: Strong (powerful), light (delicate)

S PA C E

TIME

SHAPE: Body design in space

TEMPO: Fast, slow

LEVEL: High, middle, low

B E AT: Underlying pulse, rhythm

DIRECTION: Forward, backwards, sideways, diagonal, up, down

A C C E N T: Emphasis

PAT H W AY: Curved, straight, jagged, combinations of these

D U R AT I O N S : Long, short

FOCUS: Direction of gaze/focus of eyes

FLOW: Free-flowing, controlled

UMS 09-10

43

LANGUAGE

VOCABULARY OF DANCE ART The production of something that

DANCE THEATER A dance-theater work

IMPROVISATION Movement that is cre-

shows a level of skill (or specific inten-

can incorporate elements of both dance

ated spontaneously.

tion) in the chosen medium and an intent

and theater: including dancing, singing,

to communicate meaning. Art may be

dialogue, film, and multimedia.

ISOLATION Movements restricted to one

ENERGY One of the elements of move-

rib cage, or hips.

classified as architecture, dance, music, theater, visual, literary, technological, etc.

ment; energy propels or initiates move-

area of the body such as the shoulders,

KINESTHETIC SENSE The sense of

BODY SHAPES The design of the body

ment or causes changes in movement or

in stillness; shapes may be curved, angu-

body position.

movement and bodily awareness of

ENSEMBLE A group of dancers who

this sense provides feedback about

perform together.

speed, height, tension/relaxation, force,

lar, twisted, or straight.

CHOREOGRAPHY The process of creating a dance; originating from the Greek word choros (meaning “to dance”) and graphos (meaning “to write”). This process includes an understanding of form and movement development in dance.

CHOREOGRAPHER A person who creates a dance work and decides how, when, and where the dancers should move.

EXPRESSION A manner of speaking, playing music, dancing, writing, or visu-

oneself, others, and the environment;

exertion, direction, etc. to audience and performers alike.

ally producing something that shows

LEVELS The height of the dancer in

feeling and meaning.

relation to the floor: high, medium, or

GENERAL SPACE The area of space through which a dancer travels or takes his/her personal space; it may include a dance studio, a stage, a classroom, or the

COMPANY A group of dancers who

gymnasium; pathways and directions are

perform together.

defined in this space.

low. When a dancer is low, a part of his/ her torso is touching the floor; when a dancer is middle level the feet are flat on the floor; when a dancer is on high level, he/she is in the air or on the toes.

LOCKING A movement that creates the illusion that a dancer’s joints are stuck,

DANCE ELEMENTS Dance is an art

GESTURE A movement of the body or

form comprised of the elements of time,

part of the body that a dancer makes in

space, energy and the body; each of

order to express an idea or an emotion;

MODERN BALLET A choreography that

these elements has its own knowledge

everyday gestures include a hand shake,

maintains elements of traditional ballet

base which is interpreted uniquely by

a wave, or a fist; abstract gestures in

created during the 20th century; many

each dance whether it be folk, ballet,

dance are those movements given special

modern ballets are abstract and non-

modern, jazz, or ethnic dance.

emotional or content meaning by a

literal.

choreographer.

almost like a freeze frame in a movie.

DANCE TECHNIQUE The specific vocab-

MODERN DANCE A performance move-

ulary of dance and the physical principles

ment form that evolved at the beginning

for producing efficient and correct body

of the 20th century, modern dance can

movement are called technique.

be contrasted with ballet, tap or jazz.

Creative work on choreography is an important part of the learning experience in modern dance.

44

UMS 09-10

NON-LITERAL CHOREOGRAPHY Cho-

RHYTHM The organization of sound

TECHNIQUE The learning of movement

reography that emphasizes movement

in time; rhythm is a pattern of pulses/

skills; the ability to use specific methods

manipulation and design without the

beats with selected accents that can be

to create a dance.

intent of telling a story; non-literal works

repeated or joined with other patterns to

communicate directly through movement

form longer phrases. Rhythm is one of

and need no translation.

the basic elements of music.

PERCUSSIVE Use of energy that is pow-

SECTION A smaller part of a whole work

erful, staccato, and explosive.

that contains many phrases in and of

PERSONAL SPACE The kinesphere that

itself.

one occupies that is defined by the reach

SET How the stage is set up and what

space around the body; it includes all

the stage looks like.

