This study examines the evolution of modern dance culture amidst the historical tribulations of the colonial era by analyzing dance photographs published in 1920s newspapers. Utilizing a literature review methodology, the research analyzes 317 photographs from Maeil Sinbo (154), Joseon Ilbo [Chosun Ilbo] (93), and Dong-a Ilbo (70). The analysis revealed three key findings. First, the photographs visually corroborate the heteronomous nature of dance culture under colonial rule. Second, they demonstrate the systematic assimilation of Japanese dance into colonial Korea. These images expose an imperialist agenda designed to manage and mobilize the colonized population under the pretext of artistic exchange. Third, despite such oppression, the photographs capture the emergence of a modern and subjective dance culture. This study holds significant value by providing a comprehensive pictorial understanding of the performing arts landscape during the Japanese occupation through the lens of newspaper photography. By re-evaluating these visual archives, the research illuminates the complex interplay between colonial hegemony and the pursuit of modern cultural identity in 1920s Korea.

This study examined examine the effect of resilience on dance performance confidence of university students majoring in modern dance and to investigate the mediating role of psychological well-being in this relationship. Data were collected from 154 modern dance majors across Korea using a non-probability sampling method, and an online survey was employed for analysis. The validity and reliability of the collected data were confirmed through factor and reliability analyses, followed by multiple regression analysis and mediation analysis based on the procedure proposed by Baron and Kenny (1986). The results indicated that resilience had a significant positive effect on dance performance confidence, and that psychological well-being was found to mediate this relationship.

This study examines the significance of shin minyo dance, a modern dance heritage that was popular from the 1930s to the 1960s, with particular focus on the works of Bae Guja, who created dances based on the folk songs Cheonan Samgeori and Doraji Taryeong. Employing a practice-based research methodology, the study centers on the processes of re-enactment and restoration, while analyzing the reproduction of these works in a contemporary context. The findings reveal that the living transmission of cultural heritage lies not merely in reproduction or restoration, but more importantly in the modern succession and sustainability of dance that reflects both national identity and regional characteristics. Furthermore, this research proposes creative methodologies for integrating the cultural value of traditional dance into contemporary society and underscores the significance of modern succession of modern dance heritage.

Dance majors' dance emotional expressiveness is based on their body-emotion integration, which impacts their level of performance engagement. Through training to improve the expression of dance emotions, dance majors learn to identify and express their feelings. In this study, 507 Chinese majors in contemporary dance were asked to evaluate the relationship between dance emotional expressiveness and performance participation using emotional intelligence. The findings demonstrated a substantial relationship between dance emotional expressiveness and emotional intelligence, as well as a significant relationship between emotional intelligence and performance engagement. Furthermore, it was discovered that the relationship between dancers' emotional expressiveness and performance involvement was mediated by emotional intelligence. This study is important because it sheds light on the relationship between Chinese contemporary dance majors' performance engagement, emotional expressiveness, and emotional intelligence. This information will help develop better teaching strategies and curricula.

This study discusses the early modern dance formation in Busan during the liberation period 1945-1950. The study discusses its historical significance and aesthetic value from a contemporary perspective. For this study, a literature review on previous research and newspaper articles was used as a research method in order to examine modern dancers’ works and their educational activities during the liberation period. Modern dances in Busan that supported a new way of creating stage performances were influenced by western cultures and “New Dance.” During the liberation period, modern dancers in Busan expressed national identity and individuality through dance while promoting dance education as the human experience. Park Yongho and Park Yirang held dance concerts to show their own creative dance pieces, which were different from previous dance performances displayed in Busan. The liberation period was important for dance history in Busan as it was the beginning of establishing modern dance in that area. Also, modern dances during that time were historically significant as they fostered nationalism and suggested a new dance aesthetic. Modern dance in Busan during the liberation period set a foundation for modern dance activities that focused on creativity and education after the Korean War.

This study analyzes William Forside’s Synchronous Objects for One Flat Thing, Reproduced from a geometric perspective. This dance is a digital work presented through an online platform, which combines various fields to produce 20 objects. The work uses geometric forms to express dancers’ movements and spatial interactions in various ways. In our study, the interaction and fusion of art and geometry are explored by analyzing the dancers’ movements by means of geometric shapes such as points, lines, and planes. It analyzes how various patterns and structures are formed in space when dancers pass each other or make synchronized movements. Therefore, this study contributes to geometrically analyzing and understanding the dancers’ movements and their uses of stage space by combining dance and geometry.

