Dance as a media
Some of the earliest forms of social media were not Facebook, newspapers of broadcasting but the simpler ways of communication such as poetry and art. Because of the technology and digital boom over the last century or so, these older forms of media are often forgotten. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word media means "a medium of cultivation, conveyance, or expression,” as well a form of communication. So let’s explore a form of media that we don’t often think of nowadays, dance, a form of media that has been part of our culture since the early days of humanity.
Preforming arts is not the clearest form of media but a lot of the criteria that Henry Jenkins sets for online media making and participation still applies to dancers. Dance is a way to express one’s emotions and ideas just as well as taking photographs or writing blogs, it’s simply a little more abstract. It demonstrates affiliations and is a form of artistic expression, and furthermore it was central to inventing participatory culture itself. It is simply a different modality.
Dance, like any other form of media, provides the platform to make a statement and its capability to be a from of media in this way is perfectly demonstrated by the performance of the Georgian National Ballet in Kiev in early March. They ended their tour in Ukraine amidst the current political unrest with a special program tailored to show their support to Ukrainians by incorporating the Ukrainian flag as well as an Ukrainian dance in the program. The performance send a clear message to the audience and they certainly seemed to understand as they exuberantly applauded.
Preforming arts is not the clearest form of media but a lot of the criteria that Henry Jenkins sets for online media making and participation still applies to dancers. Dance is a way to express one’s emotions and ideas just as well as taking photographs or writing blogs, it’s simply a little more abstract. It demonstrates affiliations and is a form of artistic expression, and furthermore it was central to inventing participatory culture itself. It is simply a different modality.
Dance, like any other form of media, provides the platform to make a statement and its capability to be a from of media in this way is perfectly demonstrated by the performance of the Georgian National Ballet in Kiev in early March. They ended their tour in Ukraine amidst the current political unrest with a special program tailored to show their support to Ukrainians by incorporating the Ukrainian flag as well as an Ukrainian dance in the program. The performance send a clear message to the audience and they certainly seemed to understand as they exuberantly applauded.