SUMMER SOMATICS SERIES
2023
With May recognized as Mental Health Awareness Month,
Karlovsky & Company Dance addresses the needs of body-mind
health and self-care through our annual Summer Somatics Series
of weekly somatic movement workshops.
Restore | Balance | Energize
The Summer Somatics Series provides weekly somatic movement
classes with the aim to help dancers and non-dancers alike
discover new practices for deepening your movement
experiences, enriching performance skills, enhancing
sensory awareness, and attending to self-care.
For movers of all types - 16+ and mature movers.
Somatic education contributes to improved awareness and
movement integration to experience more ease, comfort,
and confidence. A different somatic practice is featured each week
and presented by teaching specialists who are certified instructors
in their respective field.
Karlovsky & Company Dance is thrilled to collaborate with
these amazing local teachers and to provide you with a taste
of these invaluable somatic education experiences.
We look forward to seeing you!
SATURDAYS, 10:30am - Noon
Saturday, May 20: The Dance of Fluid and Spark
w/ Mary Ann Rund
Saturday, June 10 - Whole Vision & Mindful Movement
w/ David Marchant
Saturday, June 17 - Experience of Being -
The Alexander Technique w/ Dawn Karlovsky
MONDAYS, 6:30 - 8:00PM
Monday,May 22 - Cultivating Qi: Exploring the
Balance of Fire and Water w/ Dr. Kade Stotler
Monday, June 5 - Subtle Energy: Invite in the
Spirit of Ease in Transformation w/ Beckah Reed
Monday, June 12 - Therapeutic Movement for
Self-Integration w/ Elise Ringenberg
Monday, June 19 - The GYROTONIC EXPANSION
SYSTEM®® w/ Nicole Kropatsch
All classes will be held in-person at:
The Grandel Theatre (in the Grand Hall)
3610 Grandel Square, St. Louis, MO 63108
$90 - Full Access to all classes in the series
$15 per individual class
(Online Advance registration is strongly recommended
in order to manage class size.
Checks/Cash only for drop-in on
the day of the class)
These classes are appropriate for all movement levels and can
be adapted for individual needs. They are most suited for
adult populations; however, older teens under 18 years old
are welcome when accompanied with a parent or guardian.
Questions? Contact Dawn Karlovsky, founder and artistic director
of Karlovsky & Company Dance | 314-283-1851 or
email us at: info@karlovskydance.org
Embodied Movement of the Nervous System
Mary Ann Rund
Each of our body systems has their own portrait including cellular composition, weight/density, type of communication, connectivity, pathway. Yet, they are part of a whole that coordinates and responds and regulates. In this class we will explore the interface between the nervous and circulatory systems. How do they communicate, reflect, and support each other? How does this relationship color our movement choices? How do we connect with both systems and enhance the expression of each? This workshop will explore these questions and discover how movement potential is expanded with awareness of the interplay of these systems. Mary Ann Rund (aka Reis), MFA, SME, IDME is a dance artist and educator in the fields of dance, yoga and somatic movement whose work is greatly influenced by her Body-Mind Centering (BMC) training with Maryska Bigos and Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen as well as ongoing exchanges with BMC colleagues. She has been teaching for several decades at institutions including Washington University and Webster University in St. Louis, MO. Currently, Mary Ann is working with individuals to assist and support fluid communication of body and mind. Mary Ann regularly presents workshops and performances at the annual BMCA conferences and has served on several committees for the organization. Feel free to contact: marund@att.net
Experience of Being:
The Alexander Technique
Dawn Karlovsky
This is an experiential, movement-based workshop exploring how we perceive and sense ourselves while in activity using the principles of the Alexander Technique. F.M. Alexander, a pioneer of somatic education, regarded the "Self" as the Unity of Being. This class will focus on the dynamic relationship and integrated use of ourselves inspired by our thoughts, movement, breath, and deepened sensory awareness to experience harmonious flow. Participants will be guided through verbal prompts to awaken the senses and to discover the important role these senses play in coordinating our movement responses. Dawn Karlovsky is the Founder and Artistic Director of Karlovsky & Company Dance, a St. Louis-based contemporary modern dance company and 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Karlovsky’s movement language is somatically inspired emphasizing the detailed use of touch and spatial and sensory awareness. Dawn maintains a private teaching practice and also teaches The Alexander Technique at Washington University/University College as part of the Somatic Studies Program. Dawn is faculty in the Department of Dance at Webster University in St. Louis where she teaches modern dance, dance composition, and the Alexander Technique for performing artists in dance, music, and theater. Dawn holds an MFA in Choreography and BA in Dance Performance and is a nationally certified teacher of the Alexander Technique (AmSAT) since 2004. Dawn will be presenting and performing at the Body Mind Centering Conference this summer in Geneva, NY.
