Historical Dance

Directed by Dorothy Olsson, with Peggy Murray

June 28, 2025-July 5, 2025

Muhlenberg College
2400 W Chew St
Allentown, PA 18104
United States

Tuition:

$730

The Historical Dance program runs during the first week of the Amherst Early Music Festival. The dates of the first week of the Festival are June 29- July 6, 2025, but dancers arrive 1 day early to prepare for opera performance on Friday, July 4.

The theme of this year's Amherst Early Music Festival is "Music of the German Lands." The Historical Dance Program reflects that theme, with a focus on dance materials from these regions. The program consists of technique classes and rehearsals (beginning on Saturday, June 28, 2025), and culminates in a fully staged production of Georg Reutter's Dafne (1734).

Participants are entitled to attend many other events (including English country dancing, concert and lectures) in the evenings that are part of the Amherst Early Music Festival. All levels of dancers are welcome.

First-week dancers who wish to perform in the Baroque Opera Project (Dafne, by Reutter) must arrive early to attend the following sessions:

Dance Class Schedule Rehearsals Saturday, June 28 & Sunday, June 29
Saturday June 28, 2:00-5:00 pm (with breaks!): Baroque Dance Technique Class/Rehearsal
Saturday June 28, 6:30-8:00 pm: Baroque Dance Technique Class/Rehearsal
Sunday June 29, early morning: Individual practice time
Sunday June 29, 10:00-11:30 am: Baroque Dance Technique Class/Rehearsal. (Murray, Olsson)
Sunday June 29, 1:00-4:00 pm (with breaks!): Dance Rehearsal for Opera

Dance Class Daily Schedule Monday, June 30 - Friday, July 4
9:00 - 10:30 a.m. Baroque Dance Technique (Murray, Olsson). Technique class in eighteenth-century dance focusing on steps and phrases from notated German and French choreographies by Dubreil, Taubert, Pécour, Feuillet, and others, including various dance types (saraband, passepied, rigaudon, menuet, bourée, etc.)

10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Baroque Dance Topic: Der Tantz-Kunst (Murray) Looking at dance notations from German sources including the works of Dubreil, Pasch, Taubert and others.

1:30 - 3:00 p.m. Individual Practice or rest. Dance studio space will be available.

3:30-5:30 p.m. Dance Rehearsal (Olsson, Murray). Rehearsals for Baroque Opera (Reutter’s Dafne, performance Friday evening, July 4, 8:00 pm). Possible evening rehearsals on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Opera dress rehearsal, late Thursday evening.

For over twenty-five years the historical dance program has been a highly successful part of the Amherst Early Music Festival, itself the largest festival of its kind in the world. Students particularly enjoy the opportunity for performance, along with stimulating classes by dance historians and performers.

See the NY Historical Dance Company website for more photos!

Dancers in the historical dance program perform in the opera.

Faculty

Dorothy

Olsson *

Dance

Peggy

Murray *

Dance

Where

View larger map

Festival FAQs

TRAVEL
Muhlenberg College: 2400 Chew Street, Allentown, PA
Closest Airport: Lehigh Valley International Airport (ABE), is approximately 7 miles from the Muhlenberg campus.
Trans-Bridge Lines offers service from the Port Authority Bus Terminal in NYC, and Newark Airport to the Allentown Transportation Center, 603 Linden Street, Allentown, PA (2.3 miles from campus)
Greyhound offers service from Philadelphia to the Allentown Transportation Center.

MEALS
The meal card is $280 and covers one week of meals starting with dinner on Sunday, June 29, (July 6 for second week) thru breakfast on Sunday, July 6, (July 13 for second week).

ROOMS
All standard rooms are air-conditioned. Budget rate housing is not air-conditioned, with hall baths. Basic linens (sheets, pillow, and towels) are included with all housing. Beds are twin, extra long.
Standard rooms with private baths are in Taylor Hall. Standard rooms with hall baths are in Martin Luther Hall, Kitchenette Suite rooms are in South Hall. Budget (non-ac) rooms are in Brown Hall.

Scholarships & Work-Study

Work-Study

All participants are welcome to apply for tuition assistance through AEM's Work-Study program. The work-study application form can be found here. Questions about Work-Study can be sent to Click here to show mail address. Applicants are encouraged to early, and before May 31st.

AEM Scholarships

To apply for all AEM scholarships, including the Washington McClain Scholarship, please fill out the Scholarship application form here. Applications due by May 15.

The Washington McClain Scholarship Fund honors the memory of Baroque oboist and Amherst Early Music faculty member Washington McClain. It will fund scholarships for students who have historically been underrepresented in the early music field, including African-American, Latinx, and others. Awards will cover tuition, room and board, and travel and may be used for any in-person AEM event, particularly the Amherst Early Music Festival.

In addition to scholarships, AEM offers work study tuition to all of our workshops, and the Amherst Early Music Festival. Work study is an option for students of any age.

Other Organizations

American Recorder Society offers scholarships to recorder players for Weekend Workshops as well as Summer Festivals. Any ARS member who needs financial assistance to attend a weekend or week-long workshop may apply for this scholarship. Deadline: May 15.

Lute Society of America scholarships include full tuition, room & board, and some travel. Due Date May 1.

Early Music America offers scholarships to help students attend early music and historical performance workshops in North America. Applications due April 1.

Viola da Gamba Society of America offers Grants-in-Aid to its members to attend Workshops and Masterclasses.

The Historical Keyboard Society of North America has established the Funaro Fund Award to support its members to offset the cost of traveling to an early keyboard event.