Andrew Scordato,dancer with the NYC Ballet.
continued — Fantauzzi has been teaching math for 30 years, and pitched theidea of having Scordato visit English classes to the teachers last year.
English teacher Amy Totino, who has been in the English department at the school for 13 years, thought the idea was terrific.
“It is important for the students to see how such a classicalstory can be interpreted in many artistic genres. Also, because of multiple learning styles, there may be students who 'get' movement more than words, ”said Totino. “For them to see the translation of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ as dance may make all the difference in their comprehension. For all of the students it will be a memorable and concrete connection that will enhance their learning and their memories of the play.”
As far as how exactly the dancer will convey elements common to both artistic expressions, Totino said she hadn’t seen the presentation yet, but said she has many ideas on how it could be done in the class.
“The emotions of the characters are evident in the movements ofthe dancers. I feel that characterization is the most powerful connection between the text and the dance,” she said.
Scordato said of his upcoming go at teaching the classes, “I’mvery excited to be doing the classes. It’s time that we really get kids into the different art forms, recently it seems like there’s been a lessening of arts in the schools. I hadn’t really seen myself doing this, but I’ve always enjoyed teaching (dance) and figured why not. I think it’ll be a lot of fun andI look forward to it,” he said.
About how he intends to translate dance to language , he said, “During the dance you have totell a story with your body and carry your weight differently and there’s a differentiation in posture.”
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