Lisa Sandlos
Lisa Sandlos has taught in the School of Kinesiology and Department of Dance at York University in Toronto since 1998. Her research focuses on the impacts of sexualization of young female dancers, on public perceptions of dance and on girls’ psychological and social development. Working through organizations including the National Ballet of Canada, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Royal Conservatory of Music, Sandlos has taught modern dance and creative movement to all ages/levels. Her qualification as a Certified Movement Analyst (CMA) through the Laban Institute of Movement Studies (LIMS) equips her to work with individuals and groups with diverse needs and interests.
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Papers by Lisa Sandlos
an interdisciplinary collaboration between
Rennie Tang and Lisa Sandlos, as part of
their participation in the ‘Scoring the City’
workshop, organised by Theatrum Mundi
in December 2019 in Paris. This piece was
initially published on Scoring the City.
my current research in which I investigate how young female
dancers are culturally and socially constructed as hypersexualized
bodies in the world of competitive dance in Canada and the United
States. By applying feminist research methodologies and utilizing
methods of interviewing, participant/observation fieldwork, and
dance/movement observation, I analyze the studio lives and onstage
performances of girl dancers and the trend towards displaying
6.
Shimmy, Shake or Shudder?
lisa sandlos
Behind-the-Scenes Performances
of Competitive Dance Moms
lisa sandlos
100
them as moving sex objects. In this paper, I theorize the complex
and central roles that dance mothers tend to play in mediating the
onslaught of messages their daughters often receive about female
sexuality while training in dance studio settings. Although we
dance mothers remain backstage as our children perform in the
spotlight, I suggest that our own daily-life performances tend to
be normatively gendered and sexualized as well.
Though my aim had been to compare our different experiences and approaches, my discussion with four women who are actively involved in assessing the dance of others revealed that we share a vision for how we would like to see assessment evolve in the future. Carina Bomers is a teacher at Canada’s National Ballet School (NBS). She heads the Dancers’ Clinic where she works in conjunction with physiotherapists. In addition to teaching students within the school, she serves on the school’s cross-country audition tours and is a Cecchetti examiner. Meaghan Giusti is the owner of Broadway Arts Centre, a dance studio in Toronto. In addition to assessing students in a studio setting, she has been an adjudicator at dance competitions and served on George Brown College’s dance program admissions committee. Cheryl LaFrance, a PhD candidate at York University, is an educational consultant who has worked for eight years with the Dance Department at York to create degree-level expectations for the program and rubrics for studio and theoretical classes. Finally, Heather Saum is a high school dance teacher in the Toronto District School Board, working with students from grades nine through twelve.
an interdisciplinary collaboration between
Rennie Tang and Lisa Sandlos, as part of
their participation in the ‘Scoring the City’
workshop, organised by Theatrum Mundi
in December 2019 in Paris. This piece was
initially published on Scoring the City.
my current research in which I investigate how young female
dancers are culturally and socially constructed as hypersexualized
bodies in the world of competitive dance in Canada and the United
States. By applying feminist research methodologies and utilizing
methods of interviewing, participant/observation fieldwork, and
dance/movement observation, I analyze the studio lives and onstage
performances of girl dancers and the trend towards displaying
6.
Shimmy, Shake or Shudder?
lisa sandlos
Behind-the-Scenes Performances
of Competitive Dance Moms
lisa sandlos
100
them as moving sex objects. In this paper, I theorize the complex
and central roles that dance mothers tend to play in mediating the
onslaught of messages their daughters often receive about female
sexuality while training in dance studio settings. Although we
dance mothers remain backstage as our children perform in the
spotlight, I suggest that our own daily-life performances tend to
be normatively gendered and sexualized as well.
Though my aim had been to compare our different experiences and approaches, my discussion with four women who are actively involved in assessing the dance of others revealed that we share a vision for how we would like to see assessment evolve in the future. Carina Bomers is a teacher at Canada’s National Ballet School (NBS). She heads the Dancers’ Clinic where she works in conjunction with physiotherapists. In addition to teaching students within the school, she serves on the school’s cross-country audition tours and is a Cecchetti examiner. Meaghan Giusti is the owner of Broadway Arts Centre, a dance studio in Toronto. In addition to assessing students in a studio setting, she has been an adjudicator at dance competitions and served on George Brown College’s dance program admissions committee. Cheryl LaFrance, a PhD candidate at York University, is an educational consultant who has worked for eight years with the Dance Department at York to create degree-level expectations for the program and rubrics for studio and theoretical classes. Finally, Heather Saum is a high school dance teacher in the Toronto District School Board, working with students from grades nine through twelve.