bill evans dance teachers intensive newsletter

BILL EVANS DANCE TEACHERS INTENSIVE! JANUARY 2013

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!elcome " #e $rst issue of #e Bi% Evans Dance Teachers In&nsive newsle'er! Whe#er you have a'ended one summer workshop or several, are a cer($ed &acher of #e Evans’ Me#od of Laban-Based

)ance Technique pedagogy, someone coming " Wi%iam’s &chnique for #e $rst (me, or are a *iend of Bi%

+vans Dance, #is newsle'er is for you. We invi& your comments, ques(ons, and pho"graphs as we ,elebra& #e pa#ways and possibili(es revealed by immersion in #is work.

-est wishes for a glorious 2013!

.yn#ia Wi%iams, Geneva, NY, January 2013.

NEWSLETTER

These six join the ranks of teachers certified in the Bill Evans Method of Teaching Laban-Based Modern Dance Technique after completing the study, presentation, teaching, and essay requirements established by William Evans in conjunction with his Dance Teachers’ Intensives.

Joanna BrotmanDance Educator at the Dalton School, NYCModern Technique, Improvisation, ChoreographyFourth Grade, Middle School, High School

What an extraordinary opportunity it has been to spend two weeks every summer living and breathing dance education, engaged with highly accomplished and committed dance

specialists from around the country, led by the internationally renowned master dancer/dance educator Bill Evans! Bill’s approach to teaching dance emphasizes body-mind-heart integration as it guides students to establish a balance between inner connectivity and outer expressivity. His exceptionally thorough technique offers healthful, regenerative ways of moving in harmony with ourselves and others to build strong (connected) bodies, prevent injuries, maximize movement potential, express ourselves creatively, and build community.

My curriculum and my teaching have been transformed by the BETI Certification process. By interweaving pedagogical philosophy and methodology with time for curricular development, including experimentation, implementation, reflection, exchange, and one-on-one feedback, BETI supports and sustains my ongoing personal and professional growth after 30 years as a dance educator. It has enabled me to deepen my perceptions about movement, my experience of movement, and my ability to communicate effectively about movement. The knowledge gained in this process has become foundational not only to my curriculum and teaching methods, but to my own personal approach to movement as well. Rather than replace what I have been doing, I have been able to layer this learning into the best aspects of my previous curriculum, teaching style, and movement experience, building upon and enriching what is essential about who I am and what I teach. The potential for change embodied in The Bill Evans Method, and the possibilities for its application, are endless. Graduating from the BETI Certification Program is a beginning – I’m excited about the ongoing

Six Join the Ranks of Certified Teachers2012 Bi! Evans Dance Teachers Certification Progra"

The BETI Newsletter is produced and edited by Cynthia Williams, with design creation by Dot Vogt. The newsletter can be accessed online at www.billevansdance.org.

Copyright © 2013 Cynthia Williams/BETI Newsletter


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Six Join cont.process of exploring and integrating this work moving forward. Can’t imagine teaching without it.

Selene Carter!Selene Carter is a Lecturer in Kinesiology at Indiana University Bloomington, and a faculty member of the IU Contemporary Dance Program. She teaches Concert Dance History, Improvisation, Modern Dance Technique, Choreography, Dance Studies and

Theory. Some o f h e r fi r s t formal training in dance was with the Bill Evans Dance Company in the e a r l y 1 9 8 0 ' s b e f o r e s h e b e g a n h i g h s c h o o l . T h e introduction to

the ballet teaching of Kitty Daniels, Bartenieff Fundamentals and Laban Movement Analysis had a deep impact on her foundation as a young dancer. Seeing the Bill Evans Dance Company perform Evans' works such as Legacy, Willow Bay, and Alternating Currents performed by Evans himself, Debbie Poulsen and Greg Lizenbery had a lasting impact on her understanding of modern dance in performance. Returning to the Evans work three decades later was a homecoming and re-membering of her roots in dance. The BEDTI Certification Program has completely transformed her teaching. "I relate to my students in a completely different way. I facilitate their learning towards their own goals, which I empower them to identify and explore. The entire process is about reflection and inquiry instead of delivery and repetition." In her fourth and final year (summer 2012) of the Certification Training she is reflecting on the following ideas shared by William 'Bill' Evans in his teaching, ' Explore something's' opposite instead of judging, preferring or deleting it' and 'It's not Bartenieff Fundamentals if you are only

doing the outer form. It is only Bartenieff Fundamentals if you are investigating the sensation, tuning in to what you can learn, and if it has intent.' She is focusing on how to structure somatic explorations for her students that include 'something and its opposite' yielding critical discernment and personal intent. The word that Evans repeated the most was 'allow' and she has begun to observe how this is present in the learning and dancing of her students, and in herself.

Kathy DiehlMy first class with Bill was during the summer of 2007. Prior to this class, I had only trained in ballet, just a few modern classes here or there. I was immediately struck by Bill's level of energy and use of language. I did not necessarily understand everything he was saying and my body certainly was not cooperating, but I was very intrigued!