TEMPO The speed of movement.

UNITY A principle of choreographic form in which phrases fit together, with each phrase important to the whole.

VIBRATORY Use of energy that involves shaking or trembling actions.

levels, planes, and directions both near and far from the body’s center.

SHAPE An interesting and interrelated arrangement of body parts of one

REPERTOIRE Movement phrases or full

dancer; the visible makeup or molding

sections from completed dance works

of the body parts of a single dancer; the

that are taught in order to familiarize

overall visible appearance of a group of

dancers with a specific choreographer’s

dancers; also the overall development or

style and movement vocabulary. Reper-

form of a dance.

toire can also mean the dance pieces a dance company is prepared to perform.

SOLO A section of a work that is danced by only one dancer.

PHRASE The smallest and simplest unit of dance form; usually part of a larger,

SPACE One of the elements of move-

more complex passage. A phrase is

ment. Direction, level, size, focus and

frequently repeated throughout a work in

pathway are the aspects of space.

order to give it continuity.

PROP An object that is separate from the dancer’s costume but that is a part of the action or spatial design in the choreog-

STYLE A distinctive manner of moving.

SYMMETRICAL A visually-balanced body shape or grouping of dancers.

raphy or that contributes to the meaning of a dance.

UMS 09-10

45

LESSON PLANS

46

UMS 09-10

Photo: Russell Jenkins/Ravinia Festival]

ENGAGE

P R E PA R I N G F O R T H E P E R F O R M A N C E The following the steps below help audience members understand how to make sense of all that they are seeing in a live performance

BE QUIET AND ALERT during the

EXPERIENCE each of these elements

CONNECT the elements to one

performance. This allows you and your

with all of your senses, with your emo-

another. Notice how the parts create a

fellow audience members to see and

tions, and with your imagination.

whole work of art.

hear everything that is going on.

IDENTIFY all of the elements that

DESCRIBE these elements and your

RESPOND to the work by reflecting

are present in the performance. These

response to them.

on how it makes you feel and what you

include the components of a live perfor-

think about it.

mance previously listed!

UMS 09-10

47

ENGAGE

P R A C T I C I N G O B S E R VAT I O N Using the photo on the next page (page 49), practice the skills of observation.

All of the elements of a live performance cannot be captured in a photograph, but focus on the ones that are present.

IDENTIFY EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE IN THE PHOTO. How many performers are in the photo?

What are they wearing?

What are the elements of a set on the stage?

EXPERIENCE THE EVENT CAPTURED IN THE PHOTOGRAPH. Observe what is going on. Notice your thoughts about it.

DESCRIBE THE INDIVIDUAL PARTS AND THE THOUGHTS THAT COME TO YOU. What words or phrases describe the movement?

What words or phrases describe the costumes?

What words or phrases describe the set and lighting?

How would you describe your response to it?

CONNECT ALL OF THE ELEMENTS What seems to be going on?

RESPOND TO WHAT YOU SEE Is this photograph interesting to you?

Does it seem to be communicating a specific feeling?

What story could you create about it?

CREATE AN ARTFUL RESPONSE USING WORDS OR DRAWINGS. These responses can be anything. Examples of responses include:

48

•

poems inspired by the photo

•

descriptions of what you see in the actions

•

word phrases or sentences that describe your feelings and thoughts about the image

•

action poems or phrases that describe the movement and dynamics

•

drawings inspired by the photo

UMS 09-10

UMS 09-10 Photo: Paul B. Goode

49

WORKSHEET

MAKING A PHOTOGRAPH COME ALIVE Look closely at the photograph on the previous page (page 49). Notice everything you can about it and then use the following questions to help you create your own artful response.

Identify all of the performers. How many are there? Briefly describe one of them.

How would you describe the costumes they are wearing? Do the costumes seem like modern clothes or clothing from another time?

Look at the environment the dancers are in. Do you notice any elements of a set? What are they?

Notice the movement that the photograph has caught. What words could describe the movement? Examples of descriptive movement words are: energetic, suspended, dramatic, dangerous, frantic, calm.

Connect everything together. What seems to be going on in this moment? Is there a story you can imagine goes with this picture?

What do you feel in response to this photo? Does it make you curious? Does it make you want to see the whole dance?

