Thursday, October 8, 2009

Study Abroad in Italy

This post was written by current senior and dance major Allie Bruehlman.

This past spring I studied at the Accademia dell'Arte in Arezzo, Italy. The program is housed in a beautiful sixteenth-century villa amdist olive groves and wineries on the outskirts of the city. For four months I was lucky enough to eat, sleep, breathe, dance, and learn with thirty-six other students in this picturesque Tuscan locale. The Accademia's dance curriculum focused on teaching Western technical forms such as ballet and modern alongside the rich movement traditions of Italian tarantella. These classes in tarantella were especially enlightening and enjoyable because they unveiled parts of the Italian identity that I would never have seen through mere tourism. As the semester wore on, as I travelled more, as I learned to truly speak the language, I grew to love Italy not only for its food and its history but also for its culture and its people. I am so happy to have had the opportunity to travel with my love of dance into a new setting and to see the power that movement can have both on and off stage, both at home and abroad.

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