Lisa Winfield
Office
Mahaney Arts Center 204
Tel
(802) 443-5104
Email
lwinfield@middlebury.edu
Office Hours
Tuesday & Thursday: 12:30-1:30, Wednesday: 10:30-11:30 and by appointment - MAC 204

Lida Winfield is an innovative and accomplished dancer, choreographer, spoken word artist and educator; who has created original work merging storytelling, dance and visual art.  As an artist, educator and keynote presenter, she has performed and taught nationally and internationally in traditional and non-traditional environments from Bates Dance Festival to MindMingle in Malviya Nagar, New Delhi. Lida’s artistic practice is inextricably linked to her role as an educator and her pedagogy is rooted in inclusion, access, and the recognition that our brains and bodies work differently and this difference is a valuable asset. Lida cultivates opportunities and experiences that are deeply transformative. What transpires within the teaching and performing environment is integrated and transferred out into the world, allowing it to live beyond the confines of the classroom or stage.


Lida studied at The School for New Dance Development in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and in 2011 earned a Masters of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College in VT, with a focus on the transformative power of the expressive arts. In 2016, she was honored with the Rebecca Blunk Fund Award through New England Foundation for the Arts. Her work has received support from Vermont Arts Council, New England Foundation for the Arts and the National Performance Network and has been commissioned by The Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Middlebury Performing Arts Series, The Yard, and Jacob’s Pillow.

Courses Taught

Course Description

The Creative Process
In this course, students will have the opportunity to dig deeply into their own creativity and explore the processes by which ideas emerge and are given shape in the arts. The experiential nature of this course integrates cognition and action, mind and body. Students will engage a range of modes of discovering, knowing, and communicating, which are designed to push them beyond their present state of awareness and level of confidence in their creative power. Practical work will be closely accompanied by readings and journaling, culminating with the creation and performance of a short project. (First- and second-year students only; Not open to students who have taken FYSE 1364) 3 hrs. lect.

Terms Taught

Fall 2020, Spring 2021

Requirements

ART

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Introduction to Dance
This entry-level dance course introduces movement techniques, improvisation/composition, performance, experiential anatomy, and history of 20th century American modern dance. Students develop flexibility, strength, coordination, rhythm, and vocabulary in the modern idiom. Concepts of time, space, energy, and choreographic form are presented through improvisation and become the basis for a final choreographic project. Readings, research, and reflective and critical writing about dance performance round out the experience. 2 hrs. lect./3 hrs. lab

Terms Taught

Spring 2020

Requirements

ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Technique & Composition
This is the first course in the studio sequence for students entering Middlebury with significant previous dance experience. It is also the course sequence for those continuing on from DANC 0160 and provides grounding in the craft of modern dance needed to proceed to more advanced levels. Modern dance movement techniques are strengthened to support an emerging individual vocabulary and facility with composition. Students regularly create and revise movement studies that focus on the basic elements of choreography and the relationship of music and dance. Readings, journals, and formal critiques of video and live performance contribute to the exploration of dance aesthetics and develop critical expertise. (DANC 0160 or by approval based on previous experience) 3 hrs. lect./3 hrs. lab

Terms Taught

Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023

Requirements

ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Improvisational Practices
In this course students will gain an embodied understanding of the practices and techniques needed to proceed to advanced improvisational work. Research into forms such as partnering, ensemble work, text, musical exercises, compositions, and scores/projects will focus on mapping the moving body in the moment. Readings, journals, and responses to video viewings and live performances contribute to the exploration of historical contexts, aesthetics, and cultural improvisations. 3 hrs. lect./3 hrs. lab

Terms Taught

Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Spring 2024

Requirements

ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Body and Earth
This course is designed to bridge the relationship between the human body and the environment. The goals of the course are to deepen knowledge of physical faculties and sensory possibilities, heighten sensitivity to natural processes and forms in the Vermont bioregion, and engage awareness through the study of perception of and interaction with the non-human world. Learning modalities include analytical reading and formal writing assignments for the lecture section, place-based exploratory journaling, experiential movement-based practices, site-specific dance making, and regular field trips and outdoor activities during the lab section, culminating in final performative research projects.3 hrs. lect. 1 hr. lab.

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Fall 2020

Requirements

AMR, ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Children & the Arts: Teaching Movement & Arts Integration in the Classroom
This course will examine the integration of the arts and kinesthetic learning in elementary curriculum. Students will teach standards-based lessons that include the literary, dance, theater and visual arts. Activities will include art projects, sketch journals, reading assignments, and the exploration of community and teaching resources. Students will gain an understanding of the important role the arts integration and hands-on learning can play in the development and implementation of the curriculum.

Terms Taught

Winter 2022, Winter 2023

Requirements

ART, PE, WTR

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Dance Company of Middlebury
Dancers work with the artistic director and guest choreographer as a member of a dance company, learning, interpreting, rehearsing, and performing dances created for performance and tour. Those receiving credit can expect four to six rehearsals weekly. Appropriate written work, concert and film viewing, and attendance in departmental technique classes are required. One credit will be given for two terms of participation. Performances and tour(s) are scheduled in January. (Limited to sophomores through seniors, by audition.) (DANC 0260; Approval required)

Terms Taught

Fall 2023

Requirements

ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Dance Company of Middlebury
Dancers work with the artistic director and guest choreographers as part of a dance company, learning, interpreting, rehearsing, and performing repertory dances. Those receiving credit can expect daily rehearsals plus technique classes, campus performance, and tour. Appropriate written work is required. Auditions are held in the fall semester for the full year; one credit will be given for two semesters of participation. (Approval Required; limited to sophomores through seniors by audition)

Terms Taught

Winter 2024

Requirements

PE, WTR

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Intermediate/Advanced Dance IV: Advanced Dance Improvisation
Students will gain rigorous training in the simultaneous conception, composition, and performance of dance works. This will include units in techniques such as contact improvisation, performance improvisation, site specific work, musical collaboration, and elemental integration. The body will be developed as an articulate, responsive instrument while the mind is honed toward quick, clear perception of potential form with a willingness to act and react. Personal philosophy and dance aesthetics will be cultivated and formally articulated in writing. Musicians proficient with their instrument and interested in improvisation are strongly encouraged to seek admission. (DANC 0260, DANC 0261) 6 hrs lect.

Terms Taught

Spring 2022

Requirements

ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Technique Workshop
This advanced physical and theoretical study of a variety of movement techniques will further prepare dance majors and minors for the rigors of performance, technical craft, and physical research. Exercises and discussions will revolve around increased subtlety, strength, flexibility, musicality, and dynamics with the goal of heightening the communicative range of the moving body. Rotating movement aesthetics taught by dance faculty. (DANC 0260) (Major/Minor Only) (Approval required)

Terms Taught

Spring 2020, Spring 2022, Spring 2024

Requirements

ART, PE

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Independent Project
(Approval Required)

Terms Taught

Winter 2020, Spring 2020, Winter 2021, Spring 2021, Winter 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Winter 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Winter 2025, Spring 2025

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Independent Project
(Approval Required)

Terms Taught

Winter 2020, Spring 2020, Winter 2021, Spring 2021, Winter 2022, Spring 2022, Winter 2023, Spring 2023, Winter 2024, Spring 2024, Winter 2025, Spring 2025

View in Course Catalog

Course Description

Independent Project
(Approval Required)

Terms Taught

Winter 2020

View in Course Catalog