Archive

Raising the Barre for Mental Health – A Dance Teacher Workshop Series

Mental health is as important as physical health for healthy, happy dancers. Minding the Gap presents a workshop curated in five sessions, each presented by an accredited professional.

Session dates will be:

#1 – February 6, 2022
Common mental health challenges for dancers, signs of distress, and what actions can be taken. 
Presenter: Josh Spell MSW, LICSW – consulting mental health professional to Pacific Northwest Ballet.

#2 – February 20, 2022
Tough Love in teaching. What is it? How is it done correctly? Unlearning problematic methods from our past and moving on with a mental health approach to dance pedagogy.
Presenter: Jo-Anne La Flèche, MPsy, MA Dance – consulting psychologist to l’École supérieure de ballet du Québec.

#3 – March 6, 2022
Language Matters: Shifting how we speak about food and bodies to prevent eating disorders and improve dancer health.
Presenter: Monika Saigal, MS, RD, CEDRD-S, CDN – nutritionist and eating disorder expert based in New York City.

#4 – March 20, 2022
Productive, proactive communication. How to engage students and dancers on the tough topics and disappointments.
Presenter: Jackson Jirard, M.Ed – Education psychology specialist and dance educator, associate director of Urban Improv at Rehearsal For Life in Massachusetts.

#5 – April 3, 2022
How to support an injured dancer. Best practices to get the dancer back into the studio strong both mentally and physically.
Presenter: Marissa Schaeffer, PT, DPT, CSCS – licensed physical therapist and NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist in New York City.

Berit Ahlgren teaches Moving Practice Tuesdays

Moving Practice is a weekly class series for professional dancers. Classes prioritize rigor, diversity of contemporary aesthetics, variety of class content, and commitment. Professional level dancers of all styles are welcome.

Tuesdays, 10:00-11:30AM at The Arena
Berit Ahlgren teaches throughout February.
Pre-register at https://www.arena-dances.org/the-arena/
Flexible pricing and free parking! $17 drop-in.

Each session will begin with a guided improvisation rooted in the Gaga movement language to warm up the body and creative mindset. Students will both learn phrase work, as well as deconstruct Ahlgren’s previously made choreography as a means to collaboratively build new movement vocabulary. Depending on weekly attendance, we may build from week to week, or start fresh each session. Expect a physical practice with room to honor your own needs and/or limitations week to week.

Originally from St. Paul, Berit Ahlgren gained her foundational dance training from Minnesota Dance Theater and received a BFA in Dance from St. Olaf College, where she also studied biomedical studies. Ahlgren was a founding member of TU Dance under the artistic directorship of Toni Pierce-Sands and Uri Sands, and performed with the company between 2006—2016. Receiving Metropolitan Regional Arts Council’s Next Step Grant in 2011, Ahlgren had the opportunity to study the Gaga Movement Language in Tel Aviv, and moved to Israel to pursue teacher certification between 2011-2012.

Ahlgren earned her MFA in Dance from NYU/Tisch School of the Arts in 2016, and has since been on faculty at the University of Minnesota and Winona State University, performing with independent choreographers between Minneapolis and New York, and choreographing her own growing body of work for both stage and camera under her organization HoneyWorks.

Ahlgren has had the great pleasure to work with Crystal Pite, Ohad Naharin, Netta Yerushalmy, Gregory Dolbashian, Dwight Rhodan, among others. Ahlgren co-choreographed and performs in Ashwini Ramaswamy’s Let the Crows Come” (hailed by the Washington Post as one of the best dance performances of 2021) and co-created the event “Live @ The Shed” with Helen Hatch which has premiered both bolerobolero (“A heroic work, a spectacle for our time,” 2020) and LDV (“an exuberant work [of] whirling gusto,” 2021). In addition to her work as performer and choreographer, Berit teaches classes in the Gaga Movement Language regularly in the Twin Cities, and well as guest teaching nationally and abroad.

Pilates Teacher Training in Edina

Paragon Pilates and Physical Therapy is a local certification studio for the Balanced Body Comprehensive Teacher Training Program.  We have upcoming certification workshops for Teacher Trainees who have previously completed the Balanced Body Movement Principles and Reformer 1 courses.

