Shelley Senter teaching

 

Let’s look back over the past few months at comments from various artists about teaching dance:

Shelley Senter (Brooklyn, NY)

teaching will most likely and most fortunately play a role in your dance career.  this is where dance artists walk the walk.  to articulate what you are 'up to' is one of the most profound learning experiences one can have.  an important principle of teaching (for me) is transparency: let your students in on your questions, your research, your willingness to not know (or perhaps your fear about not knowing).  a good teacher is not so much one who teaches things to others, but one who allows others to learn.  getting out of the way to allow students to learn (to try, to fail, etc.) is huge.

Tina Fehlandt (Brooklyn, NY)

Teaching is incredibly rewarding and a vocation unto itself.  Not every dancer is meant to teach.  Don’t do it just because you can or someone says you should.  If you make this decision, then be sure to give yourself the opportunity to experience all kinds of educational situations.  For example, it took some trial and error for me to discover that I didn’t enjoy teaching young children  – I greatly admire those who can – and that I really clicked with college age students regardless of their technical level.

Jill Patterson (Lakeville, MN)

Teaching is THE role. Teaching has allowed me to continue in my role as dancer, and it ensures that dance will live on as an art form, and that we will have audience members to witness what choreographers and performers want to share, I believe. I absolutely love teaching; it fuels me in many of the same ways that performing does. I lose myself in the classroom, forgetting the rest of the world for a few short hours, immersing myself in my students, wondering how I can relate the information to them more clearly, watching them struggle and then so obviously succeeding when they never thought their body would allow them to do what was asked. I work with both majors and non-majors and enjoy both experiences for completely different reasons. In the past I have earned a living teaching at three different high schools, over the course of five years of my career. I find high school engaging as well, but there is so much drama in high school! And while I was grateful for those experiences, I often found myself saying, “I just want to teach dance!” —- meaning there were so many other challenges to face in a public high school setting. However, I still keep in touch with many of my students from over the years. I have also also spent many a day teaching creative movement – THE HARDEST JOB in my book, by far! Teaching creative movement in the public schools is a huge component of what Ririe-Woodbury does, and I spent many weeks in the schools while with the company.

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