When I started the MFA p r o g r a m a t S U N Y Brockport, I really began my training with Bill and shortly thereafter began dancing in his company. I have performed with his company since 2008 which has been such an incredible gift to me. I discovered modern dance very late in life and so performing was not really a part of my grand plan. I primarily wanted to go back to graduate school to become a better teacher. The chance to perform again was completely unexpected and continues to offer me endless opportunities for growth and self-discovery.

After completing my MFA in 2010, I continued to take class with Bill and then in 2011, I was offered a Visiting Professor position at Webster University in St. Louis. During the semester, I realized quite

IN THIS ISSUE: Bartenie! Fundamentals Uncovered................5 What Would Your T"Shirt Say?......................12 What’s in My Pocket?........................................9 William Tells....................................................13 Applied Pedagogy..............................................10 News, Workshops, and Calls for Proposals...15 A Bagel Walks Into a Bar..................................12 In the Next Issue.............................................16


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Six Join cont.profoundly how much my pedagogy has been influenced by Bill. I shared my experiences in all of the courses I took with him and even taught some of his repertory. There were times when I felt like Bill was in the studio with me, reminding me that I can teach what I know and that each person has his/her own unique process and journey. This presence was comforting as I adjusted to life in a new city, department, and community.

I returned from St. Louis in January 2012 and was able to resume work with Bill. At that point, I decided that it was very important to me to complete my certification in Evans technique as it has impacted all areas of my work. For two weeks in summer 2012, I had the chance to immerse myself in a community of people who understood and supported this goal. During our graduation ceremony, myself and the other graduates were surrounded by the symbolic circle with a spirit of encouragement, pride, and sincerity that was beautifully uplifting.

As the new semester is just around the corner, I approach my Visiting Professor position at Hobart William Smith Colleges with confidence and excitement! I love what I do and I am delighted by the fact that life is change!

Rebecca McArthurCurrently teaching at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, MS.

I first met William “Bill” Evans when I started grad school at the State University of New York, College at Brockport. I remember taking one of his classes and

experiencing internal connections that I have never experienced or felt before. After my first year of studying under William, I decided to p a r t i c i p a t e i n t h e certification program simply because I knew it was an honest approach to movement and I

wanted to experience these new connections on a deeper level. While studying the Evans' technique, I felt that this type of movement meant something and that I wasn't just moving because someone told me to.

I felt connected to the material given in class and I experienced growth. In addition, I know that I will be teaching dance for the rest of my life and it brings me so much joy to know that I will not only an effective teacher but a confident teacher by applying the skills and tools that I learned by entering the certification program.

By taking part in the certification program, I have gained a vast amount of knowledge in the Bartenieff Fundamentals and Laban Movement Analysis. Every day I left the workshop with a sense of amazement simply because I not only understood the information that was being offered through the teachers within the program, but I applied what I learned from the technique and dance composition classes to dances I am making today. Because of the knowledge that I have gained, I found that I learned more about sensing change and allowing change to occur throughout my body. I found that I was able to let go of inefficient patterns and focus on how to replace these with clarity and intent. With all this said, because of studying under William Evans and the other teachers from the certification program, I can teach and dance with more clarity, understanding and passion.

Missy Pfohl SmithMissy Pfohl Smith is currently the Director of the Program of Dance and Movement at University of Rochester and teaches contemporary modern technique, choreography, p e r f o r m a n c e , contemporary ballet and vernacular jazz. She also f o u n d e d a n d directs BIODANCE, a nat iona l ly emerg ing contemporary repertory c o m p a n y b a s e d i n R o c h e s t e r , N Y . Previously based in NYC for 12 years, Missy performed predominantly with Randy James Dance Works and Paul Mosley and received her MFA from Sarah Lawrence College. She is thrilled to have landed in the same area as Bill Evans who has opened a whole new world of study for her. She began taking classes and participating in his summer intensives in




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Six Join cont.

2004. William's generous sharing of his knowledge, experiences and philosophies has been inspiring and life-changing. I am astounded by how much more understanding and integration occurs each year that I study with William, Don, Debra and Suzi. I am ever so grateful to be able to continue to become a better educator, dancer and multi-faceted person.

Courtney WorldSince meeting William in 2004 as a graduate student at The College at Brockport, I have studied and immersed myself in Evans technique, which has truly transformed my dancing and teaching in countless ways. It has been a pleasure and an honor to perform with Bill Evans Dance Company, dancing eight classic works in the repertory, and two newly

choreographed works set to Brahms music, including William’s newest work, which w i l l p r e m i e r e i n February. I thank William for re-igniting my love for tap dance, introducing me to many traditional works a n d f o r o f f e r i n g n u m e r o u s opportunities to share

the stage with him as a tap dance partner. It’s been a great year for the company, performing at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival this past summer, conducting teaching and performance residencies, and performing at the Rochester Fringe Festival. I am currently teaching a variety of dance technique courses at The University of Rochester as a part-time member of the dance faculty, and at Nazareth College. This has been in incredibly full and fulfilling semester of teaching (University of Rochester, Hobart and William Smith), performing, and creating dance in Rochester and beyond. It has been a joy to pass on my knowledge to aspiring dance-artists, dance lovers and exposing students to the world of dance for the first time. Adopting the Evans Method has had a major impact and influence on the way I teach not only modern dance technique, but the way I approach teaching all movement and theory courses. Some of

the lessons I have learned from William that resonate with me most as I continue my explorations as a teacher include: trusting in the process and enjoying the journey; experiencing polar extremes as well as the dynamic interplay between them; establishing a community of learners; empowering students to take personal ownership of the learning process through goal-setting and self-reflection; and fostering creativity, individuality, and personal uniqueness.

