Dancing Lesson on Controlling Dancers' Moves

Dance Class Exercise on Maintaining Balance & Poise During Routines

Sep 15, 2009

Dancing Techniques in Using Gravity, Exzellente Bilder

Dance students must learn how to use gravity to their advantage if they are to enhance their dance moves.

One of the elements of how to learn dance is to use gravity to enhance the way students use their bodies, according to Robert Cohen’s book, The Dance Workshop, [George Allen & Unwin Publishers, 1986]. The dance teacher must ensure the students make proper use of their muscle groups and tendons whist performing a routine.

Learn to Dance via Awareness of Gravity

The dance instructor may first explain how infants learn about gravity when learning to lift their heads, rolling over, crawling, standing upright and finally by learning to walk. By adulthood, gravity is barely noticed during movement. Dancers, however, must learn to become aware of gravity again rather like they had during infanthood.

Exploring Body Postures During Dance Class

The dance teacher may engage students on a preliminary exercise on how gravity affects the body during different bodily positions. The following might by explored:

Lying prostrate on the back
Lying prostrate with knees up
Seated upright, legs crossed
Seated upright, head bent forwards
On the knees
On the hands and knees, facing downwards
Standing upright
Standing upright on one leg

The following questions might be explored:

Which points of the body are taking the most weight?
Which points of the body are taking the least weight?
Which muscle groups are working the hardest?
Which muscle groups are most relaxed?
Are there any counterbalancing forces involved, for instance, two opposing muscle groups working together to maintain the posture?

The object of the exercise is to raise students’ awareness of how gravity affects the body. The exercise may continue to apply during the students’ everyday lives, slouching on the sofa, or sitting at the table.

Dance Exercise on Combating Gravity

The dance teacher may take things a stage further by an exercise on walking up the stairs. Two approaches will show students starkly different ways on how to use the body.

To walk up the stairs slowly in a heavy manner as though the muscle groups can barely resist gravity and by putting maximum pressure upon each foot as the body heaves itself upwards.
To walk up the stairs by trying the opposite approach: keeping the body upright and the head up as though pulled by invisible strings. The muscles in the torso and the legs tightened to give the body a compact, self-contained and a centred feel. Imagery of someone pushing the body upwards from behind may be used. This will give sense of energy being directed up through the abdomen.

These two contrasting ways of experiencing gravity will give students a clear comparison on the incorrect and the correct way of using the body whilst dancing. By encouraging to practice the latter, dance students will move more effectively during their dance routines.

Dance Technique for Using Gravity During Dancing Class

Making effective use of gravity during dance moves will result in a better technique. The dance coach may encourage students to rediscover gravity whilst lying in different bodily positions and analysing how gravity affects their bodies. This can be taken further by moving the body in starkly different ways in order to experience gravity differently. By encouraging students to rediscover gravity, dance students are able to gain better control of their bodies whilst performing and to practice safely.

The copyright of the article Dancing Lesson on Controlling Dancers' Moves in Dance Education is owned by Rachel Wills. Permission to republish Dancing Lesson on Controlling Dancers' Moves in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.