Banca de DEFESA: MICHAEL DOUGLAS DE SOUSA ALVES

Uma banca de DEFESA de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : MICHAEL DOUGLAS DE SOUSA ALVES
DATE: 18/06/2026
TIME: 18:00
LOCAL: Departamento de Artes da UFRN
TITLE:

POETICS OF THE ANXIOUS BODY:
A Somatic-Performative Investigation in Contemporary Dance

 

KEY WORDS:

Contemporary dance; Anxiety; Somatic education; Somatic-performative research; Choreographic creation; Crip Theory.

PAGES: 112
BIG AREA: Lingüística, Letras e Artes
AREA: Artes
SUMMARY:

This dissertation investigates a choreographic creative process based on involuntary movements associated with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), understanding such bodily manifestations not merely as pathological responses, but as potential expressive resources for contemporary dance. The study aims to reframe these spontaneous movements by transforming them into artistic material through somatic and performative practices, including the development of choreographic scores, thereby expanding the poetic and aesthetic possibilities of the body on stage. The research is grounded in the principles of somatic education, with particular emphasis on Eutony and the Laban/Bartenieff Movement System, articulated through Somatic-Performative Research, as proposed by Ciane Fernandes, in which the body is conceived simultaneously as author, object, and medium of inquiry. The methodological process included practical workshops with volunteers experiencing anxiety-related conditions, conducted with the support of a psychology professional in order to ensure ethical care and safety throughout the experimentation. These embodied experiences enabled the observation, attentive listening, and conscious elaboration of somatic responses associated with anxiety, which were then transformed into movement scores for choreographic creation. The theoretical framework also engages with Crip Theory, particularly through the contributions of Robert McRuer and Christine Greiner, challenging bodily normativities and recognizing bodies regarded as dissonant as creative forces. As its contribution, this research proposes new ways of understanding the relationship between anxiety, the body, and art, demonstrating that pathologized emotional states can be reconfigured as generative devices for dance creation, thereby broadening the field of the performing arts and strengthening interdisciplinary dialogue among dance, mental health, and body studies.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 1164369 - LARISSA KELLY DE OLIVEIRA MARQUES
Interno - 1958705 - MARCILIO DE SOUZA VIEIRA
Externa à Instituição - ANA CLAUDIA ALBANO VIANA