Attending the teacher intensives as a student, as one of William’s “bodies” and as tap teacher has given me opportunities to learn, grow, nourish my own dancing body, mind, and soul. I look forward each year to connecting and sharing with other dance artists and teachers from around the country and continuing to develop as an artist and teacher. As I mark my eighth year in my journey of studying, performing, teaching, living, and breathing the Bill Evans method of teaching dance technique, I am thrilled to join the ranks of the newly certified, and to continue to pass on this work!

Wi!iam's "bodies": Courtney World, Jenny Showalter, and Heather Acomb


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Bartenieff Fundamentals Uncovered: In this section we offer perspectives on the Bartenieff Fundamentals, starting this issue with the Patterns of Total Body Connectivity and the Basic Six, as “uncovered” by Cadence Whittier, Associate Professor of Dance at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, CLMA, and co-director of the Integrated Movement Studies Program.

BARTENIEFF FUNDAMENTALS

Five Fundamental Questions

(You’ve Got Questions, I’ve Got Answers)

Every field of study uses specific terminology and jargon, which can be off-putting to those outside the field. I have found, however, that even those inside the field might find the terminology and jargon within their area of study difficult to master. The Bartenieff Fundamentals are no exception. Learning the terminology in BF can be a confusing experience organizationally and conceptually. So, in this first BETI newsletter, let’s start with the basics.

1. What are the Bartenieff Fundamentals?Irmgard Bartenieff developed the Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF) as a unique but integral part of the Laban Movement Analysis framework. As the chart below demonstrates, BF is one of the many concepts that are studied within the LMA category of Body.

Patterns of Total Body Connectivityi Basic Sixii

Thigh Lifts

Sagittal Pelvic Shift

Lateral Pelvic Shift

Body Half

Diagonal Knee Reach

Arm Circles

Breath Connectivity

Core-Distal Connectivity

Head-Tail Connectivity

Upper-Lower Connectivity

Body-Half Connectivity

Cross-Lateral Connectivity

Basic Body ! Bartenieff Body Sequencing/Phrasing Body Parts

Actions! ! Fundamentals!

Laban/Bartenieff Movement Analysis (LMA/BF)

Body! ! Effort Shape! ! Space




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As a somatic discipline, BF explores “patterning connections in the body according to principles of efficient movement functioning within a context which encourages personal expression and full psychophysical involvement.”iii Whoa. That was a mouthful, wasn’t it? Let’s unpack that a little.

Patterning Body Connections When you learn a physical activity, new neuromuscular

connections form in your body. These body-mind connections are not isolated phenomena.

They impact the way you perceive yourself. This, in turn, may influence future activities you choose to participate in and even possibly how you

relate to others. In BF, explorations in body

connectivity are integral to self-understanding.

What happens when you experiment with new ways of

moving and being in the body? What new insights and

connections will you discover?

Personal ExpressionAs creative and imaginative

beings, we desire to express ourselves, to

communicate to others and build relationships in the outside world. In BF, effective communication and self-expression are an important part of our

ability to experience positive change in

our bodies.

What new possibilities for self-expression are available to me as I pattern new connections in

my body?

Psychophysical InvolvementMoving is a thinking and

feeling experience. In BF, we encourage active and

conscious participation with bodily explorations.

Movement does not just enhance one’s physical experience, but is also a

“means to enhancing, strengthening, and ex-panding the range of

psychological ex-perience.”iv

How will my new physical discoveries impact my self-

perception and my relationships to others and to my environment?

For a more complete discussion of these thre ee ideas, reference pages 31-34 in Making g Connections by Peggy Hackney.

2. What are the Patterns of Total Body Connectivity?The Patterns of Total Body Connectivity (PTBC) are a primary subject in Peggy Hackney’s text Making Connections. When studying the PTBC, we focus on developmental movement progression, total body coordination, mind-body integration, and personal expression. The latter two in this list are discussed in the above table.

Developmental Movement Progression: The PTBC are organized developmentally beginning with Breath Connectivity and ending with Cross-Lateral Connectivity. Each developmental pattern offers a new set of challenges for the body. As an adult, you do not have to explore the PTBC in any particular order. It is, however, effective to look developmentally when addressing a movement issue. For example, perhaps you are struggling with grounding your lower body during a complex dance phrase. Analyzing the issue from a perspective of Upper-Lower Connectivity is a great place to start. But, you might also consider looking at earlier developmental patterns: what do the Head-Tail, Core-Distal, and Breath Connectivity Patterns teach you and how do the concepts learned in those patterns strengthen your ability to ground your lower body?

