June 13-17

Dance is Big: Art-making and Community Building: For people who want to take dance into uncharted territories, this course will explore the process of building community by bringing people together to make and perform dance. A community dance project can build on the histories, identities, and emotions of individuals to create a shared experience that strengthens connections within the group.  With an emphasis on concrete tools, this course examines the theory and practice of teaching and choreographing in community settings and imparting the powerful aesthetic and social functions of dance to individuals and groups. Each day starts with physical warm up, including both beginning level and advanced offerings such as yoga, modern, partnering, and improvisation. After warm up, creative sessions explore choreographic methods utilized in Dance Exchange practice. Participants will learn Dance Exchange techniques that support and advance artistic projects in community settings. With experiential work and supporting documentation, they will sample the Dance Exchange’s current ToolBox project and gain structures for developing their own toolboxes for dance and community engagement. Opportunity for hands-on experience will include working with teens at the Green Street Arts Center and senior residents of a local care center. This course is open to adults of all abilities and levels of experience, and seeks to bring together professional and pre-professional dancers, community activists, educators, healthcare and recreation workers, and others working in community settings. The course is open to adults of all ages, and Liz Lerman Dance Exchange encourages the active participation of people 55 years of age and older.

Instructors: Peter DiMuro, Elizabeth Johnson, Matt Mahaney, Martha Wittman

Time: Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

Fee: $425

Words and Movement: This workshop is for anyone who wants more awareness of effective communication and the experience of weaving spoken word with original movement. Actors, school teachers, directors, filmmakers, and liturgical dancers are prime candidates for this class. Each day starts with physical warm up, including both beginning level and advanced offerings such as yoga, modern, partnering, and improvisation. After warm up, creative sessions explore choreographic methods utilized in Dance Exchange practice. Participants will work on writing, storytelling, movement, and choreography for an in-depth exploration of this very particular branch of dance/performance art. Using verbal and movement techniques that function as “jump starts” for creative exploration, participants will create text and movement solos working with physical detail and movement metaphor in multiple combinations. This course is open to adults from any background and experience level who are prepared for focused physical work.

Instructors: Peter DiMuro, Elizabeth Johnson, Matt Mahaney, Martha Wittman

Time: Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

Fee: $425

June 20-24

Dance Intensive for Senior Adults: The older dancer is a vibrant mover, creator, and collaborator. In this dance intensive, senior adults are fully immersed in the artistic process: creating, refining, and performing. This course welcomes adults age 55 and up, and no previous dance experience is required. Participants may be adults who dance or danced professionally; danced at an earlier point in their lives and want to be dancing again; enjoy recreational dancing (such as folk, ballroom, or line dancing) and want to explore a broader practice of dance; or are just becoming interested in a structured dance experience. Each day starts with physical warm up, including both beginning level and advanced offerings such as yoga, modern, partnering, and improvisation. After warm up, creative sessions explore choreographic methods utilized in Dance Exchange practice.

Instructors: Liz Lerman, Margot Greenlee, Ted Johnson, Matt Mahaney, Martha Wittman

Time: Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

Fee: $425

Dance Deep: An Intensive for Dancers, Writers, and Theatre Artists (ARTS 665 - 3 credit graduate course): This five-day session focuses on dance-making by immersing participants in the sometimes radical approach to making art for which the Dance Exchange has become known. Designed for the advanced practitioner/performers, participants are invited to bring current artistic work or be ready to start something completely new. Each day starts with physical warm up, including both beginning level and advanced offerings such as yoga, modern, partnering, and improvisation. After warm up, creative sessions explore choreographic methods utilized in Dance Exchange practice. Tracking and becoming aware of one’s own intuitive compositional approach will also be a major focus of the week’s work with participants collaborating across disciplines to discover new writing, speaking, and performing methods. Topics covered in this class will include: stretching your ability to generate choreographic concepts and movement material; building and broadening your individual movement strengths; finding your voice as a performer—both literally and figuratively; making the movement your own when learning ensemble works; collaborating in the art making process; interacting constructively within a company; and preparing for your own next steps.

Instructors: Liz Lerman, Margot Greenlee, Ted Johnson, Matt Mahaney, Martha Wittman

Time: Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

Fee: $1,275

Please note: A separate registration form is required for this graduate-level course. For more information, go to the Graduate Liberal Studies Program Web site.