February 11-13: Reformer 2
Prerequisites: Movement Principles and Reformer 1.
Instructor: Cari Riis Stemmler
Fee: $549

March 4-6: Reformer 3
Prerequisites: Movement Principles, Reformer 1 and 2.

April 22-24: Chair and Barrels
Prerequisites: Movement Principles and Reformer 1 and 2.

Visit our website for more information HERE, or call the studio at 952-405-9765

Brand new students can start their journey with us September 16-18 with Movement Principles.

Winter Dance Experience – Single Day Dance Camps

Join us on Monday, February 21 for a day of classes featuring a variety of fun styles! Spend your day off from school exploring new styles of dance with your friends! Classes include Family Dance, Creative Movement, and a half-day Variety Camp.

Family Dance
Join us for a morning of dancing together with teacher extraordinaire, Julia. Children and caregivers will get a special start to their day, exploring movement and stories in a fun environment.
Ages 1–6 with Caregiver
9:15–10:00am
$15

Creative Movement
Your little one can explore the possibilities of movement with a focus on storytelling. From a personal experience to the depths of their imaginations, children will spend time expressing the stories that reside in their bodies and minds. In this fun-filled class, children develop large and fine motor skills, as well as coordination, rhythm, and listening skills as they go on their creative adventures.
Ages 4–7
10:00am–12:00pm
$25

Variety Dance Camp
Send your dancers to us for their afternoon off! In this camp, dancers will experience a variety of styles including Percussive Dance with Karla Nweje, Hip Hop with Waswa Kalema, Jazz Dance with Javan Mngrezzo, and Modern with Anat Shinar.
Ages 7–13 and 14–18
1:00–4:30pm
$50 

Register.youngdance.org

Audition for Off-Leash Area’s Production of Minotaur

The dance audition for Off-Leash Area’s 2022 mainstage production, Minotaur, will be held in a workshop format. We are looking for three additional dancers who have previous experience with or show proclivity towards embodying Theatrical Mask work, strong contemporary/modern dance skills, and strong musicality using complex rhythms.

We are looking to create a cast that expresses a range of ages and gender identities.​

Positions are paid a $1000 stipend. Anticipated rehearsals are twice weekly end of February through mid-May, thrice weekly mid-May through July. Tech and performance dates are July 11-17, 2022. Performance venue is Barbara Barker Center for Dance, Minneapolis.

Minotaur Audition for Dancers
Sunday, February 6: 5:00-7:00pm
at TU Dance Center, 2121 University Ave, St. Paul. Directly behind the Subway restaurant.

To sign up for the Minotaur audition for dancers, send a resume or brief summary of your dance experience to Off-Leash Area at offleash@offleasharea.org. Space is limited and N95 masks are required. Full Covid protocol on our website.

For more on the workshops and audition, visit www.offleasharea.org/auditionworkshops.
For more on Minotaur, visit www.offleasharea.org/on-stage-now.

Twin Cities Ballet is Hiring – Position Open for Male Company Dancer

Twin Cities Ballet has an open position for a male company dancer for the second half of the 2021/2022 season, through May 8, 2022. This is a competitive, salaried position with a 14-week contract. Strong classical ballet and contemporary skills required.

We also are willing to work with a guest artist for each of the performances below, if you are not available for the entire 14-week contract. Please email info@TwinCitiesBallet.org for more information.

Our spring season includes:

Pink Floyd’s THE WALL: A Rock Ballet – TCB will be performing its smash-hit original rock ballet at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul on March 12–13, with live music from popular local band Momentary Lapse of Floyd.

Giselle – The season will conclude with the beautiful ballet classic, Giselle, at Ames Center in Burnsville May 6–8. This will be the Twin Cities Ballet company premiere of one of the most popular and enduring ballet favorites.

Please submit the following audition materials by email:
-Your resumé.
-Two photos: 1) first arabesque and 2) a headshot showing at least 3/4 face. Either attach small format photos or provide a link.
-Video link showing classwork or performance clips, clearly demonstrating your classical ballet technique.
-State whether you are currently eligible to work in the United States.

Please send information to info@TwinCitiesBallet.org. We will contact you after we have reviewed your audition materials to schedule an in-person or virtual audition.

