The Architecture of Emergence: Glimmers in the Void: Movement as a Pathway to Healing in Choreographic Film

Author

• Nicolette Alberti, Montclair State University

Date of Award

5-2026

Document Type

MSU-Only Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

College/School

College of the Arts

Department/Program

Theatre and Dance

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Susan Pope

Committee Member

Apollinaire Scherr

Committee Member

Diann Sichel

Abstract

This thesis investigates movement as a pathway to healing through the creation of a choreographic film that integrates dance, cinematic storytelling, and multisensory design. Titled The Architecture of Emergence: Glimmers in the Void, the film explores how the body serves as a site where memory, emotion, and lived experience are processed and expressed through movement. Grounded in a practice-as-research methodology, the project examines how choreography, sensory environments, and filmic perspective support emotional awareness and transformation. The film unfolds through four phases—unearthing, self-reflection, release, and transformation—each represented by a distinct dancer, environment, and visual language. Drawing from somatic practices, neuroscience, trauma-informed research, and chakra-based frameworks, the work explores how movement reveals internal states. Environmental elements such as sand, mirrors, fabric, light, and sound function as active collaborators, shaping both the dancers’ physical responses and the viewer’s sensory experience. Through the integration of choreography, cinematography, and sensory design, this research expands the possibilities of choreographic film as both an artistic and investigative practice. The project suggests that movement-centered processes create spaces for reflection, connection, and emotional resonance. Ultimately, this thesis positions dance and film as multisensory forms capable of making visible the often unseen processes of healing, awareness, and transformation, with film offering a distinct capacity to frame and shift perspective through camera and editing to render internal experience with greater intimacy and specificity.

Comments

The performance video is restricted to the Montclair State University community but the PDF file of the thesis, which is located at the bottom of the screen, is available to anyone interested in reading it.

File Format

MP4

Recommended Citation

Alberti, Nicolette, "The Architecture of Emergence: Glimmers in the Void: Movement as a Pathway to Healing in Choreographic Film" (2026). Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects. 1659.
https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/etd/1659