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Choreography as Ideology: Dance Heritage, Performance Politics, and the Former Yugoslavia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 July 2023

Filip Petkovski
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Abstract

In this article I discuss the process of choreographing “traditional” and “folk” dances in the former Yugoslavia, aligned with Yugoslav socialist ideologies that glorified the collective cultural authorship of the people, which allowed for these dances to adopt a new dimension as they took the form of a choreographed spectacle. I explain how Yugoslav choreographers utilized archival research to create a repertoire of choreographic representations of Yugoslav identity in constructing what I theorize as heritage choreography. Reflecting on how ideology moved the collective body of the Yugoslav people through choreographed works deemed as heritage, I broaden the understanding of choreographing that differs from Western concert dance practices. Furthermore, I provide alternative examples of dance making that are rooted in local understandings of spectacle, thereby enriching the conversation about what the act of choreographing entails.

Keywords

choreographydance heritageidentityideologynationalismYugoslavia
Type
Article
Information
Dance Research Journal , Volume 55 , Issue 1 , April 2023 , pp. 98 - 119
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Dance Studies Association

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References

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