It marks an intentional re-focusing towards what the platform calls ‘Worldwide Dance and Health’, a rhetorical move which sets dance as having the potential to be a powerful mechanism for promoting social harmony, cultural exchange and total well-being.

In what could be interpreted as an answer to our digitally facilitated age of widespread social atomization, DanceUS. org is launching a major re-think of its Web site. A new website and look were recently unveiled by the organization. But it seems more than a mere technological leap has taken place with this progression. It marks an intentional re-focusing towards what the platform calls ‘Worldwide Dance and Health’, a rhetorical move which sets dance as having the potential to be a powerful mechanism for promoting social harmony, cultural exchange and total well-being.

The project also appears rooted in a critique of the current dynamics of society. We know that many people feel profoundly isolated in digital society, even as social media allows them to instantaneously connect with people all over the world. This one seems to confront right that paradox. The new version of the site is designed to promote offline, offline interactions. It’s a transparent effort towards making connections between people who might feel isolated, to those who want to experience global dance cultures, and to find ways of interacting with others.

In practical terms, the site itself has been rebuilt to facilitate this mission. Instead of being just a store of material, the new interface is designed to encourage user activity. The focus on a global dance map intimates a focus on transcending geographic and cultural divides, making it ostensibly easier for a user in one country to meet people in a dance community in another. This might be of special interest to vacationers, who would like to discover the local way of life.

And it’s particularly interesting to see health integrated into the heart of the mission. This is part of a larger trend in all kinds of research, from neuroscience to social psychology, which continues to emphasize our complicated ties to both physical movement, mental health and social bonding. Through placing dance within a discourse of health, it’s possible the platform is hoping to attract a wider audience than simply professionals and hobbyists, to more general publics looking to embodied practices as a means to improve their lives. The site appears to suggest that the kinesthetic empathy you practice on the dance floor can have applications far from the studio.

This relaunch might be seen as a smart experiment in using digital tools to foster physical, co-present experiences. At a moment when countless are reconsidering their relationship to technology and community, DanceUS. org’s recent shift is an interesting case in point. It’s a project that invites us to consider how online platforms might be intentionally designed to mitigate social alienation and foster a more embodied, interconnected, and perhaps healthier way of being.

About

DanceUS.org is an online resource dedicated to connecting the global dance community. Through its enhanced emphasis on global dance and health, the site offers resources that will help promote communications, cultural exchange, and personal wellness around the world through dance.

More info: DanceUS.org

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