Artistic Conservatory of French Polynesia: the category of the Traditional Dance (Ori Tahiti)
The Artistic Conservatory of Tahiti contains 850 pupils in the traditional arts section that are:
Over the past decades, the practice of dance has been developed, generalized and, in other words, democratized. Using the body as a means of personal expression, dance became, with time, one of the first ways to convey Polynesian cultural identity, triggering not only recognition from the official authorities but also public enthusiasm. This enthusiasm can be found on each island, atoll and archipelago of our Fenua, and also all around the world: more than 6,000 foreign groups practice a form of Ori Tahiti, similarly to the Hula of the Hawaiian islands, considering Polynesia as a temple for traditional Polynesian dance. The decision to teach “Ori Tahiti” at the Artistic Conservatory of French Polynesia (Conservatoire Artistique de Polynésie Française) gives full recognition to this art form that is no longer considered to be “reserved to a frivolous elite”. Accompanying and demonstrating this clear revival, numerous are the traditional dance classes that attract thousands of children and adults, regardless of their ethnicity.
This questions how this art should be taught, as it involves technical as well as artistic knowledge.
Presentation, definitionTraditional dance is above all “interpretation”. It is undoubtedly linked to a certain period of time but it is also the reflection of a constantly evolving culture. Meeting the technical requirements based on the codification of dance steps and gestures, traditional dance also calls on the personality that it helps to reveal. It encourages creative movement and non-verbal communication. Traditional Polynesian dance transmits a direct relationship, almost primal, between men and nature, highlighting the cultural roots of individuals. It is a relationship with your body and the other’s body, and dance combines a group of gestures, following the fundamental rules of space, time and rhythm, marked by traditional percussions with which the dance, the dancer, male or female and the group, are intimately linked. Dance can be individual as well as collective. By collective dance we mean any form of structured dance, created or transmitted while learning, in which the moves and music are consistent and where the individuals that form part of the group are associated for a collective expression.
Dance classes in the ConservatoryDance is one of the means of expression that characterizes any human group. Considered to be the firstborn of the arts, it is the fulfillment of an irresistible impulse that satisfies our artistic sense as well as our need to move. Dance is an activity particularly suitable for children: it is a source of pleasure and brings joy from dancing together. It can be considered as an educational tool to favor the availability of our body, the enrichment of our movements, and to learn to structure space and time, to be integrated into a group, and even more importantly, to be open to traditional culture. Furthermore, the dance class, which includes a course for girls and a course for boys, aims to train professional dancers. It links the acquisition of knowledge to the mastering of techniques and the individual practice to the collective practice.
Content of the classesFirst cycle: Acquisition of general listening skills, identifying aural and body rhythms; reinforcement of body construction; an attempt to grasp the movement in relation with time, space and music; learning technical basics; small choreographed transitions;
Second cycle: Deepening the understanding of cycle 1 and addition of new dance steps and variations. Third cycle: Deepening and development of the knowledge already acquired; work on the repertoire and individual choreographic creation (theme, steps); developing endurance; Orero and general culture towards the end of the cycle. Fourth cycle: Similar to cycle 3 +:
|
Artistic Conservatory of French Polynesia
previous post
