From 23 to 30 April, the International Dance Day 2024 Series Event, hosted by Shanghai Theatre Academy and co-organized by the Dance College of Shanghai Theatre Academy and the journal "Contemporary Dance Art Research (Chinese-English Bilingual)", were successively carried out. The series event received special support from the International Theatre Institute and guidance from the China Dancers Association.
This marks the fourth time that Shanghai Theatre Academy has hosted the International Dance Day Series Event following the previous instances in years 2017, 2022, and 2023.
The theme for the International Dance Day 2024 Series Events was "Dance: A Rhythm of Transformations," which explored new pathways for dance in the aspects of media, identity, performance, creation, education and communication, especially in the context of the rapid development of artificial intelligence and digital technologies. Under the forward-looking perspective of "Future Theatre Studies" of Shanghai Theatre Academy, and through interdisciplinary, multi-perspective and diverse exchanges, the event discussed the discipline building and talent cultivation in "Future Dance Studies," clarified the contemporary social role and responsibility of dance, and helped people better cope with ever-changing issues of survival and development.
The opening ceremony of the International Dance Day 2024 Series Event was chaired by Zhang Weiling, the Deputy Party Secretary and Vice President of Shanghai Theatre Academy. The opening speech was delivered by Xie Wei, the Party Secretary of Shanghai Theatre Academy.
Other eminent figures who delivered speeches at the opening ceremony included Tobias Biancone, the Director-General of the International Theatre Institute; Wang Yan, the Chairman of the Shanghai International Dance Center Development Foundation and Head of the Shanghai Dance Troupe; Feng Shuangbai, the President of the China Dancers Association; and Luo Bin, the Secretary of the Party Branch and Full-time Vice President of the China Dancers Association.
During the five academic forums held from 29 to 30 April, fifty experts and scholars from the National Steering Committee for Graduate Education in Professional Art Degrees, as well as 25 higher education institutions and specialized troupes from home and abroad, exchanged views on the following topics:
1. Dance Identity and Recognition in the Age of All Media
2. Dance and Mediality: Ontology and Ethics of the Performative Body
3. Digital Technology and Dance
4. Discipline Construction and Talent Cultivation of "Future Dance Studies"
5. Challenges and Opportunities of Cross-Cultural Dance Practice
6. Social Responsibility and Public Expression of Dance
During the International Dance Day Series Event, Shanghai Theatre Academy also invited 11 dance artists and educators from home and abroad to hold workshops on dance performance, choreography, creative thinking, movement analysis and physical training.
As a leader in "Future Theatre Studies" as a cutting-edge conceptual framework in the discipline, Shanghai Theatre Academy actively promotes interdisciplinary research in dance art and constantly explores new educational models and talent cultivation mechanisms. This series event brought together outstanding experts and scholars from around the world, providing strong academic support for research in the field of dance art. At the same time, the academy pays close attention to its close connection with the industry and society, driving the integration of dance art with social culture and epochal changes, providing a broader space for the development of dance art, and injecting new vitality into the development of the discipline of dance.
