As Sylvie Pinard writes in the preface, “This book aims to elucidate and expand the notion of presence in dance. Does the act of dancing always involve the concepts of kinesphere and dynamosphere, and to what degree? How does the invisible become embodied? How can it be made visible? This book attempts to answer these questions.”
Over the course of her career as a dancer and professor of contemporary dance, Sylvie Pinard has always been fascinated by the notion of stage presence. In her view, dance specialists—in contrast to those trained in the dramatic arts—have not paid sufficient attention to the expressive work of dancers; nor have they developed concrete approaches similar to those of Barba or Grotowski for theatre. Her impetus for writing this book stemmed from her observation that there are very few documents, particularly in French, on the development of expressivity among dance artists. The writings of Howard Gardner on multiple intelligences had a decisive influence on the way Pinard developed her teaching approach around the concepts of kinesphere and dynamosphere. Her book offers a comprehensive training program for dancers, based on a synthesis of her various discoveries and teaching approaches as both a Laban analyst and professor of performance.
A book by Sylvie Pinard
The launch of Sylvie Pinard’s book on November 30 was a huge success. Thank you to Manon Levac, performer and director of the Department of Dance at UQAM, who gave a heartfelt and inspiring talk about Sylvie Pinard’s work as a performer and teacher. Thank you as well to the large and enthusiastic audience. Thank you again to UQAM’s Department of Dance, which helped organize the event. And a special thank you to Sylvie Pinard, who spent more than four years writing the book. Her work is the legacy of a devoted and generous teacher who is eager to share her thoughts and experience with dance performers and instructors. Her “presence” at the launch was an inspiration in itself!
