“Why do we dance?”

Everybody will give a different answer so, perhaps, the most beautiful question is

“Why would we not?”

5Rhythms and Open Floor are often described as movement practice but that makes it sound dry and dull.

Why has anyone ever danced? From the beginnings of history we moved to the drumming of hollow vessels, the shaking of a seed pod and the rhythmic beat of feet on the ground. And who knows who began to use dance in ritual and ceremony, to shake out some fear or excitement, to notice the exhilaration that arrives with drumming and movement.

Movement and dance are innate; small children sway and bounce to music with no need for a lesson.

It’s natural to move and dance; to allow feelings move us, to shake and stamp, whirl and leap, alone and with others.

Natural, individual, collective and innate.

Somehow many of us lost confidence in this natural instinct. Perhaps we believe it is something others do, professionals or ‘good dancers’. Or we don’t know where to go to dance in our particular body. All of these doubts are welcome.

But our confidence and freedom are just waiting for us to remember. We ‘practice’ moving with any and all feelings that come up to be included. We’re encouraged and so our courage grows. We realise that we can dance. As ourselves, not like anybody else; sedately, angrily, shakily, delightedly, nervously and with great and growing confidence in the naturalness.

We dance whilst being supported and guided to find all the freedom and sensitivity that we might have thought we’d lost.

It can be life-changing and life-enhancing and much more than we can imagine.

Trying to describe it is impossible. It is the difference between reading a good recipe and actually eating the meal.

I invite you to come and discover what freedom tastes like.