Choreographing an original piece means making deliberate decisions about the elements of dance — the body (what parts move and how), space (level, direction, pathway), time (tempo, rhythm, duration) and energy/dynamics (how forcefully or gently a movement is performed) — and how these elements combine to communicate an idea, story or feeling. A choreographic structure (like a clear beginning, development and resolution, or a more repetitive, cyclical structure) gives a piece coherence, while devices like repetition, canon (performers repeating a movement at staggered intervals) and unison (all performers moving identically together) can be used deliberately to build meaning, emphasis or visual interest.
Example
A piece exploring the idea of individual versus community might use unison (all dancers moving identically) to represent collective belonging, then break into contrasting individual movement to represent a dancer's personal journey diverging from the group — before returning to unison to represent eventual reconciliation, using the specific choreographic structure itself to reflect and reinforce the piece's underlying theme.
Key terms
Choreographic structure:
The overall organisation of a dance piece, like beginning-development-resolution or a cyclical structure.
Unison:
All performers moving identically together at the same time.
Questions
1. The elements of dance include:
Body, space, time and energy/dynamics
Only costume colour, with nothing else
A single fixed movement with no variation
Only music, with no movement involved
2. Unison in dance means:
All performers moving identically together
Each performer moving in a completely different, unrelated way
A single performer dancing entirely alone
A type of costume design
3. Canon in dance means:
Performers repeating a movement at staggered intervals
All performers moving in perfect unison always
A type of musical instrument only
Something unrelated to choreography
4. A choreographic structure provides a piece with:
Coherence and organisation
No organisation of any kind
A completely random, unplanned sequence
Something unrelated to how a piece is organised
5. Dynamics in dance refers to:
How forcefully or gently a movement is performed
Only the venue where a dance is performed
A type of costume material
Something unrelated to how a movement is executed
6. Choreographic devices like repetition can be used to:
Build meaning, emphasis or visual interest
Have no effect on a piece's meaning
Only ever confuse an audience with no purpose
Remove all structure from a piece
7. The "space" element of dance includes considerations like:
Level, direction and pathway
Only the colour of the stage floor
Nothing related to movement or positioning
Only the audience's seating arrangement
8. Why might a choreographer use unison movement specifically to represent a theme like collective identity or belonging?
Dancers moving identically together can visually embody the idea of a unified group, directly reflecting the theme through the movement itself
Unison movement has no connection to any thematic idea a choreographer might want to communicate
Only individual, contrasting movement can ever effectively communicate a thematic idea in dance
The specific choreographic device used has no bearing on how effectively a theme is communicated to an audience
9. Why might a choreographer deliberately break from unison into contrasting individual movement partway through a piece?
It can represent a shift in the piece's narrative or theme, like individual expression diverging from a collective group
Breaking from unison always has no meaningful connection to a piece's narrative or theme
A choreographic piece should always maintain unison movement throughout with no possible variation
Contrasting individual movement never actually serves any deliberate choreographic purpose
10. Why might varying dynamics (from forceful, sharp movement to soft, gentle movement) within a single piece help communicate a range of emotional states?
Dynamic quality itself carries emotional and expressive meaning, so varying it can shift the felt tone of a piece independent of the specific steps being performed
Dynamics in dance have no connection to how a piece is emotionally experienced by an audience
A single, unchanging dynamic quality always communicates a fuller emotional range than varying it would
The specific dynamic quality of a movement never actually affects how it is emotionally interpreted
11. Why might using canon (performers repeating the same movement at staggered intervals) create a different visual and emotional effect than the same movement performed entirely in unison?
The staggered timing creates a rippling, cascading visual effect and can suggest ideas like connection over time or a delayed reaction, distinct from the simultaneous impact of unison
Canon and unison always produce exactly identical visual and emotional effects with no meaningful distinction
Staggering the timing of a repeated movement has no bearing on how it is visually or emotionally experienced
Canon is simply a technical error in timing, never a deliberate choreographic device
12. Why might a choreographer use contrasting tempo (fast versus slow sections) within a single piece to help shape its overall emotional arc?
Shifting tempo can build or release tension and signal transitions between different emotional states, similar to how pacing functions in music or storytelling
Tempo within a choreographic piece never actually has any bearing on its emotional arc or overall structure
A piece performed at a single, unchanging tempo throughout always communicates a stronger emotional arc than one with tempo variation
Contrasting tempo sections within a piece serve no genuine expressive or structural purpose in choreography
13. Why might a choreographer choose to repeat a specific movement phrase with slight variations each time, rather than repeating it in an identical way every time?
Subtle variation on repetition can develop and deepen an idea while still maintaining a sense of familiarity and connection to the original motif
Repeating a movement phrase with slight variation always produces a less coherent and less effective piece than exact repetition
Variation on a repeated movement phrase serves no genuine choreographic purpose beyond exact, unchanging repetition
A choreographic motif must always be repeated in a completely identical way every single time it recurs within a piece
14. Why might a choreographic structure with a clear beginning, development and resolution help an audience follow a piece's narrative or emotional arc, compared to a completely unstructured sequence of movements?
A defined structure provides a recognisable shape that guides audience expectation and understanding, similar to how a story's structure supports a reader following its plot
A completely unstructured sequence of movements always communicates a narrative or emotional arc more clearly than a defined structure would
Choreographic structure has no genuine connection to how an audience follows or understands a dance piece
Audiences are always equally able to follow a piece's meaning regardless of whether it has any defined structure
15. Why might a choreographer's choice of level (movement close to the floor versus movement reaching upward) be a deliberate expressive decision, not just a practical one?