50

UMS 09-10

Create your own response to the photo. You can do this by filling in the word poem below or by using the rest of the page to make your own poem, written response, or drawing.

Action cannot be traced, yet it is suspended in this moment.

A man is caught ______________________________ White, white surrounds.

Determined _________________________________ Among many men, one is ______________________________ _________________________________ floats and time is suspended All movement ______________ in this instance of ________________.

Use the space below for your own poems, drawings, and thoughts.

UMS 09-10

51

ENGAGE

PERFORMANCE NOTES Review these questions before the performance and reflect on them after.

You can also use these to take notes during the performance if you choose.

DANCE/MOVEMENT •

How many dancers are there? Do you recognize any of the dancers on the stage as one of the dancers in the photograph you looked at earlier?

•

How would you describe the kind of dancing they are doing? Is it active, daring, graceful?

•

Look for a moment when the dancing is especially exciting to you. Write down a few words that capture the essence of this moment.

MUSIC •

Find the musicians. How many are there and what instruments are they playing?

•

What kind of music styles can you recognize? Are the musicians playing jazz, classical, rock-and-roll, heavy metal?

•

Does the music surprise you? Why or why not?

•

Listen for an exciting musical moment. Write a few words that describe this moment for you.

THEATER/ACTING

52

•

Find the speakers in the piece. What words describe how they say their lines? Are they energetic, enthusiastic, sad?

•

Do you understand everything that is being said?

UMS 09-10

SET DESIGN •

Notice the set. Briefly describe some of the parts of the set. Are there hanging objects? Is there a special floor or stage?

PUT IT ALL TOGETHER •

What does this performance seem to be about to you?

•

Is the piece telling one story, many stories, or none at all?

•

Performances can also be about ideas. What ideas are talked about or danced about?

•

Did this performance connect to anything in your life? Did the performers move like someone you know or watch on TV? Did the music remind you of a song you’ve heard before?

UMS 09-10

53

EXPLORE

MORE RESOURCES LESSON PLANS

ate simple dances in small groups and

PBS

perform them for the class. Students will

www.pbs.org/civilwar

ARTSEDGE

manipulate task cards to comprehend

www.artsedge.org

the elements of dance and then they

PBS offers lesson plans surrounding the

will be tested on their knowledge.

Ken Burns film The Civil War.

infused lesson plans and materials for

CIVIL WAR MUSIC

WALT WHITMAN, PATRIOT POET

educators to use. Below are a few that

http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/

relate to this performance.

content/2095/

room/lesson_whitman.html

DANCING THROUGH POETRY

Using songs popular during the Civil

Walt Whitman, journalist and poet, cre-

http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/

War, students will identify songs as ral-

content/3534/

lying songs, recruiting songs, popular

Artsedge offers a wide range of arts-

In this lesson students will look at poetry as a way to express the art of dance metaphorically. Students will read two different poems about break dancing in which one will show dance visually in

entertainment songs, campfire songs, sentimental songs, or patriotic songs.

Students will compare and contrast songs from the North and from the South, then choose a Civil War song to perform using

http://www.pbs.org/civilwar/class-

ated poems that are boldly American in style and substance. He idealized American leaders and workmen, chronicled Civil War battles, praised 19th Century technology, and memorialized Abraham Lincoln. While his perspective changed as the nation developed, Whitman’s poems

voice or an instrument.

retained their democratic spirit and faith

and the other using its content to repre-

RELIVING HISTORY THROUGH SLAVE

son, students will have an opportunity

sent dance.

NARRATIVES

to analyze historic events and concepts

http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/

recorded in Whitman’s poems, examine

content/2358/

conditions in Civil War hospitals and the

the way the words are placed on paper

ELEMENTS OF DANCE http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/ content/2338/ How many ways can a person move?

Students will explore and discover the elements of dance by demonstrating various simple movements. This exercise will help the teacher assess the students’ level of experience and ability with respect to dance. Students will cre-

54

UMS 09-10

After reading narratives from former slaves that were recorded in the 1930’s as part of the Federal Writers’ Project, students conduct research on slavery, and tell a story based on their findings.

The lesson incorporates an exploration of storytelling techniques.

in the American experiment. In this les-

poet’s reactions to those conditions, and evaluate Whitman’s role as poet, historian, and American visionary.

