Dancing the city of diversity: An exploration of dance, identity, culture, and place.

Abstract

In answering the research question, ‘How do dance practices of different cultures contribute to Auckland as a place of diverse communities?’ this thesis explored relationships between dance practices, identity, culture, belonging, and urban space/place. Constructionism and phenomenology provided the ontology and epistemology for this study, and ethnography and narrative inquiry the research methodologies. Concepts situated in social geography concerning ‘space’, ‘place’, and movement in urban environments were debated, including Henri Lefebvre’s rhythmanalysis, Michel de Certeau’s practice of everyday life and Nigel Thrift’s non-representational theory. The field research was undertaken within three significant migrant communities which have a long-term history of migration to New Zealand: Indian, Samoan, and Croatian. The research confirms that dance practices are strongly embedded in these Auckland communities and are essential for sustaining cultural heritage. Dance practices connected the research participants within their cultural communities, which correlates to Robert Putnam’s (2007) ‘bonding capital’. Across the studied spectrum dance facilitated extensive learning about own culture with some New Zealand-born research participants identifying it as their main learning site. This group also highlights that the acquired knowledge forms the basis for their cultural confidence and for making informed choices about their individual cultural identity and affiliation. In this study dance was identified as (re)constructing culture in the doing. Dance participants were active agents in this process, re-enacting heritage on their own terms and valuing the concept of tradition plus contemporaneity. In this process Auckland-specific urban identities were constructed. A further research finding was that dance practices facilitated for participants a transnational web of connections to places where they feel culturally affiliated, thus creating global citizens. Theories of transnationalism and glocalisation are discussed to frame this phenomenon. This study established that dance significantly contributes to Auckland’s cultural vitality. It further confirmed that Auckland’s many dance and cultural festivals foster awareness and appreciation of other cultures. However, research participants also highlighted segregation and lack of knowledge about each other. This research identified culturally specific dance as offering a unique and nonthreatening way to learn about other cultures, through experiencing culturally specific ways of relating to space, time, body, and each other. Therefore, this thesis suggests that the existing dance practices and festivals could fulfil a significant role in developing a dynamic diversity in Auckland if more meaningful inter-cultural engagement was embedded in these events. This approach would employ ‘bridging capital’ (Putnam, 2007) so that culturally specific dance practices can become substantial building blocks of the future ‘city of diversity’.