It is through personal and professional experiences in dance that have influenced the methods I use in my pedagogical practice. My formal dance training is rooted in ballet, modern, and postmodern and somatic perspectives. Applying somatic methods to dance technique allows me to blur boundaries and discover more organic and efficient modes of movement. Safety Release Technique has significantly influenced my pedagogical approach, reminding me that “action is energy,” and that technique is an ongoing practice of commitment and curiosity.
I believe how one arrives and shows up to class, for themselves and for their community, is a practice.
As a dancer as well, it is important for me to demonstrate this practice during any technique class, prompting reflective, somatic check-ins, such as:
· What brought you here?
· What does your body need, physically, mentally, or emotionally?
· What can you give yourself today? What can you let go of?
· What do you want to receive from this class?
teaching
My somatic approach to technique focuses on the functionality and efficiency of movement and identifies how the elements of one technique can translate to other forms of dance. It is also equally important to encourage somatic authority as a form of injury prevention: I remind students of how powerful their bodies are, and how resilient their bodies can be.
It is my goal for students to take risks, to not fear making mistakes—as therein is where embodied learning occurs—and to discover how movement can fit into each students’ body and best serve their individual artistic needs.
I invite students to simultaneously experience their own presence throughout class, based on practices informed by Bartenieff Fundamentals, the Feldenkrais Method, and Pilates. In dance class, students experience their breath, their weight, their joints, their skin, and their whole bodies in motion, both individually and collectively. Together, we discover old habits and strategies that no longer serve us, and instead, we develop new, more sustainable movement patterns that are efficient and safe.
Working from the inside-out prompts individual agency: I encourage students to connect with their bodies through movement as research, while they simultaneously work to discover their own sense of artistry and authority. I am a firm believer that engaging through conversations around feedback and critical thinking are essential for dance students to take ownership of their learning and to further develop their understanding of how they exist in this world individually and interdependently. It is my goal to guide students to discover something about dance that makes them feel thoroughly and unapologetically themselves.
Crafting a safe, brave space for students that is inclusive of all identities, cultural backgrounds, and beliefs is imperative. Fostering a community of care that supports creativity, bodily autonomy, and the freedom to express oneself authentically are crucial steppingstones to seeing student success. This approach lays the groundwork for teaching students how to engage with and participate in a functioning democratic society; my teaching philosophy maintains a student-centered, feminist, culturally-responsive, and holistic approach for the benefit of the student’s body, mind, and spirit.
Technique is a practice.
Consistency is a practice.
Upcoming Classes
Safety Release Technique with kt williams
Mondays, 11a-12:30p
Dovetail Studios, Chicago, IL
$15/class (at the door) - Details can be found here.
This class offers an intermediate/advanced level approach to foundational contemporary dance technique and is based on Safety Release Technique principles, focusing on the spine, breath, movement efficiency, and freeing frozen tension. Class typically begins on the floor, and progresses into standing, traveling, and physically rigorous movement patterns. Class will offer opportunities for set movement patterning and improvisation, and will allow dancers to sense, examine, and listen to their internal body patterning. There is space for dancers to start slowly, modify, ask questions, make choices, play, take risks, and ultimately deepen their artistry through embodied practice.
Previous dance experience is suggested, dancers of all backgrounds are welcome. Dancers are encouraged to wear long sleeves and loose-fitting pants to allow for floor work and ease of movement; knee-pads are optional.