LINCOLN AND RECONSTRUCTION

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS: LINCOLN

FONDLY DO WE HOPE…FERVENTLY

http://www.pbs.org/civilwar/class-

BICENTENNIAL

DO WE PRAY

room/lesson_lincoln.html

www.abrahamlincoln200.org

www.fondlydowehope.com

This lesson focuses on Lincoln’s role

Abrahamlincoln200.org has a “For Teach-

The official website of the dance

as president during the Civil War. After

ers” section with many lesson plans.

work, including a trailer, an extensive

reading a variety of primary sources written by Lincoln or to him, students analyze under what provisions of the Constitution he acted as president. They then try to imagine what a week in the life of the President might have been like by writing a diary as Lincoln or his secretary. The lesson then focuses on Lincoln’s role in reconstructing the nation, which he initiated in his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction of December 8, 1863.

Students role play members of his cabi-

video diary of the work’s creation, THE GREAT “WHAT IF” QUESTION

photos, video interviews with Mr.

http://abrahamlincoln200.org/

Jones, and information on the music,

learning-about-lincoln/for-teachers/

set, and costumes.

default.aspx SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION: THE This lesson encourages students to think

CIVIL WAR

about how American history might have

www.civilwar.si.edu

been different had Lincoln lived. Students will discuss the impact of President

The Smithsonian’s Civil War collec-

Lincoln’s assassination on our nation’s

tion, a timeline, and further online

Reconstruction policy.

resources.

UMS

net as they hear from a variety of constituents about the effect this document is having on the course of the war and the future of the Freedmen. The cabinet considers a variety of amendments to Lincoln’s plan and through debate, either adopts or rejects them.

ON LINE RESOURCES

www.ums.org The official website of UMS. Visit the

BILL T. JONES/ARNIE ZANE DANCE

Education section (www.ums.org/edu-

COMPANY

cation) for study guides and informa-

www.billtjones.org

tion about community and family

The Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance

events.

Company’s official website.

UMS 09-10

55

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ARTSEDGE: ARTSEDGE Home. Web. 11 Dec. 2009. www.artsedge.org.

Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company | Home. Web. 11 Dec. 2009. www.billtjones.org.

The Civil War . PBS. Web. 11 Dec. 2009. www.pbs.org/civilwar.

CivilWar@Smithsonian. Web. 11 Dec. 2009. www.civilwar.si.edu.

Fondly Do We Hope...Fervently Do We Pray. Web. 11 Dec. 2009. www.fondlydowehope.com.

Lihs, Harriet. Appreciating Dance: A Guide to the World’s Liveliest Art. Highstown: Princeton Book Company, 2002.

Lincoln Bicentennial | 1809-2009 | Live the Legacy. Web. 11 Dec. 2009. www.abrahamlincoln200.org.

McGovern, George. Abraham Lincoln. New York: Times Books, 2009.

McPherson, James. Abraham Lincoln. New York: Oxford, 2009.

Morgenroth, Joyce. Speaking of Dance. New York: Routledge, 2004.

Robertson, Allen, and Donald Hutera. The Dance Handbook. New York: GK Hall & Co, 1988.

56

UMS 09-10

ABOUT UMS

UMS 09-10

57

UMS

W H AT I S U M S ?

UMS IS COMMITTED to connecting audiences with performing artists from around the world in uncommon and engaging experiences.

One of the oldest performing arts presenters in the country, the University Musical Society is now in its 131st season. With a program steeped in music, dance, and theater performed at the highest international standards of quality, UMS contributes to a vibrant cultural community by presenting approximately 60-75 performances and over 100 free educational and community activities each season.

UMS also commissions new work, sponsors artist residencies, and organizes collaborative projects with local, national, and international partners.

STAFF

INTERNS

DEPARTMENT MAILING ADDRESS

Kenneth C. Fischer

Emily Barkakati

100 Burton Memorial Tower

Claire C. Rice

881 North University Ave

Interim Director

Neal Kelley

Mary Roeder

Michael Michelon

UMS EDUCATION & AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT

UMS President

Mark Johnson

Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1011

Residency Coordinator

Omari Rush Education Manager

Liz Stover Programming Coordinator

58

UMS 09-10

Leonard Navarro Bennett Stein

UMS

U M S Y O U T H E D U C AT I O N P R O G R A M 10 THINGS TO KNOW

QUALITY Every student deserves access to

ACCESSIBILITY Eliminating participation barriers

“the best” experiences of world arts

Working directly with schools to align our programs with classroom

• UMS subsidizes Youth Performance

and culture

K-12 SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS

goals and objectives

tickets to $6/student (average subsidy: • UMS presents the finest international

$25/ticket)

performing and cultural artists.

