The Department of Theatre and Dance encourages and promotes student-initiated and produced dance projects in addition to the Senior Thesis Showcase and the Choreography Showcase. The following policies and procedures have been developed to clarify the degree of department support available for student choreographed projects. These policies are reviewed annually and are subject to change. Proposals should be submitted to the dance faculty. Proposals are approved based on faculty review.
Student Works may be produced in the Studio Theatre and/or the Johnson Dance Studios or alternative sites. There are separate policies for each space. For use of Johnson Dance Studios see below. Also, please refer to Johnson Studio Theatre.
1. Scheduling. Dance faculty will post deadlines for student works applications every semester. Due to the extensive use of the dance studios, space for student works is limited. All studio rehearsal and performance times will be arranged on an individual basis for each faculty-approved project.
2. Funding. The department will provide printing for programs and 100 posters/flyers (see details below). Admission will not be charged.
3. Production Crew. The production crew for each student work will be identified by the student choreographer in the proposal. Production crews may include positions such as lighting coordinator, sound coordinator, house and stage management. The student choreographer must be enrolled in at least one credit of Independent Study in Dance (DANT 471-473). The student choreographer must have at least a 2.5 cumulative grade point average at the time the proposal is submitted. Student Choreographers must have successfully completed Choreography II or have permission of the Department Chair and Theatre and Dance faculty before they can be approved to direct a Student Work in Dance Production.
The department will announce a call for student works proposals in dance well in advance of the deadline to submit proposals. Once students express their interest, they will be assigned a faculty advisor to help them develop their proposals for the deadline.
When the student choreographer submits the production proposal, the proposal will NOT include a list of the students who will serve on the production team. After the proposal is approved for the season, the department faculty will solicit student applications for the positions of stage manager, assistant stage manager, scenic designer, lighting designer, etc. and then appoint students to the production team after consulting with the student choreographer.
The student choreographer and production crew will be responsible for all aspects of the production:
4. Supervision. Each student work will have two faculty advisors. The faculty advisors' job is to serve as consultants to the choreographer and production crew. The advisors shall:
5. Staging parameters.
The dance production crew is responsible for adhering to standard production procedures in the department, including:
The student choreographer and dance production crew will all read and sign a statement that they have read and understand the Safety and Security Manual of Winthrop's Department of Theatre and Dance.
The members of the cast and crew are also expected to behave in a professional and collegial way. This includes, but is not limited, to:
All students who participate in the theatre and dance program should recognize that it is a significant privilege to be granted an opportunity to produce in the Student Works Program. That privilege demands responsible, ethical action. Failure to follow the policies outlined here may result in individuals and/or groups being denied privileges to produce or participate in student works in the future and may result in disciplinary action.
Dance Productions student contract (127 KB)
View, download and print-out the student works proposal form (pdf - 40 KB).
View, download and print-out the calendar template for a student works production (pdf - 7 KB).