The UW–Madison Dance Department is a leader and innovator in the field of dance, with a diverse, world-class faculty and state-of-the-art dance facilities, including its own theatre, the Margaret H’Doubler Performance Space. Located near Lake Mendota, the state capitol, and downtown Madison, historic Lathrop Hall includes four spacious dance studios, a multimedia lab, and resource center.
Our institution was the first in the nation to establish a dance degree program in higher education. It was here, on the campus of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, in 1926, under the leadership of dance pioneer Margaret H’Doubler, that dance became a rigorous academic discipline and the body became the route to scientific inquiry, self-discovery, creativity, and citizenship.
Our department and its faculty and staff, are committed to excellence through teaching and research, and we strive to impact the world within and outside of the university, through the Wisconsin Idea, with the aim to improve people’s lives through dance.
In addition to our BFA and BS degree programs in dance, the department offers three certificates, offers elective dance courses to hundreds of students each semester, and brings pre-collegiate students to campus for summer intensive study and dance festivals biannually. We also produce several concerts annually and host internationally renowned guest artists each academic year.
Mission
The Dance Department creates, investigates, and practices dance as a dynamic and integrative process of self-awareness, interdisciplinary learning, and engagement with local and global communities. Through teaching, performance, and scholarly research, we illuminate those aspects of self and culture that are uniquely manifested in human movement. Our students are challenged to navigate risks, think critically, and live creatively.