Total Body Coordination: The PTBC explore different pathways of connectivity in the body. Sometimes we think of these pathways as kinetic chains: anatomical pathways that connect our bodies from lower to upper, upper right to lower left, right to left, core to distal, and so on. It is important to ask: what is unique about the PTBC I am exploring? One way to explore this question is to create a

Bartenie! Fundamentals cont.


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movement sequence and then explore that sequence from each PTBC. What do you learn about the sequence when you approach it from Breath Connectivity? How is that different from approaching the sequence from Head-Tail or Body-Half Connectivity? Changing the PTBC will change both the feeling-tone and physical demands of the movement.

3. Why is the word “Connectivity” fundamental to understanding the PTBC?“Connectivity” is an essential word when speaking about each of the six PTBC. For example, let’s look at Head-Tail Connectivity. Do not only investigate the “Head” and the “Tail” in isolation, but also investigate the relationship between the head and the tail. How do the vertebrae move and how do they facilitate a connection between head and tail? What about the digestive system—doesn’t it also connect the head and tail? How does wellness of the digestive system impact overall Head-Tail Connectivity? As another example consider Core-Distal Connectivity. After investigating core and distal in isolation, explore the physical connectivity between core and distal:

What is core to distal connectivity? Where are those physical connective pathways in my body? How do those pathways sequence through my body?

Also explore psychophysical connectivity:

How is core support both a physical and psychological concept? How does Core-Distal connectivity facilitate my ability to relate to others while maintaining a sense of self?

Using the word “connectivity” will lead you to ask questions that explore relationships in your body and relationships between your body and your environment.

Take time to read through Chapters 6-11 in Making Connections. Identify 1-3 things from each chapter that you want to explore in your body. Here is an example of a list I created that includes one concept from each chapter:

• Inner volume and shaping through Breath Connectivity ! (also see 232-33, Bartenieff)

• Differentiation of the limbs through Core-Distal Connectivity • Adaptability and curiosity through Head-Tail Connectivity• Grounding and Yielding through Upper-Lower Connectivity• Balancing polarities through Body-Half Connectivity• Internal diagonals through Cross-Lateral Connectivity

4. What is “The Basic Six”?Pages 229-262 in Irmgard Bartenieff’s book, Body Movement: Coping with the Environment, describe exercises that explore basic body concepts. Over time, Exercises 1-6B have been named the “Basic Six.” It is important to note, however, that the Basic Six are only one aspect of Bartenieff’s large body of work during her career.

Basic Six Exercises:v

1. Thigh Lifts explore femoral flexion and extension and pelvic-femoral rhythmsvi (129, Hackney; 235-37, Bartenieff).

2. Sagittal Pelvic shifting explores forward/backward shifting through space with a focus on utilizing Core Support and the hamstring-heel connection (133-38, Hackney; 238, Bartenieff).





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3. Lateral Pelvic shifting explores side-to-side weight shifts with a focus on utilizing the adductor chain (inner leg) of the lower body (138, Hackney; 239-40, Bartenieff).

4. Body half explores mobility on one side while stabilizing on the other side. Discovering the midline of the body is important (167-71, Hackney; 241-42, Bartenieff).

5. Diagonal Knee reach explores gradated counter-rotation of the spine, rotation of the femoral joints, and diagonal patterning through the torso (182-83, Hackney; 243-45, Bartenieff).

6. Arm Circles explore scapula-humeral rhythms,vii gradated rotation of the shoulder joints, and eye-tracking (183-85, Hackney; 246-49, Bartenieff).

It is important to achieve a certain degree of comfort and mastery with the Basic Six. In order to develop deeper connectivity and new neuromuscular connections in a variety of contexts, it is also important to identify how the concepts from these six exercises underlie more complex movement. Take a moment to reflect on your experiences from the summer 2011 BETI. Why is femoral flexion and extension useful during a modern dance inversion or when performing leg swings? How do you achieve gradated counter-rotation of the spine during descending or ascending spirals? Why is eye-tracking important during the spatially complex sequences performed in a Bill Evan’s Technique class?

5. Why just the Basic Six and not the Basic Ten or Twelve?The Basic Six are only six of the many fundamental exercises Bartenieff developed during her long life. Exercises beyond the Basic Six were included in her text (250-59), but many others did not make it through the final publisher’s edits of her book. Hackney includes many of those edited exercises in her book, as well as exercises that she developed on her own. So, yes! There can be a Basic Ten or Twelve. Why not? As you explore BF on your own and in BETI, find six more concepts and ideas that feel basic to you. Then, create some exercises that help you to practice these basic concepts. In this way, you will add to the list of the Basic Six, and during next year’s BETI, you can share them with your peers! Ultimately, this is the spirit of the LMA/BF work: to learn about your body, to work with experts in the field, to be inspired, and to create your own movement applications.

i Hackney, Peggy. Making Connections. Gordon and Breach Publishers. 1998.ii Bartenieff, Irmgard. Body Movement: Coping with the Environment. Gordon and Breach. 1980.iii Hackney, Peggy. Making Connections. Gordon and Breath Publishers. 1998. pg. 31.iv Groff, Ed. Laban Movement Analysis: A Historical, Philosophical and Theoretical Perspective. Unpublished Masters Thesis. 1990. pg. 102.v Page references are for: Peggy Hackney’s Making Connections and Irmgard Bartenieff ’s Body Movement: Coping with the Environment.vi Pelvic-Femoral Rhythms: see pages 136, 189, Hackney; page 260, Bartenieff.vii Scapulo-humeral Rhythms: see pages 148, 150, Hackney; page 261, Bartenieff.


