Dance

https://musicanddance.uoregon.edu/dance

Christian Cherry​, Department Head
169 Gerlinger Annex
541-346-5951
cerise@uoregon.edu

The goal of the department is to provide comprehensive dance training within the liberal arts framework of the university. The study of dance involves intellectual, artistic, and physical development. The Department of Dance emphasizes all three areas of growth, a commitment made possible by the breadth of its curricular offerings and the depth of faculty expertise. In addition to the academic components, dance students experience the rigorous professional discipline that is inherent in studio classes. The department explores diverse idioms in dance: African dance and drumming, ballet, contact improvisation, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, modern, partnering, and Salsa.

Regardless of a student’s career goals, education in dance at the University of Oregon provides the opportunity to develop motivation and self-discipline, intellectual curiosity, and creative imagination. These attributes are essential not only for a successful career but also for experiencing a fulfilling life.

Faculty

Christian Cherry, associate professor (music for dance, composition, contact improvisation); undergraduate director, music director. BA, 1983, Ohio Wesleyan; MM, 1993, Ohio State. (2001)

Patty Harrington Delaney, Professor, Head of Dance Department, BFA, 1978, Southern Methodist University, MFA, 1980, Southern Methodist University (2024)

Rita Honka, senior instructor II (African, modern, African diaspora and culture, anatomy, somatics). BS, 1989, Wayne State; MS, 1992, Oregon. (1993)

Habib Iddrisu, associate professor (West African music, African dance, performance). BA, 2002, MA, 2004, Bowling Green State; PhD, 2011, Northwestern. (2013)

Walter Kennedy, associate professor (modern and ballet, dance history, composition); BFA, 1996, California State, Long Beach; MFA, 1999, Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. (2000)

Shannon Mockli, associate professor (modern, contemporary, and ballet; improvisation, composition). BFA, 2003, Utah; MFA, 2008, Utah. (2008)

Florabelle Moses, instructor (ballet, Salsa and Bachata). B. Dance and Dance Education, Rubin Academy of Music and Dance, Israel (1991); MA in Dance, University of Oregon. (1993)

Amy Swanson, assistant professor (African Dance Aesthetics, Dance and Power, Contemporary Issues); BFA, 2008, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, MA 2015 Northwestern University, PhD 2019 Northwestern University (2024)

Hannah Victoria Thomas, assistant professor (hip hop, jazz, and contemporary technique, dance history and culture, composition), BA, 2016, Georgia College and State University; MFA, 2020, Arizona State University. (2021)

Emeriti

Steven Chatfield, professor emeritus. BA, 1975, MA, 1984, PhD, 1989, Colorado, Boulder. (1989)

Jenifer P. Craig, associate professor emerita. BA, 1971, MA, 1973, Oregon; PhD, 1982, Southern California. (1986)

Bruno V. Madrid, senior instructor emeritus. BMus, 1955, Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music; MMus, 1963, Oregon. (1966)

Susan Zadoff, senior instructor emerita. Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. (1976)

The date in parentheses at the end of each entry is the first year on the University of Oregon faculty.

Undergraduate