Transforming the Picturebook “Little Walrus Gets Glasses” into a Dance Dramatization

Authors

Ana Tina Jurgec
University of Maribor, Faculty of Education
https://orcid.org/0009-0002-7683-4733

Synopsis

The article is based on the theory of multimodality, which emphasizes that meaning is created through the interaction of different semiotic modes, such as language, image, movement, space, and sound. As a multimodal art form, the picturebook enables the transformation of meaning from a verbal-visual medium into other artistic expressions, including dance dramatization. The article examines the process of transforming the picturebook Little Walrus Gets Glasses by Peter Svetina, illustrated by Mojca Osojnik, into a dance dramatization. The study explores how verbal and visual elements are transformed into movement and how linguistic, visual, gestural, spatial, and auditory modes interact within the performance. The analysis is based on a qualitative approach and reflection on the creative process. The findings show that dance dramatization represents a complex multimodal artistic form in which movement assumes a central narrative and interpretative role, transforming the original picturebook into a new movement-based artistic expression.

Author Biography

Ana Tina Jurgec, University of Maribor, Faculty of Education

Ana Tina Jurgec is a senior lecturer in Didactics of Dance Education at the Department of Preschool Education, Faculty of Education, University of Maribor. Her research field is dance in the preschool period. For many years, she was a member of the SNG Maribor ballet ensemble and completed her studies at the Faculty of Arts, University of Maribor, majoring in Pedagogy and Slovenian. For several years, she taught dance - ballet at music schools as a ballet teacher, gaining valuable experience working with children, which she now passes on to her students. She is also a doctoral student in Educational Sciences at the Faculty of Education, University of Maribor.

Maribor, Slovenia. E-mail: ana.jurgec1@um.si

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Published

August 3, 2026

How to Cite

Jurgec, A. T. (2026). Transforming the Picturebook “Little Walrus Gets Glasses” into a Dance Dramatization. In D. Haramija (Ed.), Trideset let literarne nagrade večernica. University of Maribor Press. https://doi.org/10.18690/um.pef.3.2026.14