Jude Warnisher


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WHAT’S IN MY POCKET?As a dance educator, I u s e a v a r i e t y o f strategies to engage students in a process of active reflection and m e a n i n g m a k i n g during a technique class. Many are simple and relatively quick, r e q u i r e m i n i m a l advanced preparation, a n d y e t p r o v i d e consistent and effective ways to generate student participation, engender enthusiasm, gauge perceptions and deepen understanding. Over the years, I have come to rely on some strategies more than others and use several frequently, perhaps once every class or two; one particular favorite is the Snowball Toss. Here are the steps:

Snowball Toss

1. Ask students to form a standing circle (they will need to have a pen or pencil).

2. Distribute one Post-it Note (at least 3 in x 3 in) to each student (a variety of colors is helpful).

3. Ask students to fold over the sticky portion, so the Note is no longer sticky.

4. Ask students to respond in writing to a question or prompt.

5. Ask students to crumple their Note into a ball, turn to the outside of the circle and on the count of three, toss the ball gentle over their shoulders into the circle.

6. Ask students to turn around, find one ball and repeat the toss and retrieve action two more times on their own.

7. After the third time, the students uncrumple their ball, making sure they have not retrieved their own (this is why a variety of colors is helpful).

8. Ask each student to find the person who has written the response and have a brief conversation about what is written on the Note.

9. Each student will need to find one person and be found by one person, so this may take a bit of time depending on how many students are participating.

10. Once all students have found and been found, ask them to arrange themselves next to the person they found and the person who found them. The element of chance creates many possibilities for how this will look: there may be a pair of students who have each other’s Note or there may be a small group and a larger group or simply one large group.

11. Depending on time, you might ask all students to share with the group or solicit a few individual responses followed by asking the group what they heard in te rms of commonalities among the responses. You could also take the individual responses to review and/or record them to make a collective written account for the class.

The prompt or question can be as broad and open ended as: What concept are you focusing on and why? Or as direct and specific as: How would you describe the action of rotation? Regardless of the prompt’s content, my intent is to elicit an individual, unique and authentic response from each student that she then shares with her peers and me.

Providing students with opportunities to reflect and make meaning during class enables me to check their understanding of a particular concept or learn more about what is important to them in the moment and why. I can then use the information to inform my instruction— confirm students’ awarenesses or perceptions, clarify common confusions and reteach as necessary, and guide my decisions about next steps.

I recognize that the kinesthetic embodiment of a particular concept is essential for students’ technical growth and artistic development; however, I also recognize that in order for students to reach even deeper levels of understanding as an artist they need to have individual and guided opportunities to reflect and consider ideas, discuss their thinking with a partner, and listen to how their partner and peers are accessing, experiencing and processing these ideas. The Snowball Toss provides one such opportunity. I encourage you to give it a try.

What’s In My Pocket? In this column we explore pedagogy re-sources. The first, “Snowball Toss,” is explained by Dr. Don Halquist, Chair of the Department of Education and Human Development, Co-Associate Dean, School of Education and Human Development, SUNY College at Brockport.




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Dear Kitty,

I am teaching a ‘Body Lab’ hands-on, experiential anatomy class as part of our course D111- Core of Dance Technique, that is required for all incoming freshman and new dance majors in their first semester with us. I have been relying consistently on my notes from your class in Brockport this summer (and from my early training with you as always). After working on finding the rotation from the hip socket in various situations for almost 90 minutes, I used one of the pedagogy tools taught by Don Halquist, the Snow Storm, or Popcorn process using post-it notes, where they reflect on knowledge gained and share it with everyone. I am so happy with the results! I’d like to do a longitudinal study and see where these students end up in four years in terms of injury, range of movement, and ease of progression in their training. Gratefully,Selene

