The Ohio State University Department of Dance is a community of diverse individuals trained on a common nexus of inquiry, the rich and complex phenomenon of dance. At the heart of the Ohio State Dance experience is the notion of embodied scholarship, embracing the intertwining areas of physical practice, creative activity and theoretical inquiry.
As one of the premiere dance programs in United States, the department is at the forefront of contemporary modern dance through choreographic and performance exploration, creative use of technologies and reimagining the documentation of dance traditions. Visiting artists and scholars enrich all dimensions of the program and regularly augment the resident faculty. The students also benefit from institutional relationships with Dance/USA, BalletMet Columbus, Movement Research, Inc., of New York City, OhioDance, growing exchange programs with universities and centers in Europe, Asia, Central and South America, and Africa, and the Dance Notation Bureau Extension housed in the department.
The department’s facilities in historic Sullivant Hall at the gateway of the university’s campus recently underwent a renovation, and the newly remodeled building was unveiled with a Grand Reopening Celebration in September 2014. The renovated facility features a state-of-the-art, flexible performance space in the center of the building, on the top floor. The roof was raised to provide natural light during the day and a dynamic black-box performance environment by night. In addition, the new space includes six studios, a costume shop and a media lab. New neighbors within the building include the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library, ACCAD and the Department of Arts Administration, Education and Policy. This new vantage provides an expansive view of the University’s evolving Arts District, which includes Mershon Auditorium and the Wexner Center for the Arts.
The Ohio State University is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Dance (NASD).
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
The Department of Dance recognizes a responsibility to build public understanding and appreciation of dance as a diverse creative, cultural, and educational expression. In pursuit of this goal, the department provides non-major dance classes and public performances, emphasizing contemporary work, for both the university community and the central Ohio region. A commitment to cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity is reflected throughout the curriculum and in recruitment of faculty, students and staff.
The Department of Dance defines “diversity” and “inclusion” broadly. Diversity refers to the variety of differences and similarities/dimensions among people, such as gender, race/ethnicity, tribal/indigenous origins, age, culture, generation, religion, class/caste, language, education, geography, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, work style, work experience, job role and function, thinking style and personality type. “Inclusion” refers to how diversity is leveraged to create a fair, equitable, healthy, and high-performing organization or community where all individuals are respected, feel engaged and motivated, and their contributions toward meeting organizational and societal goals are valued.
Social Justice
The Department of Dance bears witness to and shares in the pain of racism directed at Black lives. We want to add our voices, bodies and ideas to the national condemnation of the continued casual killings as we also turn inward, strengthening our commitment to anti-racist thought and action as a community.
Land Acknowledgement
The Ohio State University occupies the ancestral and contemporary lands of the Shawnee, Potawatomi, Delaware, Miami, Peoria, Seneca, Wyandotte, Ojibwe, and Cherokee peoples. The university resides on land ceded in the 1795 Treaty of Greeneville and the forced removal of tribal nations through the Indian Removal Act of 1830.