Location: Full studio

Description:

As circus artists, we spend a lot of time building strength and mobility and learning to do cool tricks. But the ingredient that ties everything together into a compelling act - a cohesive piece of art - is movement quality. Movement quality is what helps us turn a series of tricks into a sequence; what allows us to convey emotion without words; and what allows us to embody a character to tell a story. Join Meghan to explore different ways of thinking about, talking about, and creating movement, and learn to apply those concepts to your work in your circus discipline!

Moving to Connect is a contemporary approach to dance technique that draws from an eclectic blend of modern dance practices, Laban Movement Analysis/Bartenieff Fundamentals (LMA/BF), and other somatic modalities to find connectivity, fluidity, and dynamic expression in the body. This technique class focuses on somatic concepts through improvisation and phrase work to find specificity in describing movement, embodiment, and whole body integration first on the ground, and then in your circus discpline. The overarching goal is for participants to discover authenticity, greater movement potential, and a deeper connection to themselves and their surrounding community. In this workshop at Esh, we will focus on the developmental movement patterns as a way to unlock movement possibilities.

Available: 8/8

Price: $65.00 Taxes waived

Required age: 16+ on the day of the activity

Notes: MEGHAN MCLYMAN is a professor of dance and the dance program coordinator at Salem State University in Salem, MA. The University recognized her passion for teaching with the 2017 Distinguished Teaching Award, and in 2018, she received an Arts Learning Distinguished Teaching and Arts Advocacy Award. She is also a recipient of a 2020 Whiting Fellowship which supported her research at ImPulsTanz in Vienna, Austria. Meghan is the co-director of Accumulation Dance, in partnership with Kristen Duffy Young, where they were funded as Next Steps artists under The Boston Foundation. She has presented at National Dance Education Organization conferences, the Somatic Dance Conference, and with TEDxSalem State University (2019). Meghan holds degrees from Point Park University, American University, and Hollins University, is a Moving For Life Certified Teacher under Martha Eddy, and a Certified Evans Teacher under Bill Evans. She also serves on the board of the Massachusetts Dance Education Organization.

Prerequisites: Elements of floor-based movement will be included in this workshop, but no formal dance training is required. Students should be at Level 201 or higher in their chosen circus discipline, and must be comfortable creating a short sequence that they can perform safely without direct input from an instructor.

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