Students’ in-class Insights on Rotation from the ‘Thigh Sockets’ following Hands-On Anatomy Lab• Turn-out is from the femur rotating in the socket. It’s not from the butt• Turn-out is deeper than the muscles on top• Turn-out: using the thighs to outwardly rotate; not rotating from the ankles• Turn-out…it comes from the greater and lesser trochanter• Turn-out is sinking in to your joints; it is not clenching or tightening• Turn-out is: Allowing, not forcing• Turn-out is turning out from the hips and deep rotators; turn-out is not turning out from the feet

or knees• Turn-out is a releasing of the hip, not a tightening• Turn-out is not from squeezing your thighs or butt• Turn-out is an experience, not a position• Turn-out is not about the butt• Turn-out is deep in your hip socket• Turn-out is not a state of stillness, but a state of movement• Turn-out, it’s from the bones• Turn-out is: not squeezing muscles to force bones to move; it is moving bones to initiate the

turn-out movement• Turn-out is a barbershop pole. It comes from the inside. It isn’t pushing your feet to 180 degrees• Turn-out is movement• Turn-out is a candy cane pole, not a gripping position• Turn-out is not a state of stillness, but a state of movement.

cont. on pg. 11

Applied Pedagogy: This section features examples of applied pedagogy, techniques transferred from the summer workshop to one’s home teaching environment. Here, Selene Carter, Indiana University, describes her use of the Popcorn process, and Kitty Daniels, Chair and Professor of Dance at Cornish College of the Arts does the same.


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Kitty responds: Here is the feedback following one 45-min session I did with our freshmen. Many of the same ideas as yours.!

Turnout feedback Oct 2012: Movement Foundations

What I know about turnout/one thing I’m taking away from this class, following a 45-min session with Kitty Daniels

• Dropping my greater trochanter towards my sitzbones• Moving the trochanter and sitzbones out, down, under and then pulling up the body• I need to think about dropping my trochanter down and under• How to feel the quadrates femoris—deep muscle to turn out• Trochanter rotates down and under• The more the trochanter drops, the more rotation you get• Turn out is a spiral• When finding my turn out you extend leg

—you have to drop your hip and build strength in your hip flexors

• I need to think of a dropping under feel rather than pushing my knee back

• Spiraling around and down through my legs

• My trochanters going down towards my sitzbones

• Finding the greater trochanter and sitzbones connection

• How to develop correctly with turnout and correct alignment of the hip

• Drop the trochanters down and around• Turnout isn’t making the knee go directly

to the side but using the rotators• Threading a needle from the trochanter

to the inner thigh and up the midline; down and under

• Feeling the downaround muscles between my GT and sitz bones

• The new spatial idea of rotation• Turnout happens in the socket• Feel rotation from the sitzbones• Drop GT to sitzbone, feel as deep, low

rotation• Turnout is a verb! It’s something that is

constantly in action, not just holding and sticking

Applied Pedagogy cont.

Jude Warnisher




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What did the iguana say to his BEDTI friends?

“Iguana miss you!”

Two peanuts were walking down the street, and one was a salted...

What’s a ghost’s favorite food? “Boo-berries!”

My

back

is

bulging

Rule #6:

Don't

take yourself

too seriously

Shift

Happens

I found my greater

trochanter, sitz-bone

connection. What did you find?From Debbie’s Lindsay

pedagogy class Chmielowiec

Heather Acomb, credit to Georgia Ortega

Caitlyn SchraderFind Your

Heavy

Slug

Where’s my body?

Lisa LaMarr!

A Bagel Walks Into a Bar: What are your favorite jokes from BEDTI? Here are a few of ours:

What Would Your T-shirt Say?: During pedagogy class, Don would often ask us to design a T-shirt logo or saying that encapsulated some aspect of our experience. These are some of the T-shirt ideas shared for this newsletter:


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Teaching What I Want To LearnI would like to talk about the teaching of dance technique as I perceive it at this point in a long, challenging, and satisfying journey. Dancing and teaching have been at the very core of my existence since I was a child, and several phrases which capture essential beliefs kept returning to my consciousness as I prepared this article. First, “dance is primarily an activity of the human spirit;” second, “I teach what I want to learn;” third, “technique is not working if it shows;” and fourth, “everyone has the right to experience dance.” I would like to organize my words under these headings. (43)

…I chose dance—or, rather, dance chose me—because I rejected the competitive team sports which as a child I was being forced to experience. I was not interested in learning the rules or skills of baseball, football and basketball, in which there was a right and wrong way to accomplish each prescribed task, in which one was either a winner or a loser. And yet I loved moving…(43)

My parents were reluctant to encourage my dancing, thinking it was a phase I would eventually pass through. When they refused to buy me tap shoes, I discovered that I could make sounds on the floor by holding my older brother’s marbles under my bare toes. By age eight and a half, such determined behavior on my part convinced them to allow me to take dancing lessons…[with] a retired vaudevillian hoofer, Charles Purrington…I was in heaven…Throughout these early years of training I was fortunate that my teachers emphasized the learning and performing of dances in a whole-body, integrated way, rather than focusing on rules or “proper” lines, shapes, or positions…These halcyon days were not to last. (44)

If a student is continuously encouraged to focus on how she or he falls short of making “perfect” body

lines or positions, their spirit can be broken. A student whose spirit has been crushed in the process of learning a dance technique has gained skill at too great a price and cannot experience dance in a full and satisfying way. I believe that the body has ways of knowing and communicating essential truths about what it is to be human which can be blocked if a dancer thinks their body is not good enough. I believe that dancing which does not honor and reveal the unique spirit of the individual is, in fact, aberrant, because the very urge to dance comes from the need to express with the whole of ourselves a spiritual statement which is otherwise inexpressible. (45)

