Silence is golden

*No idea why youtube doesnt allow me to post the vid here so i'll just leave the link here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3WIHr1RUJU

The above clip is taken from the latest season of So You Think You Can Dance. Dance as we all know is an art. An art which speaks volumes without any words. This is therefore a form of non-verbal communication because the dancers use their bodies, space and expressions to convey a message or tell a story. As we have learnt, dance asks us to think of communication as a family of interrelated concepts, each of which has its own utility. So much is shown in their moves and faces that words are unneccessary.

The song for the clip, No Air, already suggests that the girl (Katee) can't breathe or live without the guy (Joshua). The 'story' is about the guy leaving for army soon and the girl being very reluctant about it. Thus, the non-breathing idea. They go about displaying their emotions in dance moves which is one of the non-verbal codes-kinesics. Both dancers employ various body movements and gestures to create emblems and affect displays.

One of such example is at around 00:28 where the Katee 'caves in' with a pained expression on her face, slowly crouching down. It shows us her pain of leaving him. From 00:38 to 00:41, Joshua rushes over to her and brings her to standing position. He holds up her arms so that both move in synchrony mimicking the act of a puppeteer. This signifies that he will lift her in spirits when she's low. Joshua's constant show of picking Katee up further supports this theory which is somehow repeated at 00:48 to 00:51 and 01:24. The final seconds of the dance amplify this whole idea of him being there spiritually for her when she slips into his jacket. Notice for most of the time, they stand within close proximity of each other. Proxemics is employed here because the use of close space shows that they are more than just friends.

Music and dance go hand in hand to effectively relate a story to us.The whole dance is played up so well that we can immediately tell of the current situation, even without words, therefore succeeding in 'communicating' with us, the audience.

*The above is based wholly in my opinion. Feel free to comment! :D
Theodora