Falling in love with Paris: dancing and living within the City of Lights Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The USF Dance in Paris program takes a group of students pursuing dance degrees at the University of South Florida and immerses them into life within the city of Paris. Students consider the history of dance (specifically dance in Paris) by traveling to historical sites such as Versailles and Vaux le Vicomte as well as multiple sites within central Paris. By taking classes from various professional artists, viewing multiple live performances, and creating their own works during the program students truly have a more global experience through living daily life in Paris rather than simply studying abroad for a time period. Students are required to document their experiences through a journal and final paper, and have weekly reading assignments during their study in France. Outside of viewing performances and attending classes, the dancers also spent time in rehearsals with a guest choreographer for two weeks of the program. I found that the class times and rehearsals were similar in Paris to our classes and rehearsals here in the United States. The live performances, however, were vastly different from anything I've ever seen presented in the United States and none of the performances was presented in the same way as any others (some used video while others used text, some had scene changes while some had one set for the entire evening, etc). The grading system considered class and reahearsal participation, performnce attendance, journals, discussion of reading assignments, and our final paper (due after our return to the US).

On-site administration of your program

Our program had only 10 students this year, although the Art department at USF does a similar program and has a much larger amount of students. The dancers traveled with one of our professors who is extremely knowledgeable about Paris and as such I felt more comfortable being in the city because I had direct access to someone who could concisely explain where places were, how to get there, and who knew where to find answers to questions that he might not have known the answers to right away. Having this small group and our faculty's connections in Paris made our experience a much more personal one, and one that opened up doorways for opportunities to return to Paris for more study, work, or leisure in the future. My expectations were exceeded and I only wish that the program were longer than one month.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

We stayed in the Monaco house within the Cite Universitaire. While we roomed with other people in our program, we were on separate floors and the students around us came from international backgrounds giving us the opportunity to meet other students studying in Paris from different parts of the world. We had a tiny bathroom in our room that we shared with 1 other student. Sheets were provided and we each had a mini fridge, phone, and ethernet cable for our use. Close to the metros and RER, there was also a tram stop directly in front of the Monaco house, making it extremely convinient to quickly get any where else in Paris. Across the street form our house is the Montsouris Park, which provides a beautiful and relaxing environment for some journaling or a quiet afternoon stroll.

I can not eat pork or shell fish, and yet I found that I mainly ate fresh foods from the markets in Paris. Fruits, baguettes, and pizzas are all common around Paris and are probably the quickest on the go meal you can purchase.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

We were in Paris for Fete de la Musique (June 21st) which was an amazing experience. The whole city of Paris appeared to stay awake all night and music began in the early afternoon. We also traveled to Vaux le Vicomte-- the chateau that Versailles is modeled after-- which was a day full of exploration of the grounds and the chateau itself.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Being in Paris during the World Cup meant there were some nights where places were crowded and the participants became rowdy and even agitated. When Algeria lost to the US a riot insued down the same street that we lived on and that was the first and only time during the program that I felt unsafe while in Paris. There was also a protest going on near the Opera Bastille for the first couple of weeks we were in Paris but that protest stayed peaceful, and I never felt threatened or in danger when traveling near that part of the city.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

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• Other

Select all that apply

• Other
• International Students
• Americans