Doing dance research in pandemic times: fostering connection and support in a 7-step online collaborative interview analysis process

Abstract

Over the past two years, our global dance community has faced many challenges while coming to terms with a health crisis that drastically altered home and working lives. In this article, we focus on how dance scholars can work collaboratively during extended periods of isolation. We begin by overviewing the drastically altered environment of dance education during pandemic, then direct our focus to the ways that we, as dance scholars, were also adjusting our practices to sustain research collaborations and provide support for colleagues during extended periods of isolation and physical distancing. Expanding upon insights from prior qualitative dance research, and addressing an aspect of the research process often conducted in isolation, we describe a 7-step collaborative interview analysis process. Based on our initial trial of this process, as international dance scholars analyzing three separate dance projects, we discuss how our online analysis sessions enabled researchers (separated by space, time, and experience) to support one another, encouraging momentum and connection during a time of heightened stress and uncertainty.