Different Gender Stereotypes in Dance

Within this essay, I am going to be looking into the different stereotypes that are associated with both men and women in dance. I have done primary and secondary research to help me come to my conclusion and find out what other people think about a controversial topic that is still going round the arts today. I feel that it is important if we talk about these things as it means that other people who are not as informed on this topic can be educated and have a greater understanding of the issues that are going on today.

Stereotypes between Men and Women

There are many different views about men and women in dance and what people see as the "stereotypical dancer." For example, there are many people out there today who see males that should not be dancers or dancing is a job for women and not men. However, attitudes have changed now and it is becoming a lot more "acceptable" for men to pursue a career in dance. In fact, it is easier for males to get into the top conservatoires or into the top dance companies.

In addition, it is also seen that males are always the lifters when there is contact work between a male and a female dancer. This then makes audiences and other people think that women are not capable of lifting males and could potentially make them look weaker. I feel like this is a powerful picture as it challenges the views of males and females and how the roles can be reversed. The University of Oregan make a point of saying "to others it might be uncomfortable to see because it challenges the norms. Nevertheless, does that make it bad? Almost every new dance that enters the dance world challenges what the norm before." (University of Oregan, 2014)

The University of Oregan are firm believers of their being equality in the gender roles and making sure that people are educated in exactly what is happening in the arts world and wanting to break down those barriers that have been created.

For example, there are many pictures out there that show the male off as the stronger dancer and that it should be all males that are lifting the women and that is how it should stay. This can make the women feel uneasy about wanting to challenge those barriers so they just go with being lifted and having the man do all the harder work so to speak. It is pictures like this that demonstrates to audiences that the men always do the lifting. Why are there not as many pictures of it being the other way round and women having the opportunity to lift?

I personally feel that it should not be an issue if women are lifting the men and whether or not they are seen as breaking the "norms" of what is actually happening between male and female dancers today. If women have the strength and are willing to lift the men, then why do people have such an issue with it and see it as "abnormal."

Men and Women in Different Dance Styles

Within dance, many different styles have different expectations of the roles that the different genders must overcome or live up to. There have always been gender stereotypes and there are now more people breaking down the barriers and challenging the norms of today. This is a strong, bold thing to do especially within the arts. This is because there are so many set aspects in dance and for someone to challenge them really shows a sense of passion and courage.

Contemporary dance is a big influence in the changing of the views and breaking down the barriers that have formed through the years. For example, within classical dance it was always the males dancing with the females there was never same sex dancers dancing together, creating duets, or lifting. However, now more same sex couples are dancing together and creating beautiful pieces of work demonstrating how important it is for there to be a mixture of dancers. This demonstrates my first point about how people have to challenge those norms and create different "norms."

Within the Hip Hop genre, gender stereotypes are not portrayed through this as many dancers dance individually or in a group. Within hip-hop there is a major sense of equality due to the way that the genders are portrayed, what they wear and what it is that they do. For example, when dancing, the dancers are doing the exact same movement and there are no lifts, which determine the different roles between the dancers. In addition, the dancers are mainly wearing the same costumes/outfits and this enables there to be a sense of equality between the two genders.

Lastly, when looking into Contact Improvisation, Steve Paxton made it clear that the two genders will need to work together in order to work as best they can and have the best outcome that they possibly could. The University of Oregon explains, "Contact improv involves leaning your weight on the other person while the other person does the same. One person will move and the other would have to go off what that person does. The dance can include lifting each other with different parts of their body." (University of Oregon, 2014) The dancers have to rely and trust each other in order for the dance itself to run smoothly.

Each dance style is different due to the era it was formed in, the person who has created this style of dance etc. The era of the dance style is important because it determines the way it is and the therefore the reasoning for these specific gender roles. For example, take ballet. 1661 ballet was founded and was mainly seen as a female dance and it was unheard of for males to dance. This is why it is such a big thing for men to be dancing ballet and it is such a well-promoted style of dance for males.

Choreographers and Directors

When an individual goes to a prestigious dance college it becomes clear there are different expectations for males and females. For example, males are seen as individuals from the very start and there is no one that is able to do what they do besides them. Whereas, with females they are very quick to learn that they can be easily replaced and they are "lucky" to be where they are now if they are in this situation. This makes people feel as if they do not fit in where they are and become anxious about being themselves.

The Guardian preach that women are at a major disadvantage when it comes to becoming creative and being asked to come to the creative table so to speak. They have the responsibility of running dance schools and overseeing administrations; however, it is very rare if any of them become choreographic artists.

