Five College Dance Department

FCDD MISSION The Five College Dance Department is a collaboration of the dance departments and programs from Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke, Smith Colleges and the University of Massachusetts. This collaboration is founded on a commitment to honor, respect and support the individual perspectives on dance characteristic of each campus. Together our educational and artistic mission is to champion the imaginative, expressive powers of human movement. Our curriculum emphasizes in-depth study of a broad spectrum of dance as an art form, including technical, creative, historical, cultural and scientific study. Students are encouraged to balance performance and creative studies with a broad understanding of the historical and cultural contexts of different dance traditions. They may shape their major studies in either traditional or interdisciplinary ways, reflecting the wide range of career options and new directions of the contemporary field.

Curricula - The Department develops curricula for these populations: For dance majors our curricula provide anatomically sound dance technique training; study and practice of choreography and performance; development of aesthetic and analytical skills; and an understanding of the cultural and educational contexts within which dance occurs. For the BA students our curricula integrate dance as a vital part of liberal arts studies.

For the BFA students at the University the curriculum provides pre-professional training in dance. For the MFA students at Smith College the curriculum provides graduate level training in choreography, performance, and teaching. For non-dance majors the curriculum provides a full range of theoretical and applied courses in dance as well as production experience. All five schools--Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke and Smith colleges, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst--offer either a BA in dance, dance/theater or a dance concentration. The University also offers a BFA and Smith offers an MFA. Graduate students and undergraduate majors or those who develop a concentration in dance, may take courses and study with the dance faculty on the five different campuses. The degree, however, is awarded by the student's home campus.