Five College Dance E-News : Dance The Divine

Dance The Divine

DANCE THE DIVINE - TEACHER TRAINING
Embodying Our Sacred Selves through Afro-Caribbean Dance,
Personalized Movement, Song, Creative Writing, and Yogagraphy.

5 Class Series with Tracy Vernon, M.Ed.
Director of Dance Amherst Regional High School
Center for the Arts Northampton
Feb. 5, Mar. 4, Apr. 1, May 6, and June 3
1:00-3:30

DANCE THE DIVINE offers tools of empowerment for personal peace and collective well-being through sacred and secular dances of the Afro-Caribbean traditions, personalized movement, free flowetry writing, call and response singing, supportive group dialogue, and Journey-Based Choreography. The course is designed for teachers and students of diverse movement disciplines as well as practitioners of other healing modalities. Opportunities to enrich movement in an approach that integrates history, sacred symbolism, and personal expression in a rich and diverse landscape of movement is the heart of Dance the Divine. All levels are welcome.

Participants will gain the following:
Increased knowledge of divinity-based movement and the most effective ways to teach multi-level/generational classes.
How to breathe more efficiently and integrate body, thought, and spirit while dancing.
How to structure a movement experience that creates rich moments of self-reflection and group dialogue in ways that are empathetic, empowering, and enlivening.
Expanded and/or strengthened content areas for professional dance and movement teachers.

Sample of Movement Sources:
Haitian: Ibo and Yanvalou
Orisha: Eleggua and Yemaya
Afro-Puerto Rican: Bomba (Sica and Loiza)
West African: Lamba and Kpan Logo
Yogagraphies to music by artists such as Stevie Wonder and Jason Mraz.

Sacred Self/Divine Connections:

Instructions for the steps of each dance or yogagraphy are demonstrated in a methodical and clear way so that the movements are understood on a very deep level. Examples of choreography for each dance are taught for an authentic experience of the form but also so as to give participants something to refer to in their own teaching. Dance segments in class are introduced by excerpts from published texts about the particular dance or movement tradition and are followed by time for introspection through journal writing and group discussion. The teachings of basic drum and percussion patterns as well as songs are interspersed throughout the class adding to the deepening of our understanding and love of the dances.

In addition to on site training participants of Dance the Divine Teacher Training will receive a packet of printed information including history, song lyrics, steps, notated choreographies, and a bibliography of books, articles, VHS, DVDs, and CDs of the traditions studied. A CD of all music used throughout the class will be given, along with the playlist of artists/songs, at the conclusion of the series.


	Dance The Divine DANCE THE DIVINE - TEACHER TRAINING Embodying Our Sacred Selves through Afro-Caribbean Dance, Personalized Movement, Song, Creative Writing, and Yogagraphy. 5 Class Series with Tracy Vernon, M.Ed. Director of Dance Amherst Regional High School Center for the Arts Northampton Feb. 5, Mar. 4, Apr. 1, May 6, and June 3 1:00-3:30 DANCE THE DIVINE offers tools of empowerment for personal peace and collective well-being through sacred and secular dances of the Afro-Caribbean traditions, personalized movement, free flowetry writing, call and response singing, supportive group dialogue, and Journey-Based Choreography. The course is designed for teachers and students of diverse movement disciplines as well as practitioners of other healing modalities. Opportunities to enrich movement in an approach that integrates history, sacred symbolism, and personal expression in a rich and diverse landscape of movement is the heart of Dance the Divine. All levels are welcome. Participants will gain the following: Increased knowledge of divinity-based movement and the most effective ways to teach multi-level/generational classes. How to breathe more efficiently and integrate body, thought, and spirit while dancing. How to structure a movement experience that creates rich moments of self-reflection and group dialogue in ways that are empathetic, empowering, and enlivening. Expanded and/or strengthened content areas for professional dance and movement teachers. Sample of Movement Sources: Haitian: Ibo and Yanvalou Orisha: Eleggua and Yemaya Afro-Puerto Rican: Bomba (Sica and Loiza) West African: Lamba and Kpan Logo Yogagraphies to music by artists such as Stevie Wonder and Jason Mraz. Sacred Self/Divine Connections: Instructions for the steps of each dance or yogagraphy are demonstrated in a methodical and clear way so that the movements are understood on a very deep level. Examples of choreography for each dance are taught for an authentic experience of the form but also so as to give participants something to refer to in their own teaching. Dance segments in class are introduced by excerpts from published texts about the particular dance or movement tradition and are followed by time for introspection through journal writing and group discussion. The teachings of basic drum and percussion patterns as well as songs are interspersed throughout the class adding to the deepening of our understanding and love of the dances. In addition to on site training participants of Dance the Divine Teacher Training will receive a packet of printed information including history, song lyrics, steps, notated choreographies, and a bibliography of books, articles, VHS, DVDs, and CDs of the traditions studied. A CD of all music used throughout the class will be given, along with the playlist of artists/songs, at the conclusion of the series.