Janis Claxton, an Edinburgh choreographer exclaimed how "Women quit because they don't get the support that their male colleagues get, and having to push constantly against this outrageous gender inequality is infuriating." (The Guardian, 2013)

Female Choreographers

Jasmin Vardimon

Jasmin Vardimon is well known for her eccentric use of physical theatre within her pieces and her unique dance styles that enable you to see a different way of dancing and how her imagination works when she is choreographing her pieces."With sharp instincts and provocative daring, she has developed an individual choreographic voice, distinguished by her beautifully detailed movement, insightful humour and engaging drama." (Jasminvardimon.com, 2016) she had created works such as Pinocchio, Wounded by A0E and wear your wounds. These are just some of the pieces that Jasmin and her JV2 crew have created.

Jasmin has had a major influence on the younger generations of today and have enabled them to perform as a company cast and see what it is like to perform in such a professional company where you train a lot and you perform the works you have created to a paying audience.

Martha Graham

"She collaborated with and commissioned work from the leading visual artists, musicians, and designers of her day, including sculptor Isamu Noguchi and fashion designers Halston, Donna Karan, and Calvin Klein, as well as composers Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, William Schuman, Norman Dello Joio, and Gian Carlo Menotti." (MarthaGraham.org, 2015) Graham's techniques are studied round the world in schools, colleges and universities. She has been a major influence on the upcoming generations as well as the generations of today. She is known for her extraordinary ways of moving and the "awkward" angles and shapes that she creates with her body.

Not only has she influenced the younger generations, she has also influenced other choreographers and inspired them to take their own course of movement and use their creativity to make an impact on other practicing dancers. For example, she has influenced the likes of Merce Cunningham, Paul Taylor and Twyla Tharp. Every genre is eager to study the work of Graham as she has made such an impact in the dance world and people are constantly learning from her and her work.

Where is there Such a Divide?

For years, there has been a major divide in the way dancers, choreographers are perceived, and what their "roles" are within the dance world. The stereotypes are becoming a lot less now and more people are becoming open-minded and not letting these stereotypes decide what it is that they should do if they are part of this world. However, there is still a big division in the number of female choreographers to the number of male choreographers.

Women's ideas seem to be overlooked and they are not taken seriously when it comes to them coming to the creative side and actually making pieces of work. Men are seen as the creative and leading ones with in the dance world and therefore get the opportunities to create different pieces of work and show their work off to everyone.

What is this meant to make the generations of today think? Women are not meant to be choreographers and directors. This stereotype has now be formed due to the men to women ratio of directors. Both men and women should have equal chance to become the person they want to be within the performing arts sector. Not a lot of people will stand up to this and they will conform to what they think society wants them to do because that is all they know. It should not be this way because people should pursue their dream whatever that may be and whatever is in their way they should try to overcome that.

Questionnaire Analysis

When conducting my primary research I thought it would be interesting to find out what non-dancers and what dancers thought about the stereotypes in dance and to see whether they thought similar things. I began to think that some of their answers would be different due to the lack of knowledge about dance from the non-dancer group. I wanted to test if they would go by the stereotypes or if they would have their own opinion.

On each questionnaire, I asked the same five questions. They included:

• Do you think there are different stereotypes for men and women in dance?
• In dance, who do you associate the lifter to be?
• Do you think it is fair that smaller girls are lifted all the time?
• Do you think size matters?
• Do you think female choreographers/directors are at a disadvantage?

When analysing the "non-dancers" answers many of the answers are exactly what it thought they would be and many of them did go with the stereotype answer. For example, when asked if they thought there were different stereotypes for men and women 3 out of the 4 people who answered all said no because everyone is equal. Whereas, when the "dancers" were asked 3 out of the 4 who answered replied with yes there are different stereotypes.

In addition, when asked whom you would associate with the lifter, from dancers and non-dancers; majority said it would be the male and many of their reasoning was because they were stronger and they were bigger. One answer that I was shocked about was, "does size matter in dance?" All the dancers that answered agreed that it does not matter about your size and you can dance whatever size you are. Whereas, for the non-dancers it was 50-50 split and 2 out of the 4 said that it did matter about your size. If I were to do this questionnaire again, I would ask the people who did say yes, why they think size matters and what would happen if a larger person danced? How would it make them feel or what effect would it have?

Lastly, due to my work being based on stereotypes and the different roles between males and females I asked whether people thought female choreographers/directors were at a disadvantage. Everybody, besides one person said no they were not at a disadvantage. This demonstrates how little people know about the role of women in the directory and creativity sector of dance. This is because women are at a disadvantage in this sector and men are overruling women here.

In conclusion, I have learnt that there are always going to be stereotypes and you are never going to be able to get away from those. However, the best thing that you are going to be able to do is be yourself and know what it is that you want. You then have to go out into that world and fight for what you want and earn your place. Whether you are male or female, you have a right to earn your place in what it is that you want and you go out and get that!