Different levels can carry symbolic or emotional associations (like groundedness versus aspiration or freedom), making level a genuine expressive choice alongside its practical function
The level at which a movement is performed is always a purely practical decision with no possible expressive or symbolic meaning
Level has no genuine connection to how a movement might be interpreted emotionally or symbolically by an audience
Choreographers never actually make deliberate choices about the level at which a movement is performed
16. Why might a cyclical choreographic structure (returning to an opening movement motif at the end) be used deliberately, rather than a piece simply ending wherever the movement naturally stops?
Returning to an earlier motif can create a sense of closure, reflection or thematic resonance, deliberately connecting the end of a piece back to its beginning
A cyclical structure returning to an opening motif never actually serves any deliberate choreographic or thematic purpose
A piece ending wherever movement happens to naturally stop always creates an equally strong sense of closure as a deliberate cyclical structure
The specific structural choice a choreographer makes has no bearing on how a piece's ending is experienced by an audience
17. Why might a choreographer need to consider how their piece will be experienced from multiple different audience viewing angles, particularly in an in-the-round or non-traditional performance space?
Spatial choices that read clearly from one angle might look completely different or less effective from another, so choreographing for a non-traditional space requires considering the whole audience perspective
A choreographic piece is always experienced identically regardless of which angle or position an audience member is viewing it from
Performance space and audience viewing angle have no genuine bearing on how choreographic choices should be made
Non-traditional, in-the-round performance spaces never actually require any different choreographic consideration than a traditional stage
18. Why might a choreographer deliberately leave moments of stillness or pause within a piece, rather than filling every moment with continuous movement?
Stillness can create contrast that draws attention to surrounding movement, and can itself carry meaning or tension, similar to how a pause functions in speech or music
Stillness within a choreographic piece never actually carries any meaning or serves any deliberate purpose
A piece filled with continuous, unbroken movement always communicates more effectively than one including deliberate pauses
Moments of stillness in dance have no genuine connection to how contrast or emphasis is created within a piece
19. Why might a choreographer working with a larger ensemble need to consider how individual dancers relate spatially to each other as a group, not just each dancer's individual movement?
Group formations, spacing and how dancers relate to one another can themselves communicate meaning (like unity, isolation or hierarchy), adding a layer beyond what any single dancer's movement alone conveys
The spatial relationships between dancers in a group have no genuine bearing on what a choreographic piece communicates to an audience
Individual dancer movement always fully determines a piece's meaning, regardless of how the group is spatially arranged
Group formations and spacing within an ensemble piece are always a purely practical consideration with no expressive purpose
20. Why might a choreographer's decision about which dancer or section of the stage draws the audience's primary focus at a given moment (focal point) be considered a deliberate compositional choice, similar to composition in visual art?
Just as a painter guides a viewer's eye through composition, a choreographer can guide audience attention through contrast, positioning or movement, shaping what an audience prioritises watching at any given moment
Where an audience's attention is drawn during a choreographic piece is always completely random and has no connection to any deliberate compositional choice
Focal point and audience attention have no genuine relationship to compositional principles used in other visual art forms
A choreographer has no meaningful ability to influence or guide where an audience's attention is focused during a performance
21. Understanding choreography and dance composition mainly helps you to:
Use the elements and devices of dance deliberately to structure a piece and communicate meaning
Assume choreographic choices have no connection to how a piece communicates its intended meaning
Ignore the difference between unison and canon as distinct choreographic devices
Treat choreographic structure as unrelated to how clearly an audience can follow a piece
Answer key (parent copy)
1. Body, space, time and energy/dynamics
2. All performers moving identically together
3. Performers repeating a movement at staggered intervals
4. Coherence and organisation
5. How forcefully or gently a movement is performed
6. Build meaning, emphasis or visual interest
7. Level, direction and pathway
8. Dancers moving identically together can visually embody the idea of a unified group, directly reflecting the theme through the movement itself
9. It can represent a shift in the piece's narrative or theme, like individual expression diverging from a collective group
10. Dynamic quality itself carries emotional and expressive meaning, so varying it can shift the felt tone of a piece independent of the specific steps being performed
11. The staggered timing creates a rippling, cascading visual effect and can suggest ideas like connection over time or a delayed reaction, distinct from the simultaneous impact of unison
12. Shifting tempo can build or release tension and signal transitions between different emotional states, similar to how pacing functions in music or storytelling
13. Subtle variation on repetition can develop and deepen an idea while still maintaining a sense of familiarity and connection to the original motif
14. A defined structure provides a recognisable shape that guides audience expectation and understanding, similar to how a story's structure supports a reader following its plot
15. Different levels can carry symbolic or emotional associations (like groundedness versus aspiration or freedom), making level a genuine expressive choice alongside its practical function
16. Returning to an earlier motif can create a sense of closure, reflection or thematic resonance, deliberately connecting the end of a piece back to its beginning
17. Spatial choices that read clearly from one angle might look completely different or less effective from another, so choreographing for a non-traditional space requires considering the whole audience perspective
18. Stillness can create contrast that draws attention to surrounding movement, and can itself carry meaning or tension, similar to how a pause functions in speech or music
19. Group formations, spacing and how dancers relate to one another can themselves communicate meaning (like unity, isolation or hierarchy), adding a layer beyond what any single dancer's movement alone conveys
20. Just as a painter guides a viewer's eye through composition, a choreographer can guide audience attention through contrast, positioning or movement, shaping what an audience prioritises watching at any given moment
21. Use the elements and devices of dance deliberately to structure a piece and communicate meaning