VERLETZLICH SCHÖN – Dance between elegance and risk. A study by Goethe University Frankfurt

Oldenburgisches Staatstheater

The film team from the German Dance Film Institute Bremen is accompanying a major research project by the scientific team from the Institute for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine at Goethe University Frankfurt, led by Prof Dr Dr Eileen Wanke. The strain placed on the bodies of professional dancers by daily rehearsals and performances is the subject of this dance medicine study.

The analyses of occupational movement patterns of dancers using modern kinematic methods/motion capture during training and rehearsals are supplemented by the analysis of the influence of different floors on the body. To this end, identical movement sequences with and without pointe shoes are performed on two different floors.

The study was conducted at the Staatstheater Oldenburg and the Theater Kiel, two theatres with outstanding classical companies.

Excerpts of the research results can be found in the film ‘Verletzlich schön – Tanz zwischen Eleganz und Risiko’.