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This book explores the nexus between gender, ageing and culture in dancers practicing a variety of genres. It challenges existing cultural norms which equate ageing with bodily decline and draws on an interdisciplinary theoretical framework to explore alternatives for developing a culturally valued mature subjectivity through the practice of dance.

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Acknowledgements Prelude Constructing Ageing, Gender and Self Gendered Ageing in Theatrical Dance The Dancers Speak Dancing Between Construction and Experience Dancing the Self Through Ageing Counter-discourses Valuing the Mature Dancer: Cross-cultural Perspectives Coda Appendix A: Constructing Ageing and Gender: a Selective Literature Review References Index

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´At the beginning of the twenty-first century, mature movement artists such as Kazuo Ohno, Anna Halprin, Carmen De Lavallade, and Liz Lerman´s ´Dancers of the Third Age´ company have amazed audiences around the world with their intense and nuanced performances. In her book, Elisabeth Schwaiger explores the rich aesthetic legacies of mature Australian dancers, offering a compelling analysis of the cultural proscriptions older dancers face daily and arguing for the importance of honoring their bodily wisdom.´ - Ann Cooper Albright, Professor of Dance, Oberlin College, USA

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ELIZABETH SCHWAIGER Researcher, tutor and administrator at Murdoch University in Perth, Australia. Her research interests include critical age studies, dance, gender studies, and socially marginalized populations. She completed her doctorate degree at Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, and her academic publications are in these areas.

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