Jane Wellford recently retired as a professor of dance at Elon, and her new book, "Moving Liturgy: Dance in Christian Worship," published this summer.
During her storied career as a dancer, choreographer and professor of dance at Elon University, Jane Wellford has danced in more than 700 churches before congregations all around the country.
That’s part of what motivated Wellford, who recently retired from Elon, to write and publish “Moving Liturgy: Dance in Christian Worship,” which was released by Resource Publications. The book is fashioned as a “step-by-step guide” for sacred dance that can be a resource for churches and performers.
“It’s just like the sermon, or the hymns, or the chants, or the prayers,” Wellford said of sacred dance. “It’s yet another way to envision, embody and experience the word of God.”
The roots of the book are in a class Wellford taught that focuses on the role of dance across multiple religious faiths — not just within Christian worship. She initially started writing the book with that broader perspective in mind, but realized that such an approach was too unwieldy, and a little dry. She decided to base the book on her own personal experiences as a sacred dancer within the Christian faith, as it put its foundation in her love of theology and her love of dance.
“I read theology books and other things like that like some people read murder mysteries on the beach,” said Wellford, whose husband is in the Presbyterian ministry. “Once I decided to write this book from firsthand experience, it was a joy to write.”
The book tackles a broad range of topics within sacred Christian dance, such as how dancers and other worship artists can work collaboratively with clergy and musicians, how to produce creative ideas and choreography for different elements of the worship service and Christian calendar and how to locate, create and maintain a liturgical dance group. Part of the role of the book is to help educate clergy and worshipers about the role that dance can play within the worship service. Wellford said during her career, she’s at times seen the response from clergy who view a sacred dance within worship as “just one more thing to put in worship.”
“You have to educate the community well before you show up,” Wellford said of a challenge sacred dancers can face. “I have never had a negative experience. I am an educator, and I believe preparing congregations for the experience is very productive.”