The purpose of this research is to confirm the value of the New Folk Song Dance in the history of modern Korean dance. Based on literature review and video analysis, this research investigates the characteristics of the New Folk Song Dance by analyzing the dance movements of ‘Cheonan Samgeoli’, ‘Nillilia’, and ‘Cheonyo Chonggak’ in cultural films reproduced under the direction of the Society for Dance Documentation and History. Based on the dance analysis theory of Janet Adshead, the characteristics and values of New Folk Song Dance were explored by analyzing the components of dance (movement, dancer, visual and auditory environment) and the nature of dance (genre and style). The result of this research shows that the New Folk Song Dance has the characteristics of cultural expressions of modern dance through which we can enjoy occidental music as well as traditional one. The dance is composed of simple and repetitive movements as well as a variety of formation, which makes it very easy for the public to learn. This allows us to confirm the value of the New Folk Song Dance as another type of modern dance heritage, ultimately leading us to redefine the perspective of modern dance culture.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the images of dancing women in the Korean novels from the 1910s to the 1950s and to investigate the relevant social discourse and cultural context at that time. This study focuses on the Korean novels as the research materials and the media to reflect the people’s awareness and social aspects of the times. The 6 novels selected through the material collecting process over 3 sessions are 『Moojeong』, 『Bokdeokbang』, 『Mooseong-gyeokja』, 『Seoul』, 『Sawhasan』, 『Silbimyeong』. The substantive characteristics and relational characteristics of dancing women appeared in the novels are arranged by type through text analysis. Their social implications are also explored. As a result, the images of dancing women appeared in the Korean novels are as follows. First, as the substantive characteristics of dancing women in the Korean novels, the number of dancing women appeared in the 6 novels is total 8. Their occupations and social activities are found to be Gisaengs, dancers, the students to prepare for being dancers. Second, as the relational characteristics of dancing women in the Korean novels, the relationships between main characters and dancing women are found to be classified into sexual relations and familiar relations. Third, the social implications of dancing women in the Korean novels are deducted from the opposite social awareness on Gisaeng and modern-girl dancer and the demands of the times on dancing women. It is expected that dance culture research would be enhanced and the close relationship between women and dance would be investigated if the follow-up studies to analyze the contemporary novels from the 1960s to the 2000s with the identical standards to this study are conducted. In addition, it is also expected that this study can contribute to the research on the Korean modern dance culture.

This study traced Choi Seung-hee’s dancing career in Europe and the Americas between 1937 and 1940. Choi is recognized as a pioneer who built the foundation of modern Korean dance. Called “the dancer of the peninsular” and very popular in Korea and Japan, the celebrated dancer extended her career to Europe with the ambitious mission to introduce Joseon dance to an international audience in the late 1930s. As the Japanese novelist Yasunari Kawabata put it, her dance was powerful and based on her ethnic roots, which became representative of her as a dancer. Meanwhile, most Korean intellectuals criticized her dance for failing to fully express their nation’s identity; this was because it was a mix of Western-style and traditional Korean techniques. Despite this criticism, her dance proved itself to be fascinating enough to attract an international audience, presenting the uniqueness of an ethnic culture in a dignified and fresh way. It also suggested that the legendary dancer’s work carries significance in that it created a new value system with a blend of globalization, locality, and democratic elements.

When I first looked through the records of Korean immigrants on the foreigner register in Mexico in 1989, a photo attracted my attention of a flapper-haired, smiling, beautiful woman who stood out among the others. She was Sai Shoki, a famed dancer who performed in Mexico City in October, 1940. When I met Judy Van Zile, professor of University of Hawaii in Puerto España in the summer of 2000, the professor told me that her study on Korean dance was nearly completed. Her study looked into the performance tour in America by Choi Seung-hee(Shoki’s Korean name)and included articles on her Bogota performance. That led me to the presentation of this study in which I was to give details about Shoki’s dance career, records on her Mexico performance, and her political position on her nation’s independence movement, which drove her to move to North Korea and continue her career there. The appendix contains related photos.