The Audience Study of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Alexandra K.

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The Audience Study of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

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Alvin Ailey, Dance, Theater

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Abstract

The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater company was found in 1958 by an African American ‘'dancer, choreographer and visionary'' named Alvin Ailey (https://www.facebook.com/AlvinAileyAmericanDanceTheater/info). Ailey vision was to establish a multi-racial dance center where internationally renowned choreographers and dancers would constitute it (https://www.facebook.com/AlvinAileyAmericanDanceTheater/info). Nowadays, the Alvin Ailey's dance company, which in 2008 was designated by a US Congressional resolution as ‘'a vital American cultural ambassador to the world'' (http://www.alvinailey.org/about) keeps up with the universal character running a variety of anti-discrimination activities, such as dance performances and shows, classes and workshops in a worldwide range.

As the concept of a dance company is wide, including among other activities the live performances, the broadcasting's, the dance classes offered to any out of the company interested to learn and the supplied products sold from the shop company, it is decided to narrow down the study in one performing show of the Alvin Ailey's American Dance Theater company, the Masekela Langage (http://vimeo.com/10185603). The selection of the specific show was chosen in virtue of its strong context as it presents a temporal, abiding context, a ‘' commanding choreography'' that ‘'speaks of passivity, militancy, despair and defiance anywhere, at any time'' (http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/masekela-langage). Ailey reflects in it his background as an African child within a ‘white' environment as the United States was dealing with the economic Great Depression (http://www.answers.com/topic/alvin-ailey), making it even harder to survive in a hostile land that encouraged any kind of discrimination, injustice and harassment.

Introduction
Alvin Ailey: The Case
The Alvin Ailey Audience
Theories and Methods
1. The Postcolonial Theory
2. Communication for Social change: Entertainment-Education (EE)
3. The Method of Qualitative Interview
The Audience Study Plan
1. Proceeding a Qualitative interview
2. The Interview
Conclusion

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[...] There are many challenges regarding an audience of such a case. One of the main difficulties to be confronted if the research would not remain in a hypothetical ground it would be the time boundary. As the audience covers a global range, it would be either very costly and time consuming to include all the nationalities or it would be necessary to reduce the sample of the nationalities taking part in the research. Another assumption that could turn into a great challenge would be the fact that dance show audiences are usually people with higher education hence of a mid-upper social class. [...]

[...] The given dance shows around the continents are followed by great success spreading the message of the company's founder among nations. Thus, what we expect to conclude after conducting the research in the real world would be an inspiring tendency of the audience to become more aware and active in issues of discrimination. That would give a positive thrust to the position of the performing arts in enlightening and initiate nations with respect so to considering them as an international, common language to educate the world References: • Camelia Elias, The Way of the Sign • Mohan J. [...]

[...] The first question is more general directed. The aim of that fact is to test if the multinational identity of the dancers was one of the most noticed elements of the show the audience observed. By asking the informer to express his/her impression we aim to elicit if the nationality of the dancers had a positive, a negative affect or if it was a non noticeable factor of the first contact. If the nationality was noticed either in a positive or negative way that could be interpreted as dealing with an audience that in any case is not familiar with nations different than the one it belongs to. [...]

[...] However the expectation of the findings always exists. According to past results the EE theory has proved that gaining knowledge through entertainment becomes more and more popular to the fields of education and science. A significant example is the one of the Nicaraguan telenovela El Sexto Sentido. It is the case of the Puntos de Encuentro Nicaraguan NGO that through the projection of this telenovela it succeeded to bring forward ‘' a broad range of social issues on the agenda for large youth populations in Nicaragua'' (Thomas Tufte, Entertainment-Education in Development Communication, 2005: 166). [...]

[...] The Audience Study Plan Proceeding a Qualitative interview In order to proceed in the Alvin Ailey audience study of the Masekela Langage show it will be chosen an interviewing sample. The sample will be chosen among the audience of the Masekela Langage show. It will be preferred to choose informants of different nationalities as the research is decided to handle with ecumenical issue and examine the affect of a performing show in a global range. The age of the informants would be from 21 to 44 years old. [...]

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