I think having these people in your life to help guide you is so important. When you begin working with new dancers or artists, how do you prepare to work with these people and how do you connect with those who might be a little nervous or reserved at first?

 

It can be intimidating when you first start out and that's normal. When you begin, you are considered to be low on the totem pole, but it's a learning opportunity. You will get gems of information from all these different artists and, anywhere I've danced in the world, I feel at home in the studio and that these people are my family. Through the same love of dance and expression in sharing your artform, there is an automatic connection. Dancers are very generous and, in my experience, if you approach any dancer, they are more than willing to share information or give you direction. When I was maybe a little older than you I went to Amsterdam for a month to train at different studios and I was shy, but I was forced to reach out to people because I knew no one. After classes, I would ask if a fellow dancer would like to go for coffee. We would go for coffee, talk and I would learn information about other studios and dancers experiences. The world of dance is actually quite small and you’ll find that you will run into people again and again. I believe simply being yourself, and being authentic is important. Have an open mind, no matter what stage you’re at, and be gracious and confident in your own abilities.  

 

Thank you. That is such great advice! Many of your choreographic works are inspired by emotions, nature, spirituality, and self-reflection. What types of tools do you use to channel deep emotions and how do you communicate these to your dancers and students?

 

Actually, the workshop I created called “Deep Roots” is about ancestry and all the artists explored their own ancestral lineage bloodlines. Some people knew a lot and some knew very little, but the way I have been inquiring this exploration is through movement and letting the story from within us get told. It is part of us whether we know it or not. Things do not have to be in books for us to know what they are or learn about them. For me it's the ability to open up my DNA and read the different layers of stories.  

 

Can you explain more about your work with “Deep Roots”?

 

I guide people through meditation and intuitive movement exercises so the body starts to tell its story, even before becoming conscious of it. With my intuitive ability I am able to interpret the story and receive messages to bring clarity to what that story was telling. For example, one of the older adults I taught told a very touching story about her family who emigrated from Poland. Some of her family members had to be left behind and the ones who were left behind were killed in the Holocaust. She was actually born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and yet she lived with the sorrow of her mother who had committed suicide because of the tragedy. This had a deep impact on her; during our process she actually found a letter that one of her uncles had sent her grandmother, but it was all written in Yiddish. She managed to get it translated, which is hard to do. She was able to learn so much information, and through our process of “Deep Roots” we brought that out in order to do deep healing for her and her mother. I also use the theory of Quantum Healing: that you can heal the past. The ensemble would improvise, with my guidance, to send healing to the past through movement. And all of this was woven into a final project so it could be experienced by an audience.  

 

This project seems like it had great and positive outcomes for yourself and everyone involved. 

 

Yes! We led the performance as a ceremony; we told the audience ahead of time that they could clear and heal anything from their bloodline or lineage that was resonating with them. One of the things we did was give everyone a flower as they entered that space. We handed out white chrysanthemums, the intent was to release any difficulties, traumas, pains or emotions from their history into the flower. During the performance we collected the flowers and then afterwards the ensemble went down to the ocean and sang songs as they released the flowers into the water. That's my process. I don't teach steps, the steps evolve from the person’s stories and the research that is done through focused meditation and intuition.  

 

That sounds exceptional. I wish I could have been part of it! I have faced some challenges in my life that have really made me think about what is important. Dance is one of the only things that helps me heal and find a sense of peace. Hearing you talk about dance as a form of healing really resonates with me! I have had people say that dance cannot help with this or that, but I completely disagree. 

 

Everything you need to know is inside of you. You know yourself better than anyone and you can heal yourself. You do not need anyone else to do that for you.  

 

Are there any healing practices you do besides dancing?

 

I do energy healing. I started learning Reiki about twenty years ago now, which is essentially healing touch with the hands. I studied with Myorei Zeraffa, at the Buddhist Temple. It was wonderful because I wanted to learn in order to heal myself at the end of each day, so I could get up and dance again! 

 

Yes!

 

We both know how hard our work is on our bodies. I wanted to get my inner chi back and learn how to work with energy. I started integrating and weaving what I was learning with dancers in rehearsals. I don't know why I did that? [laughter] When I went back for my Masters in Arizona, I asked the universe for a teacher to teach me more about spirituality and energy healing. I also asked how I could help dancers and other people, and how I could serve the world. The universe answered and I met a teacher named Jeff Tambor who mentored me once a week in a specific healing modality called Energetic NLP. NLP stands for Neuro Linguistic Programing, which essentially is a way to shift belief systems and look at what underlying or subconscious beliefs are shaping our reality. Energetic NLP and energy healing in combination create a connection between subtle energies that can heal, allowing us  to heal ourselves—body, spirit and soul. Later, when I was teaching, I started to integrate it into dance. I saw changes happening extremely quickly. I had one student who had an eating disorder, but she had not told anyone about it previously. Through the healing work she came to me and told me about it. There was such a change in her because she was able to let the healing begin by opening up. Before, when she was keeping it secret, it was her way of controlling her world, but I think she realized that there was another way she could find control and truth in her life. That was a reflection to me that this work needs to happen and became my starting point.

 

How were you able to incorporate these healing practices into your dancing?

 

I really appreciate tradition and roots, and by incorporating healing with dance practices it helps create quite radical works. I also believe bringing female empowerment forward and renewing the energy is a powerful regiment. That's why I began to teach the Martha Graham classes with connection to healing in my classes at the Secret Garden Society.  

 

I would love to take class and feel the healing practices alongside dancing. I would also like to get to know more about your teaching practice, having had the opportunity to teach people of many ages myself. I love being able to share all the knowledge I have received from my teachers and friends with my students. It feels fulfilling when I see a change within them, whether it be in their ability to dance or in their confidence. When you are teaching, especially adults who may not have had the opportunity to dance before, what do you do to help them feel more comfortable in a new space with new people? Sometimes it is difficult for people to open up and move freely in a space that is new to them.  

 

Ahh, thats a good question! Building trust is a huge part. They need to know they can trust you right away, which requires confidence kindness and compassion. Having a gentle, yet authoritative quality because you are in charge; letting others know someone is in charge creates safety in a space. I also like to bring in the energy healing into my classes because it creates compassion amongst the people and less competition. Everyone sees each other as humans, with their own variables and constraints, making it so they can support each other by connecting everyone in the room through the healing energy. This is where the energy has really helped me, it allows me to create this sort of connection without even having to say anything. Even doing things like sitting in a circle can help, because that begins to automatically bond them. When you are standing at the front of the class in a traditional way, it unintentionally creates hierarchy, which is fine, but by going in a circle, everyone has to see everyone. Simple things like that can shift the energy of the room. I also like to include co-teaching in my classes, by getting people to partner up and help each other with an exercise. This gets them talking to one another and getting to know each other, rather than just working in their own heads. It’s about getting them out of their heads; to stop thinking, feel and listen to your body.