ABOUT US
Twin Cities Ballet (TCB) is an independent, 501(c)(3) non-profit professional dance company that creates original full-length and shorter story ballets, a rare and nearly lost art, as well as more abstract contemporary ballet-based works. An emerging gem in the Twin Cities, TCB has carefully built a financially solid and growing organization that is making its mark both regionally and nationally through its creative and innovative artistic endeavors.

TCB prohibits discrimination against any employee, applicant for employment, or patron because of race, color, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, veteran status or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law.

Our mission is to connect and enrich communities by making ballet approachable, relatable, and fun, through professional and original productions and educational outreach.

Audition: A TU Dance Project with Choreography by Marcus Jarrell Willis

TU Dance is looking to engage male/male identified dance artists for live presentations and a film creation project this Spring with performances at The O’Shaughnessy in St. Paul, Minnesota on May 13-14, 2022. Choreographer Marcus Jarrell Willis will be working with a group of dancers for a nine-week rehearsal process to reimagine and expand upon his work Sensible Existence.

For this project, we are currently seeking:

  • Male/male identified dance artists with a vast range of technical versatility and strong partnering skills. A keen sense of rhythm and articulation of gestural language are essential.
  • Seasoned professionals to emerging dance artists are encouraged to audition.
  • Dancers that are currently authorized to work in the U.S.

Project Details:

  • Nine-week rehearsal process at TU Dance Center, St. Paul, Minnesota
  • March 14-May 14, 2022. 9:30am-4:15pm CST, Monday-Friday
  • Tech Week: May 9-14. Will include additional afternoon/evening rehearsals
  • Performances: Friday, May 13 and Saturday, May 14 at The O’Shaughnessy, St. Paul, Minnesota
  • Dancers will be compensated $600/week and hired as independent contractors
  • Airfare, housing, per diem and local transportation are not provided

Please submit your application by: February 11, 2022

To learn more visit: https://www.tudance.org/audition-willis-project/

Call for Artists with Disabilities: Apply for the Off-Kilter Cabaret

Off-Leash Area contemporary performances is pleased to announce a new call for submissions for our newest program, Off-Kilter Cabaret.

Off-Kilter is designed to highlight and support artists with disabilities, making space for and giving voice to artists with disabilities in the design and leadership of the program. The Off-Kilter Cabaret will be a 75-minute cabaret-style production, which, in this inaugural year, will be presented for four performances in the Barker Center for Dance on the U of MN West Bank campus June 9-12, 2022.

Artists are asked to create a 5-10 minute performance work that speaks to the theme of the inaugural Off-Kilter cabaret, “Organ Recital.” This is a paid performance opportunity.

Covid Policy and Precautions: All participating artists, Off-Kilter staff, and audience will be required to be fully vaccinated. Applying artists must share proof of vaccination with their application. Audience will be required to show proof of vaccination at the door. We will provide physically distanced seating and require participants to wear masks as they are able, and otherwise follow CDC and state guidelines at the time of the performances. We will remain in conversation with the participating artists to adapt as needed.

Deadline to apply: February 14, 2022.
The application is currently available on our website at www.offleasharea.org/off-kilter.

Zenon Dance Zone Performance and Technique Groups

Zenon Dance Zone is an intensive study and performance program that offers dancers the opportunity to study with professional dance instructors, create with local choreographers, and join a welcoming dance community.

Technique Group: Provides dancers the opportunity to enhance their creative and technical skills while exploring new dance styles with unlimited classes a week.

Performance Group: Provides dancers the opportunity to enhance their creative and technical skills while exploring new dance styles with unlimited classes a week. Performance Group includes an opportunity to create with local choreographers and perform in the Spring 2022 Showcase May 20-21, 2022 alongside local professional choreographers and dancers.

Welcoming Winter/Spring Zone Choreographers, Dustin Haug, Javan Mngrezzo and Chloe Nagle!

Dustin‘s rehearsals: Sundays, 2:00-4:00pm, in-person and Zoom, beginning February 6. February 6 – Zoom only.

Chloe‘s rehearsals: Mondays, 7:00-8:30pm, in-person, beginning February 7

Javan‘s rehearsals: Tuesdays, 7:00-8:30pm, in-person, beginning February 8

Benefits include unlimited classes for Winter/Spring Sessions. Payment plans and Xchange opportunities available. Visit Zenon Dance Zone for more details!