Thursdays at Heart and Hands this Fall

Thursday evening sessions (7:30-9pm) will start up September 5th! There will be three free workshops in September, and then two series of classes. The sessions are at the lovely Heart & Hands Health Collective (851 Cormorant Street, downtown) in Lekwungen territories. (Detailed overview of what Thursday sessions are like). To RSVP for the weeks you would like to attend, please be in touch.

Upcoming series of classes:

Dance Improvisation for Fun
Thursdays 7:30-9pm, October 10, 17, 24 (join any week)
The will be a variety of dance improv activities and games to encourage moving in new ways. Each class will focus on a couple of dance concepts (e.g. shape, time, space, consent, flow, focus).

Dance for Wellbeing
Thursdays 7:30-9pm, November 7, 14 & 21
There are a lot of intense things happening on this planet, and sometimes November – with winter approaching – can be a rough month for people locally. Each dance class will include: movement activities for self-care and connecting with personal sources of strength, creative dance games for fun, and crayons & art supplies available for (optional) doodling or writing after dancing.

Workshops:

Dance as Self-Care/ Mutual-Care: Sept. 5
This workshop will include various creative movement and dance activities for grounding, connecting with personal sources of strength, and supporting each other as a group. (Full description). FREE.

*FULL* Intro to Creative Dance: Sept. 12
This workshop is for people who are new to dance improvisation, who think they “can’t” dance, or who feel ‘awkward’/’rusty’/’shy’ about dancing in front of anyone. The focus is on accepting and celebrating our unique selves and ways of moving. (Full description). FREE.

*FULL* Dance Games Night!  Sept. 19
There will be a whole bunch of creative movement games, and we’ll take turns picking the next game from a basket. (Full description). FREE.

*For all sessions, RSVPing is recommended, as space is limited. For people with unpredictable schedules, drop-ins are welcome as long as there is room (if a session is full it will be noted as “FULL” in that night’s title on the calendar).

For details about the location, logistics and accessibilities, click here.

Fresh-air Frolic Aug. 20 and 21 at ROMP!

FRESH-AIR FROLIC! (free sessions for all ages & abilities)

Tues. August 20, and Wed. August 21

5pm – 5:30pm

Creative movement & dance improvisation games

at ROMP Dance Festival, Centennial Square in Lekwungen Territories

Everyone is welcome at this playful dance improvisation session. There will be creative movement activities and games, such as a dancing version of ‘Go go go stop!’. All that is needed is an openness to having fun and creating a supportive space together. People of all ages are welcome, including children accompanied by an adult.

Dancing outdoors August 12th (No classes in July)

Summer is finally here! Would you like to dance outdoors in a park in August?

There will be a Fresh-air Frolic session Monday August 12th at 7pm, at Mason Street Park (also known as Franklin Green Park – behind Wellburn’s and the Gallery at Mason & Cook), meeting beside the bench swing. This session is free, and donations to the Community Tool Shed are welcome.

The session involves 45 minutes of dance improvisation activities and movement games, followed by sharing snacks and an optional 10-minute open improv. No dance experience needed. See the Fresh-air Frolic page for more info.

(There won’t be any dancing with integrity sessions in July, as Joanne is away at dance-movement therapy courses and preparing for autumn.)

Thursdays 7:30pm at Heart and Hands this autumn

Thursday evening sessions (7:30-9pm) will start up September 5th! There will be three free workshops in September, and then two 5-week series of classes. The sessions are at the lovely Heart & Hands Health Collective (851 Cormorant Street, downtown) in Lekwungen territories.

Full details are here.

Thursday themes until June 20th

The Thursday night community classes at Heart & Hands (851 Cormorant St.) continue until June 20th and then will break for the summer.

The dancing with integrity sessions include various dance improvisation and creative movement activities. The focus is on having fun, being curious, and renewing how we want to be with ourselves, each other, and the world. No prior dance experience needed. (Click here for a general description of the Thursday classes.)

Upcoming themes for Thursdays 7:30-9pm:

May 16: Dance Improv Ingredients

May 23: Boardroom Dance Theatre

May 30: Dance Games Night

(No class June 6)

June 13: Dance as Self-Care / Mutual-Care

June 20: Summer Ingredients

Drop-ins are welcome, so long as that night’s title doesn’t say “FULL” on the calendar.

For a shorter summary of upcoming themes, click here and scroll half-way down for the Themes section.

Click here for details about the location, sliding scale and accessibilities.

Themes for Thursdays in May

The community sessions at Heart & Hands Health Collective continue in May with a new series. Everyone is welcome, including people completely new to dance improvisation, and people who are experienced dancers.

Click here for a general overview of the Thursday classes.

Upcoming themes for Thursdays 7:30-9pm:

May 2nd: Dance as Self-Care / Mutual-Care

May 9th: Improvising with an uncertain world

May 16th: Dance Improv Ingredients

May 23rd: Boardroom Dance Theatre

May 30th: Dance Games Night

Click here for details about the location, sliding scale, how to register and accessibilities.

RSVPing is encouraged, but Drop-ins are welcome – so long as that night’s title doesn’t say “FULL” on the Calendar.

People who attend all five sessions in May will be gifted a four-leaf-clover.

Dance Games Night: Thurs. April 25

As everyone said they found the Dance Games Night last month to be so much fun, the plan is to have a dancing games session once a month. There are a whole bunch of movement games we could play and these are written on pieces of paper; on the 25th we’ll take turns picking the next game out of a bowl.

Thursday April 25th, 7:30pm-9pm*, by donation. Click here for more info. This is part of the weekly community dance improvisation classes on Thursdays at Heart & Hands Health Collective in Lekwungen Territories.

*As April 25th is also the full moon, near the end of this class at Heart and Hands, if it’s clear skies we could head up to Summit at 8:45pm for the full moon rise together (for a really brief version of the monthly dancing acknowledgments).

Click here for info about Thursday night sessions in May.

Fresh-air Fernwood: Mondays April 8-29

In April there will be a weekly fresh-air session in Fernwood: Mondays from April 8th – 29th, 5:30-6:30pm, by donation.

We’ll meet up for a warm-up in the same location each week, and then head to another outdoor space in the neighbourhood, for family-friendly dance improvisation activities and movement games. Please dress for the weather.

Themes for each week:
April 8^th An Unbirthday Party! – Games @ the park
April 15^th Creating a short Flashmob together (to perform on the 29^th)
April 22^nd Plants & Dance – Mother Earth Day & National Dance Week
April 29^th Flashmob Frolic for International Dance Day – rehearsal then Flashmob!

Click here for meet-up location and other details.

(Dance) Games Night March 28!

To celebrate the first season of dancing with integrity classes at Heart and Hands Health Collective, there will be a Games Night!

Thursday March 28^th at 7:30pm. All welcome ~ RSVPing recommended (it’s a small space – 10 people max.). By donation. Potato chips included.

There will be a whole bunch of movement games, and we’ll take turns picking the next (low-tech) game out of a hat. A few examples: a dancing version of Go, go, go, Stop, Movement Bingo, and embodied rock-paper-scissors. We’ll also improvise with a deck of cards and use letters from Scrabble to come up with words to include in our dancing. People are welcome to suggest games, too!

Click here for details about the location, how to register and accessibility details.