Despite the fact that I had found my early love affair with dance replaced by a struggle to become what I could not be, I persevered. I believed that those in authority—because they had been professionally successful—must know what was best for me…after almost 15 years of training in major ballet, modern and jazz styles of dance technique…I found my 29-year-old body chronically injured…At this point, fearing that my dancing years might already be behind me, I resolved to not take any more technique classes until I figured out for myself what my body needed. For the first time since I started serious dance training, I decided to take control of my own training. (46)

I started a long process of accepting the realities of my physical structure and of respecting my body’s messages to my mind. I discovered that my body would tell my mind what I needed if I would just pay attention to it. I became aware of patterns of breath-holding and permanent contractions in certain large, superficial muscle groups…I was encouraged by early breakthroughs in this process of looking inside and acknowledging and validating what I discovered there…(47)

It has been my practice ever since [teaching at the Virginia Tanner studio for five years] to emphasize in

William Tells: In this section, we encourage you to submit questions for William to answer. Because this is the first issue of the newsletter, we’re starting with excerpts from “Teaching What I Want to Learn,” reprinted in 1999 by Contact Quarterly. In the essay, William describes his journey from five-year-old tap dance enthusiast to celebrated performer, teacher, and choreographer and the principles that have guided him.




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my teaching not only those awarenesses and skills which I have accomplished and which have served me, but also those perceptions and skills that have eluded me and which I have needed in order to create physical and emotional balance in my own dancing. I find that by asking students to embody a desirable mind-body trait or awareness, I am able to more fully embody it myself. (48)

I am deeply distressed by the kind of dance training which encourages dancers “not to think, but to do,” over and over again, becoming essentially interchangeable clones of each other…[there are] some dancers who seem like a race of thoroughbreds, who are so sleek, so hyper-mobile, so able to create extreme lines and positions that they become unrecognizable as “regular” human beings…[they] have been encouraged to become extremely thin, to stretch their ligaments…and to hyper-extend knees, hips and backs in order to create more and more extreme (and, I think, distorted) lines. (49)

I believe that the dance technique teacher should study anatomy, kinesiology and systems of body therapy and movement repatterning to be able to understand and enhance the human movement potential of his or her students. Art, I believe, is about making connections—between the creator and him/herself, between the creator and his/her environment, and between the creator/performer and his/her audience. (49)

My own abilities to understand my body-mind needs and potentials and those of my students have been greatly enhanced by a study of applied kinesiology, initially under the guidance of Karen Clippinger…My growth as a teacher has also been supported by a study of Irmgard Bartenieff’s Fundamentals and Rudolf Laban’s theories of Effort, Shape and Space Harmony, first with Peggy Hackney, and continuing with Gregg Lizenbery and Janet Hamburg…(49-50). [Through my study of Body-Mind Centering] I have become better able to understand the basic patterns of body-mind organization which serve or fail to serve us throughout our lives. By viewing dance techniques as integrated human behavior rather than some kind of specialized, rarefied, exclusive or elite activity, I have been able to make connections between dancing and living at every level. (50)

At this point, I enter the dance technique studio to remind my students of their connections to the rest of humanity, to the rest of the animal life of the planet, and to the basic compositional elements of our universe. I encourage students to bring their senses, their feelings, their thoughts and their intuition to each facet of the technique class experience. I encourage them to explore and acknowledge what they discover in these different parts of themselves and to ask, “What do I want and need, and how can my technique class discoveries serve me in satisfying these wants and needs.” (51)

Teaching technique is about:• A passing-on, an instilling, a modeling of a set

of values.• Self-discovery, understanding choices; what

ways of organizing my total body will most effectively help me accomplish the task at hand; what choices will help me move in a healthful, regenerative way?

• Balance: of mind and body, of exertion and recuperation, of body parts/muscle groups/body systems, of container and contents, of inner and outer, of stability and mobility, of thought, sensation, intuition and feeling, of modes of movement—body, dynamics, geometric space/shape, of motion factors—attitudes toward weight, space, time and flow, of strength and flexibility, of comfort/harmony and challenge/risk

• Validation of differences; dance technique is a tool through which precious individual differences can be discovered, explored, defined and celebrated.

• Understanding elements of style; how can I honor my uniqueness while learning to make the movement choices that will enable me to work effectively in different styles?

• Understanding that the study of dance is a constantly evolving and lifelong process for each of us; this process of gradual change offers profound joy through continual newness; life is change and the opportunity to travel the journey of lifelong change is a precious gift.

This article was adapted from a National Dance Association Scholar/Artist Lecture given in 1997. These excerpts are from “Teaching What I Want To Learn,” by Bill Evans as published in Contact Quarterly, Summer/Fall, 1999, pages 43-51.

Teaching What I Want To Learn cont.


