Dance research wins international attention

A Chapman University student’s research poster titled “The Elephant in the Studio: Performance Anxiety in College Dancers” won a top award at the 20^th annual meeting of International Association of Dance Medicine and Science (IADMS) in Birmingham, England.

Chapman student Jenna Keiper, left, with Robin Kish, assistant professor of dance at Chapman.

Jenna Keiper ’10 was awarded the “Award for Contribution to Dance Medicine & Science,” for her research, which she completed as an undergraduate. Keiper was part of a Chapman University delegation that traveled to Birmingham this fall to attend the conference, hosted by the University of Wolverhampton and the Birmingham Royal Ballet.

The group was led by Robin Kish, assistant professor of dance, Department of Dance, College of Performing Arts. Other Chapman students attending included Elizabeth Nicks ’11 and Jacque Price ’11, who together presented their research poster “Sleep Patterns in Collegiate Dancers.” Their work was also well-received by conference researchers, who said the students may have found an important link to a major cause of injury among dancers.

The IADMS Board of Directors also voted to add Professor Kish to its full education committee.  Professor Kish’s work with the organization will be to study safety practices at dance competitions, with a particular interest in protecting the safety of dancers competing or working in the entertainment industry.

In addition, her paper “What happened to the left leg?” stirred up a lot of discussion regarding dominance and technique training practices.  Professor Kish was also able to introduce the world of lyrical/jazz dance to a mostly international audience that did not have a clear frame of reference for these dance forms, as much of the U.K. and Europe focus primarily on ballet and contemporary/modern dance.