Post-Show

LESSON 4: RESPONDING TO DANCE IN SCULPTURE (POST-SHOW)

LESSON OBJECTIVE: After going to The Broad Stage for the performance of The Nutcracker Suite, students will construct a dance sculpture in the style of Alberto Giacometti, inspired by the performance.

DURATION: 40 mins

MATERIALS: tin foil, paper, pencil, index cards, scissors, Handout 2: Ballet Steps, Handout 5: Performance Reflection Form, Handout 6: How to Write a Dance Review, Handout 7: Sculpture Directions

STANDARDS: CCSS ELA/Literacy: Writing Standards: WS 10 Write routinely over extended time frames and shorter time frames for a range of discipline specific tasks, purposes, and audiences. CCSS ELA/Literacy, Speaking and Listening Standards: Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas: SL5 Include visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes. CA VAPA Dance 1.5 Use appropriate dance vocabulary to describe dances. CA VAPA Visual Arts 1.2 Identify and describe characteristics of representational, abstract and nonrepresentational works of art. CA VAPA Visual Arts 2.4 Create an expressive abstract composition based on real objects.

CONCEPTS/VOCABULARY: Alberto Giacometti: Swiss sculpture who is known for his thin, tall figures made of bronze. Elongated: Unusually long in relation to its width. Movement: The principal of design dealing with the creation of action. Sculpture: A 3-dimensional (3D) work of art. Texture: The surface quality of materials, either actual (tactile) or implied (visual); one of the elements of art.

GUIDING QUESTIONS: How can I represent movement through visual art?

Warm-Up: Discussion about the Performance

After seeing the Student Matinee of The Nutcracker Suite, ask students to write their impressions and reflections on Handout 5: Performance Reflection Form. Let their answers generate a class discussion about the performance. Make connections to topics explored in previous lessons (theme, facial expressions, gesture, choreography, specific dance steps, music, etc.)

As an optional homework or in-class assignment, have students write a review of the performance using Handout 6: How to Write a Dance Review.

Mini-Lesson: Drawing Stick Figures

To prepare for the next activity of making sculptures, tell students that they are going to draw stick figures. Pass out a piece of paper, and fold the paper in half and then in thirds so there are six folded squares on the paper.

For each square, students will draw different actions of a stick figure, in only 20 seconds. This activity is timed to help students to not be afraid to “mess up” and just draw what first comes to mind. This is a warm-up, and is a good reminder that art can be fun and light-hearted!

Go through the drawings with your students, and time each drawing so you go quickly.

Square 1: Stick figure standing Square 2: Stick figure running Square 3: Stick figure spinning Square 4: Stick figure that is sad Square 5: Stick figure that is happy Square 6: Any kind of stick figure you want!

After drawing, have students quickly share their drawings with a partner. Bring the class back together and ask these questions:

How can the simplest of stick figures convey emotion? How can a few lines in your stick figure show movement and action?

Main Activity

Tell students to turn their stick figure paper around, and practice drawing a stick figure of a dancer from The Nutcracker performance. Students can also refer to their reflections Handout 5 or Handout 2 of basic ballet steps.

After drawing a few figures, pass out pieces of foil and tell students that they are going to make their stick figure into a 3-dimensional foil sculpture. This sculpture style is modeled after the work of the famous artist, Alberto Giacometti.

Review Alberto Giacometti together. Giacometti was a Swiss sculpture who is known for his thin, tall figures made of bronze. Show a few pictures of Giacometti sculptures of people. Discuss how his figures were elongated, in a state of movement, and how the bronze was very textured.

View Images at this link: https://www.moma.org/artists/2141

Next, explain that their sculpture will be made of foil and, like Giacometti’s work, this material will look textured, elongated, and because it will be a dancer doing ballet, it will also show arm and leg movement.

Task: Create a foil sculpture in the style of Giacometti inspired from The Nutcracker Suite performance.

Pass out Handout 7: Sculpture Directions and demonstrate how the foil should be cut and then twisted to form a sculpting of a dancer in the position they envisioned from their stick figure. Place your model on a base which can be tag board, or card stock and either glue or tape it on base, as they will also do.

Give students between 15-20 minutes to create their sculpture. When done, give the student a piece of black cardstock and ask to glue or tape their figure to their cardstock. Have students sign and title their art piece on the cardstock.

Assessment Criteria:

• Students use what they learned about ballet to show a ballet step or movement in a piece of art. • Students followed the process of cutting and twisting the foil in order to successfully create the form of a dancer. • Students gave their art work a title.

Purpose: To use visual art as a means for students to demonstrate what they learned about ballet and reflect on The Nutcracker Suite performance.

NOTE: This activity was inspired from this site https://nurturestore.co.uk/giacometti-sculpture-art-project-for-kids

Student Reflection:

With student sculptures complete, ask students to explain the scene that their dancer sculpture represents from the performance on a large index card or piece of paper. Students can reflect on something about the story, music, movement, expression, etc. When complete, have students leave the index card in front of their art piece.

Optional: Have students do a quiet gallery walk around the classroom to view each other’s sculptures and what was written.