Julija Melnik (Vilnius-Alsace) – Master of Science in Education with 15 years experience in dance pedagogy (from hip-hop dance to argentine tango, from improvisation to sacred dervish dances), teacher of Samara Yoga, instructor of Choreographic Samadeva, Lou Yong Tao Te Qi and Gurdfjieff Dances, constellator by method of Idris Lahore. Since 2006 she has been developing and teaching contact improvisation (CI) in Baltic and in many other countries, including teaching at various CI festivals and conferences, and collaborating with various educational and artistic institutions.
She also explores other forms of improvisation and performance, and her search for movement is informed by practices of meditation, bodywork, dance therapy, Feldenkrais and Rosen method.
Julija studied contact improvisation with CI pioneers – Steve Paxton and Nancy Stark Smith, as well as Nina Martin, Andrew Harwood, Angela Donii, Joerg Hassman, Charlie Morrissey, Adrian Russi and many others. Improvisation and performances she also studied with Julyen Hamilton, Daniel Lepkoff, Nita Little, Alexander Girshon, Keith Hennessy, David Zombrano and others.
Dancing as a Human Being
Decide. Straighten up. Listen. Trust.
,,In the duet form, when you attune together, not with any ambition to get the dance started but really taking a moment to just connect <…> there could be a dance of such feathery lightness and such absolute security, absolutely beautiful.” – S.Paxton
There are many reasons for dancing. And many limiting beliefs for not dancing.
What if the only reason, the only permission for dancing is just the fact that you are a Human? We will travel through the evolution of the movement till we find the key to our full movement expression.
Contact improvisation requires not only the physical technique, but also training of attention. Thus we will train the ,,being” till we get the access to what is present in the moment in us and around us.
And finally, maybe the most important point – cultivation of quality relation with others. How do we connect? How to create the conditions for mutually satisfying dance?
Come to see, expand and transcend your own limits!
“Dancing is not just getting up painlessly, like a leaf blown on the wind; dancing is when you tear your heart out and rise out of your body to hang suspended between the worlds.” – Rumi
Information about other teachers is coming sooner or later 😉