Ann Arbor Public Schools and the Washt• When possible, UMS reimburses bus-

• Performances are often exclusive to

• Superintendent of Ann Arbor Public • UMS Youth Education offers person-

Schools is an ex officio member of the

alized customer service to teachers in

UMS Board of Directors.

• UMS Youth Performances aim to

order to respond to each school’s unique

present to students the same perfor-

needs.

mance that the public audiences see (no watered-down content).

enaw Intermediate School District.

sing costs.

Ann Arbor or touring to a small number of cities.

• 13-year official partnerships with the

• UMS has significant relationships with Detroit Public Schools’ dance and world

• UMS actively seeks out schools with

language programs and is developing

economic and geographic challenges to

relationships with other regional districts.

ensure and facilitate participation.

• UMS is building partnerships with or of-

DIVERSITY Highlighting the cultural, artistic,

fering specialized services to the region’s ARTS EDUCATION LEADER

independent and home schools.

and geographic diversity of the world One of the premier arts education • Programs represent world cultures and

programs in the country

mirror school/community demographics.

• UMS’s peer arts education programs: Car• Students see a variety of art forms:

negie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center.

classical music, dance, theater, jazz, choral, global arts.

• UMS has the largest youth education

UNIVERSITY EDUCATION PARTNERSHIPS Affecting educators’ teaching practices at the developmental stage

program of its type in the four-state region

• UMS Youth Education is developing

• UMS’s Global Arts program focuses

and has consistent school/teacher participa-

a partnership with the U-M School of

on 4 distinct regions of the world—

tion throughout southeastern Michigan.

Education, which keeps UMS informed

Africa, the Americas, Asia, and the Arab World—with a annual festival featuring

• 20,000 students are engaged each sea-

the arts of one region.

son by daytime performances, workshops and in-school visits.

• UMS Youth Education was awarded “Best Practices” by ArtServe Michigan and The Dana Foundation (2003).

of current research in educational theory and practice.

• University professors and staff are active program advisors and workshop presenters.

UMS 09-10

59

KENNEDY CENTER PARTNERSHIP

TEACHER ADVISORY COMMITTEE

• UMS Youth Education has been a

Meeting the actual needs of today’s

member of the prestigious Kennedy

educators in real time

Center Partners in Education Program since 1997.

• Partners in Education is a national consortium of arts organization and public school partnerships.

• UMS Youth Education works with a 50-teacher committee that guides program decision-making.

• The Committee meets throughout the season in large and small groups

• The program networks over 100 na-

regarding issues that affect teachers and

tional partner teams and helps UMS stay

their participation: ticket/bussing costs,

on top of best practices in education and

programming, future goals, etc.

arts nationwide.

IN-SCHOOL VISITS & CURRICULUM PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT “I find your arts and culture workshops to be one of the ‘Seven Wonders of Ann Arbor’!”

–AAPS Teacher

DEVELOPMENT Supporting teachers in the classroom • UMS Youth Education places international artists and local arts educators/ teaching artists in classes to help educa-

• UMS Youth Education provides some

tors teach a particular art form or model

of the region’s most vital and responsive

new/innovative teaching practices.

professional development training.

• UMS develops nationally-recognized

• Over 300 teachers participate in our

teacher curriculum materials to help

educator workshops each season.

teachers incorporate upcoming youth performances immediately in their daily

• In most workshops, UMS utilizes and engages resources of the regional community: cultural experts and institutions, performing and teaching artists.

60

UMS 09-10

classroom instruction.

UMS Youth Education Program umsyouth@umich.edu | 734-615-0122 | www.ums.org/education

SEND US YOUR FEEDBACK! UMS wants to know what teachers and students think about this Youth Performance.

We hope you’ll send us your thoughts, drawings, letters, or reviews.

UMS YOUTH EDUCATION PROGRAM Burton Memorial Tower • 881 N. University Ave. • Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1011 (734) 615-0122 phone • (734) 998-7526 fax • umsyouth@umich.edu www.ums.org/education

UMS 09-10

61