![Sample our Education journals, sign in here to start your access, latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5932/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Education.jpg"})
Abstract
The 2010–2012 Christchurch (Canterbury) earthquakes in New Zealand caused loss of life and psychological distress in residents throughout the region. In 2011, student dancers of the Hagley Dance Company and dance professionals choreographed the performance Move: A Seismic Journey for the Christchurch Body Festival that explored concepts of earthquake processes and human experiences. Choreographic design was assisted by a professional earthquake scientist and used human movement to represent seismologic and geologic processes, building response, collapse and demolition, and earthquake-induced psychological experiences. Performance reviews indicate the production was beneficial for audience earthquake recovery. Post-performance surveys of dancers and choreographers provide information on the educational and therapeutic benefits relating to their respective involvements in this project, qualitatively assessed in terms of recovery elements (hope, healing, empowerment, and connection) and quantitatively measured using a ‘Recovery Index’. Involvement in this production was beneficial in assisting with earthquake recovery for both dancers and choreographers. Dancers rated their recovery higher than choreographers, which we attribute to the greater level of total immersion in the performance including participation in earthquake lectures. Christchurch-resident participants rated their personal assessment of recovery higher than non-residents. This study highlights how integrating dance with science can assist in recovery from natural disasters.
Acknowledgements
We thank psychologist Signe Uldall Wiingaard, social scientist Ann Winstanley, and teacher Maryliz Quigley for constructive criticisms of this paper. We thank the dancers and choreographers of the Hagley Dance Company for sharing their thoughts with us in the surveys and via comments. The New Zealand Earthquake Commission is gratefully acknowledged for their financial support of this research. MQ’s research time was also partially supported by NZ Ministry of Science and Innovation grant # PROP-29341-HASTR-ESR. The Christchurch Body Festival is acknowledged for their support of this production. Brainstorming sessions were commonly held at the University of Canterbury Kaikoura and Westport Field Stations. The University of Canterbury Ethics Committee approved this study under application # 2013/44/LR-PS. Instructive comments from anonymous reviewers helped us to improve this manuscript.