At Hollins, dance majors learn to think of dance as a dynamic form, full of possibilities for growth and innovation. Members of the dance community are encouraged to discover, refine, and celebrate who they are as artists. The program offers outstanding technique classes and an eclectic visiting-artist roster. Opportunities to perform and craft are abundant.
Tracks
Bachelor of Arts and Fine Arts (B.A./B.F.A.)
The dance major program here is the first of its kind. It’s intended for students who wish to pursue professional careers as performers or educators.
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
The B.A. dance degree is for those interested in gaining a comprehensive background in dance. This degree allows students to engage in other fields of study along with dance.
Dance Minor
Students focus their time studying movement and the overall creative process. This minor requires about half the courses as the major.
Certificate in Arts Management
This certificate in arts management connects your major in one of the arts with career interests in various fields of arts management. You’ll take courses in business and communication studies, complete two internships in an area of arts management, and create a final project. You can meet the certificate in arts management requirements through prudent choices in your general education courses and electives without adding to your total credit hours. Contact us today to begin the process of earning your certificate in arts management.
Musical Theatre Performance Certificate
Musical theatre is one of the most exhilarating art forms on the planet. The unique combination of acting, singing, and dancing allows performing artists to carry audiences to extraordinary heights.
At Hollins, the musical theatre performance certificate offers a toolbox for the student who knows musical theatre will somehow be part of her future, as she prepares to walk into the spotlight on a stage she has built with her own tools.
Apprenticeships, internships, and independent studies
The January Short Term is an ideal time to gain practical experience in an area of special interest. During this time faculty and students develop special courses for an intensive month-long period of study. Past dance apprenticeships and internships include:
- Shen Wei Dance Arts (New York City)
- London Dance Umbrella (London)
- Ronald K. Brown (New York City)
- Brooklyn Academy of Music (New York City)
- American Dance Festival (New York City and Durham, N.C.)
- Harkness Center for Dance Injuries (New York City)
- Symphony Space (New York City)
- Movin’ Spirits Dance Theater, Marlies Yearby (New York City)
- Movement Research (New York City)
- Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company (New York City)
- P.S. 122 (New York City)
- Franklin Furnace (New York City)
- Improvisational Festival (Budapest, Hungary)
- National Dance Institute (New York City)
- DanceWorks Chicago (Chicago)
- Urbanity Dance (Chicago)
- Southwest Virginia Ballet (Roanoke)
In addition, dance students have undertaken independent study projects during January at the following sites:
- Kyoto, Japan Dance Intensive
- New York City Dance Intensive
- Alvin Ailey School January Intensive (New York City)
- American Dance Festival’s January Intensive (New York City)
- Modern Dance Intensive (Paris)
- Dance as a Window on Culture (Prague)
- Creative Landscapes (Japan)
Guest Artists in Residence
Visiting Assistant Professor and Assistant Director
Tara Masimer is a passionate dancer, creator, and educator. She is driven and curious within her research and collaborations about the effects and interplay which culture, heritage, history, and the human experience have on and with the body, the dance, and the performance. Masimer is originally from Colorado and eventually moved to New York City where she danced for seven years before moving to The Netherlands. She has lived, danced, and created for the past 12 years in Amsterdam and has had additional professional performance experiences outside The Netherlands in Norway, France, and Senegal (Africa). Alongside her performance career, Masimer has continually taught dance classes and workshops for the professional dance arts, commercial dance, amateurs at arts schools, higher education institutions, and dance centers such as Amsterdam Dance Center, NL. She taught for 10 years as guest faculty and faculty within the bachelor’s degree of dance programs at CODARTS School of the Arts in Rotterdam and at the Lucia Marthas Institute for Performing Arts in Amsterdam/Groningen. She has served as guest jury for dance performance and competitions in Portugal and Belgium. In 2018, Masimer completed her M.F.A. at Hollins (three-summer low residency program). In 2021, she was the creative director of a multi-cultural, interdisciplinary project, Culture Clash, NL; a project curated by Anthony Pinas, bringing together 36 dancers/movers from six different countries in a cultural exchange, to create and perform as a collective. From 2021 to 2022, Masimer performed in multiple dance/performance explorations with Electric Dub Station founded by Antonio Jose Guzman. The projects, in collaboration with Iva Jankovic, were fiber arts, storytelling, and movement interplay.
Visiting Guest Artist
Todd Rhoades is a performer, educator, and choreographer. He has his B.F.A. in dance from Point Park University and his M.F.A. in dance (choreography) from the University of Iowa. Todd danced professionally with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Pittsburgh Symphony/Pittsburgh Pops, Ballet Austin, Luna Negra Dance Theatre, The Seldoms, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Chicago Opera Theatre, the MUNY in St. Louis, the Goodman Theatre, the Paramount Theatre (Aurora, IL), the Marriott Theatre, and the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook. Choreographic credits seen onstage with The University of Michigan (theatre/opera/dance), The Theater School of DePaul University, the University of Iowa, Inaside Chicago Dance, Nomi Dance Theater, Dance in the Parks, Paramount Theatre, Lifeline Theater, Finger Lakes Opera/New York State Ballet, New Orleans Opera/New Orleans Ballet, and Des Moines Metro Opera. Todd has been on faculty at the University of Iowa Department of Dance, The Theater School of DePaul University, and Ballet Austin Academy. He has also been a guest instructor for Thodos Dance Chicago, Inaside Chicago Dance, ChiArts, Ballet Austin Academy, Southern Vermont Dance Festival, various dance competitions and academies, and the private pilates and yoga instructor for Cirque du Soleil’s cast of Luzía.
Artists/Companies in Residence
Since 1993 Hollins has hosted more than 100 dance professionals as artists-in-residence. These talented artists perform on campus, conduct master classes, and create new works for and with students.