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37th Annual Bill Evans Summer Institute of DanceThe College at BrockportBrockport, New YorkJune 23 - 29, 2013Session One: Teachers’ Intensive (for professional dance educators, dance graduate students and undergraduate students in dance education)

Faculty: William Evans, Don Halquist and Cadence WhittierCourses: Bartenieff Fundamentals, Evans Laban-Based Modern Dance Technique, Laban-Based Improvisation and Composition, Laban-Based Ballet, Pedagogy Seminar, Special Evening Events Teachers’ Intensive (for professional dance educators , dance graduate s tudents and undergraduate students in dance education), Saint Mary’s College, Moraga, CA, July 1 – 6

Faculty: William Evans, Don Halquist, Debra Knapp and Suzie LundgrenCourses: Bartenieff Fundamentals, Evans Laban-Based Modern Dance Technique, Laban-Based Improvisation and Composition, Pedagogy Seminar, Special Evening Events. Also, Dancers’ Intensive (for college dance majors and minors at the intermediate and advanced levels), same faculty, courses include Bartenieff Fundamentals, Modern Dance Technique, Improv and Comp and Evans Dance Repertory.Contact Cathy Davalos, [email protected]

William Returns as Fulbright ProgramSpecialist Guatemala City, GuatemalaJuly 8 - 20, 2013

Evans will conduct a follow-up workshop in Developing a Personal Pedagogy of Dance Technique for El Centro de Danza e Investigación del Movimiento-Center for Dance and Movement Research, Artes Landívar, Universidad Rafael Landívar in Guatemala City, Guatemala. During his time in Guatemala, Evans plans

additional activties. For more information: [email protected]

William at Kinections Dance/MovementTherapyRochester, New YorkJuly 22 - 30, 2013Seven-day workshop in the Bill Evans Approach to Laban Movement Analysis718 University Avenue, Rochester, NY (585) 473-5050 / [email protected]

Mr. Evans will introduce basic concepts and practices of the LMA areas of knowledge: Body, Effort, Shape and Space, as he has found them transformative in his life and work. Students will be mostly participants in the Dance Movement Therapy program led by renowned dance movement therapist Danielle Fraenkel. (No classes on Sunday.)

William and Don at the Dance LifeTeacher ConferenceScottsdale, ArizonaAugust 1 - 4, 2013

William and Don return for the third time to this international conference to share their work in Modern Dance, Dance Pedagogy and Fundamentals of MovementFor more information: www.dancestudiolive.com/dltc/

News, Workshops, and Call for Proposals: Stay up to date on William’s teaching and performing schedule, deadlines for workshop applications and conference proposal submissions. Summer 2013 opportunities include:




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William and Don and/or Jenny Showalter Conduct Two-Day Dance Teachers’ IntensiveScottsdale Community College, Scottsdale, ArizonaAugust 5 - 6, 2013William and Don or William and Jenny Showalter will conduct a two-day intensive for Arizona Dance Educators and college students studying dance education, in association with AZDEO (Arizona Dance Education Organization) and Angela Rosenkrans, director of dance at Scottsdale Community College. The session will tentative include classes in Bartenieff Fundamentals, Evans Modern Dance Technique, Pedagogy of Dance Technique, Improv and Comp and Rhythm Tap Dance. For more information: [email protected]

International Conference Teaching Somatics-Based Dance TechniqueThe College at BrockportBrockport, New York June 20 - 23, 2013Bill Evans and Cynthia Williamsin association with the Dance Departments of The College at Brockport and Hobart & William Smith Colleges

Call for proposals: deadline EXTENDED to January 31, 2013We seek proposals for conference papers, movement workshops, and presentations from dance educators, performers and movement specialists from across a broad range of somatic disciplines. To submit a proposal, email the following information to Cynthia Williams, [email protected]:•Title of proposed presentation•Format (lecture, movement-based workshop)•Anticipated space/technical/AV needs•Preferred session length•250 word abstract describing content and focus•Your name, address, contact email and telephone number(s)If you are interested in submitting a work for performance in an adjudicated concert, please include title and length of piece, a brief description of the style/genre, and information about the choreographer(s), performer(s) and music. Depending on the level of interest we may ask for DVD submissions at a later date.

News, Workshops, and Calls for Proposals cont.

Jude Warnisher

In the Next Issue:Certified Teachers Profile: Clarence Brooks, Marlene Leber, and Jenny ShowalterBartenieff Fundamentals Uncovered: Cadence Whittier goes Beyond the Basics Applied Pedagogy: Cadence Whittier describes the application of LMA concepts to teaching balletWhat’s In My Pocket?: Don Halquist shares more pedagogical toolsA Bagel Walks Into a Bar: send us your best jokes for avoiding the modern-dance blank stare!What would your T-shirt say?: what BETI concepts do you try and keep present and visible for your students?William Tells: William explains why he uses improvisation in technique class, and offers suggestions about how to use improvisation explorations to assist students with personal meaning-makingThe Long View: Bill Evans Dance Company member and certification workshop faculty member Debra Knapp is interviewed by Cynthia WilliamsSend photographs, responses, questions or suggestions to Cynthia Williams, [email protected]

bill evans dance teachers intensive newsletter

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