Patty Delaney greets incoming dance students at orientation
The University of Oregon’s School of Music and Dance is thrilled to announce the appointment of Patty Delaney as the Interim Department Head of Dance. Delaney’s impressive resume includes her role as Professor Emerita at Southern Medthodist University’s Division of Dance, where she taught for 28 years.
Her administrative roles during her tenure at SMU included Associate Director of the MFA program and Department Chair. Her expertise spans various disciplines, including jazz, dance history, and composition, as well as her specialization in Laban Studies.
Throughout her career, Delaney has made significant contributions to the field, including restaging masterworks for renowned companies and co-founding Dancers Unlimited, a modern dance company that remained an active force in the cultural life of Dallas for 25 years.
Celebrating Progressive Curriculum
Coming from a traditional dance department at SMU, which focuses on ballet, modern, and jazz, Delaney is excited to work in a more multihued environment. The four styles of dance at the center of SOMD’s curriculum are African, ballet, contemporary, and hip hop.
"We are a Destination School!"
“You will not find this combination of what we do in many other schools," Delaney continued. "This department is doing what other departments, more traditional departments around the country, are trying to do. It’s already here and that’s exciting to me.”
She also celebrates the Department’s approach to dance history, with courses titled “Dance in Power” and “Contemporary Issues.” They challenge the Eurocentric narrative of dance history and emphasize the socioeconomic and cultural dynamics in which each style originated.
"The dancers have a chance to experience a real representation of how dance has played out in history and culture in terms of the power structure,” she said. “This whitewashed history that we’ve had over time is not what we do. It’s not that we ignore that, it’s just that it is not what we do.”
Fostering Artistic Growth
At the heart of Delaney’s mission is the desire to foster an environment where students can continue to thrive. She encourages student dancers to engage in a deep investigation of SOMD’s four movement idioms, finding their place within each. “Where is my voice? Who am I inside these amazing ways of exploring movement? How do I find my road through them?” she asks, framing the journey of each student as a personal and artistic exploration.
Looking Ahead
Delaney shares a laugh with Instructor Rita Honka during orientation
As Delaney settles into her new role, she expresses a deep respect for the students and faculty at the University of Oregon. She envisions a future where students reflect on their time in the Dance Department as a joyous period of growth, artistic development, and a time when their personal voice took flight.
“I hope they deepen their understanding of what it means to be human and how their humanness connects to everybody else on this planet,” she said. “Every artist has a responsibility to see what that really means to them with integrity. And I would love for them to look back on their time here and say [the UO Dance Department] prepared me to do that.”