Whole Vision & Mindful Movement
David Marchant
The movement of our daily life is typically so fast, that our awareness can’t keep up with our intent. In this workshop we will slow down to experience an extraordinary and beautiful shifted mind state of presence and the sensation of movement within an expanded time frame. We will begin first with a deep dive into our vision and its evolutionary relationship to movement. We will learn extended visual strategies I call Whole Vision to enhance our experience of movement and connection with others and our environment. Finally, we will move meditatively together in this “cinematic” mode for an immersive experience I find deeply integrative of Self, other and place. David Marchant is Professor of the Practice at Washington University since 1994, where he teaches modern dance, composition and improvisation, and is a certified instructor of Alexander Technique teacher since 2004. Additionally, David is a site-specific performance artist along with collaborator Holly Seitz, developing an emergent process they call Somatic Ecology as a way of embedding oneself in natural environments through mindful movement to experience our nested relationship with nature. He was the first person to scientifically investigate contact improvisation as a therapy for Parkinson disease and has published two articles on this work. (see full article here: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2016.00137/full )
The GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM®®
Nicole Kropatsch
The GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM®® is a unique, holistic approach to movement. Some benefits of regular Gyrotonic practice include a healthier, more supple spine, increased range of motion, greater joint stability, improved agility and a deep internal strength. Gyrotonic sessions can be adapted to fit the needs of all ages and abilities from elderly patients, clients recovering from injury, all the way to highly skilled professional athletes. Nicole Kropatsch has a BFA in Dance Performance from Missouri State University and brings over 20 years of experience as a professional dancer and dance educator to her GYROTONIC® practice. Because of her passion for sharing the joy and understanding of movement with everyone she works with, and because of her experiences as a dancer, rehearsal director, artistic director, and dance educator, Nicole has the ability to meet clients where they are in order to help them gain understanding of their unique physical capabilities and how to apply the GYROTONIC® principles to their everyday lives. Now let’s get moving!
Cultivating Qi: Exploring the Balance of Fire and Water
Dr. Kade Stotler
In this workshop, we will use qigong & creative movement techniques to explore the balance between the elements of Fire and Water. The poignancy of Acupuncture medicine is its communal cultural lens which not only integrates & balances the metal, water, wood, fire, & earth elements within a person for individual health, but also offers a broader aspect of connecting this inner landscape to the outer world. Be prepared to move, introspect, be open to creative flow, interact, & learn techniques to bring home with you to cultivate a self-healing practice of your own.
Dr. Kade Stotler DACM, MSOM, BFA, L.Ac (They, Them, Theirs) is an activist, mover, healer, & queerbodied human who is excited to have recently returned to St. Louis. Kade is a trained herbalist & licensed acupuncturist who owns and operates Golden Oak Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine in Dogtown. They are a lover of anything outdoors especially hiking, backpacking, kayaking, & tree climbing, & love to spend time dancing or in their garden with their partner, chickens, cats & dog.
Subtle Energy:
Invite in the Spirit of Ease in Transformation
Beckah Reed
Participants access subtle energy, finding relaxation, rejuvenation and the opportunity for balance, discovering ways to reflect and support their personal energy. Come explore the chakras and energy fields, develop chi, promote healing through creativity, set intentions for one’s life and find ways to live with ease. Energy forms our thoughts, our physical manifestations. Absorb your-self and nature; sink into the possibilities of life. This is a process of active listening, with no expectations or judgements. Beckah Reed believes in the integration of body, mind, and spirit. She enjoys her work in somatics, focusing on transformation through subtle energies, inviting wholeness for groups and individuals for over two decades. She is a Master Reiki Practitioner with training in Hun Yuan Taiji and Qigong, Transcendental Meditation, as well as other healing modalities. Beckah has been a professor of dance at Webster University for 35 years. She worked as co-artistic director for GASH/VOIGT Dance Theatre (GVDT), an all women’s contemporary dance theatre ensemble, based in St. Louis. GVDT spent fifteen years self-producing their work, conducting educational residencies and international cultural exchanges. Beckah’s choreography, best described as theatre dance, draws on the use of props, voice, and the motivation of human interactions to create her pieces.
Therapeutic Movement for Self-Integration
Elise Ringenberg
Therapeutic Movement for Self-Integration is a group movement exploration class that draws from a multitude of Dance/Movement Therapy theoretical approaches, including Marian Chace’s work, Authentic Movement, Laban Movement Analysis, and Kestenberg Movement Profiling. This class is ideal for individuals interested in diving deeper into embodied self-care, mindful movement, and regulation of the nervous system. Participants will develop a greater awareness of sense of self and connection to others. Elise will support participants by serving as a facilitator and guide to exploration of movement through space. She will provide verbal prompts to support increased self-awareness, specifically correlating movement preferences to psycho-social-emotional processes. Elise brings a trauma-informed approach and incorporates her knowledge of the nervous system into her teaching practices. Come prepared to move your body, mind, and spirit! Elise Ringenberg (she/her/hers) is a Board Certified Dance/Movement Therapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner in-training, and Certified Pilates Teacher. She holds a Master’s degree in Dance/Movement Therapy and Counseling and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Modern Dance. Elise is excited to join Karlovsky & Company Dance for her sixth season. In addition to dancing and choreographing, Elise works as a psychotherapist at Emovere: Embodied Therapy, a group creative arts therapy practice in St. Louis. In support of her clinical work, Elise also leads workshops on trauma-informed care within a variety of education and treatment settings. Elise is grateful for the opportunity to continue dancing for herself as well as spreading the psychotherapeutic benefits of movement to others. She is passionate about bringing the body into the conversation and looks forward to connecting with you during Karlovsky & Company Dance’s Summer Somatic Series.